Chapter 10

Sephiroth frowned as he felt a buzzing coming from his pack. He paused and slipped it off his back and started to search in the bag. He pulled out a phone and raised an eyebrow. He had thought his phone was lost when he and Cloud had jumped into the river a while ago. He flipped it open and answered, "Yes?"

"Ah, finally!" Cid's voice filled his ears. Sephiroth gave a side-eye to Cloud. "I got your phone fixed, but I wasn't sure if it was working. It took a while to get through."

"Thank you," Sephiroth said. "What is it?"

"There's a truck by the old silo off the side of the road about ten miles west of Kalm Town. I figured you probably need it after searching for the tomb in the area."

"We've found it. I see the silo ahead." Sephiroth squinted his eyes. They had been walking through the trees, keeping in line with the road but staying out of sight. "Thank you."

"It might break down eventually, it's the best I can give you for now. It should get you where you need to go."

"Appreciate it," Sephiroth replied and nodded to Cloud, gesturing to the silo.

"All right. I'll let you go. Call me if you're in a bind." Then Cid hung up the phone.

Sephiroth slipped it into his pocket and pulled the pack up. "Cid has a truck for us at the silo. It should get us to our next destination, the volcano."

Cloud smiled, "That's kind of him."

He smiled at her, "Yeah. When all of this is over, we should reward him greatly." She laughed.

They found an old truck at the base of silo among several other abandoned cars. He was able to find the key in the visor and start it up.

"Oh good," Cloud commented as the engine roared to life and rumbled.

Sephiroth inspected the dashboard and tapped it. "Full gas, engine sound okay. Should be fine as long we don't push it too much." He put it in gear and backed the truck out of the lot and pulled onto the road and they were off.

Cloud pulled out the map and traced where they had been. "Volcano is right here… We'd have to either take the Corel road or Old Midgar highway."

"Forget Corel road. Too many Wutaians. They took the base there; we would be passing too close to the base. We'll have to take the Old Midgar highway."

"What about…" Cloud traced her finger farther northwest and peered at the name of the road. "Gongaga highway? It's a long way around."

"That's precisely why we're not going that way. It's too long. It will take us right into the Gongaga marshland, and it would be three days trip out of the way. We will have to go through Old Midgar and try to pass by without getting any attention, and we should be able to get to the volcano."

She began to close up the map and searched through her pack, pulling out a hoodie sweater and pulled it on and fixing her hair in a messy bun. "Hope we don't run into any trouble there."

"Yeah."

"The volcano, won't it be dangerous there?" She asked.

Sephiroth chuckled. "Not so much. It's active, but it hasn't erupted for a long time. There's a town there and an outpost. A lot of people hike the volcano for the thrill of it, and it's an attraction there. We can get a guide."

"Have you been there?"

"To the town, yes. But I haven't hiked the volcano yet." He glanced at her and smiled. "Though, Hojo did, a long time ago." He murmured as an afterthought.

"Really?" Cloud asked, "I remember Hojo. I never felt comfortable around him."

"I don't think anyone is. He knows his medicine, but he doesn't have a good bedside manner. Nor a father."

"Now we know he isn't your father. Do you wonder who your parents were?"

Sephiroth became silent for a long while. Cloud decided to let it go and turned her head away, watching the scenery of the passing land. She could see a herd of tall Anak grazing in the field. They looked majestic with the long neck and spiraled horns. They moved with grace on long powerful legs.

He finally replied, "I do wonder who my parents were. Were they good people? Was my mother kind and beautiful and my father strong and wise? I keep imaging them to be someone the opposite of Jenova and Hojo. I don't know why."

She turned to him and scooted over the bench and sat beside him, resting her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her. She said, "I am sure they are. I can see it now, your mother was a beautiful woman, you might have gotten her eyes. Kind and loving. I bet she loved you so much. And your father. He might have been proud of you." She glanced up and poked his nose. "You might have gotten his handsome feature."

He chuckled, "That's nice to know."

"Maybe we'll find out who they were when everything is over." She said and fiddled with the radio, finding a station and closed her eyes as the music filled the cab.

He glanced down at her and squeezed her gently. He turned his gaze back to the road.


The truck's engine started to make sputtering noise as they exited the tunnel. Sephiroth grimaced as he pressed the gas pedal a little more and silently urged the truck to keep going. "I think the truck is losing gas faster than it should."

Cloud pointed ahead of them, "That's Old Midgar."

They could see several warriors barricading the road ahead. She hurried and pulled her hood on and sat back. He did the same and eased the gas, allowing the truck to slow down.

"Halt!" One of the warriors flagged him down.

Sephiroth stopped the truck and rolled the window down halfway, and glass got stuck. "Sorry, the window won't go all the way down."

The warrior frowned, peering into the cab, getting a look at the two of them. "Who are you and where are you heading?"

Sephiroth gave Cloud a glance and replied, "I'm Jack, and this is Lucy, my wife. We're passing by to visit her mother on the other side of Old Midgar. Apparently, my truck needs gas."

The warrior grunted and waved them on, "Go on."

Cloud kept her head straight and whispered. "They just let us by."

Sephiroth murmured, "I know. They're not very smart." He drove into Old Midgar, and the truck sputtered to stop and died. "Look like we're going have to push the truck to the gas station there and give Cid a call." They got out of the truck and stretched. He waved for her to sit on the driver's side and placed it in neutral. He pushed the truck toward the gas station while Cloud steered.

"Surrounded by Wutaians, worse place to be." Sephiroth wiped his brow as Cloud put the truck in park. He reached into his pocket for his phone when he heard a voice behind him. "What's going to be, honey?" He turned to find a middle age woman in a red leather jacket and tight shorts. Her blond hair was tied up and topped with a cap that indicated she worked at Highwind shop. She was snapping gum and grinning at him. He had to admit she was gorgeous for her age. She cocked her hip sideways and rested her hand on it. He could see a wrench on the other hand. "Gas? You need gas?"

Sephiroth blinked and nodded. "Actually, more than gas. The truck's broken down."

She walked up closer to him and peered up at his face. He stepped back but hit the truck. She chuckled, waving her wrench toward the truck. "I worked on that truck before, you know." She turned around and gestured for him to follow. "Come on in, tell princess to come along too."

Cloud frowned, "Sure we can trust her?"

He gave Cloud a look and shrugged. "See her hat? Highwind. But I wouldn't be careless."

They followed the woman in her shop and found her in the office in the back.

"Cid said to keep watch for you two in case if you guys end up here." She said as she closed the door behind them. "I'm Scarlet. An old friend of Cid." She sat down and kicked her feet up on her desk.

"Cid did mention having friends across the kingdoms." He said. "The truck broke down, and we still have ways to go."

She smiled and waved her hand. "No problem! I'll have that truck fixed up in a jiffy. Though it won't be ready until tomorrow." She placed her feet down and pulled the phone closer, "My sister, Shera, runs the inn in town and I'll have her put you both up for the night." She dialed and waited a moment before speaking again, "Shera! I have a couple here that need a place to stay for the night." She nodded, "Mm. Honey," she looked up to him, "She said she has one room left, and it has one bed." Sephiroth gestured it was fine. "Mm, yes he said he'll take it. No. Remember what I told you? It's them. That's right. All right, I'll be coming over with them." She hung up the phone and stood up. "Let's get you both settled in. Leave it to us to take care of you."

Cloud asked, "What about the Wutaians? They're everywhere."

Scarlet blew a bubble, and it popped before she replied. "If you made it past the checkpoint at the end of the tunnel, you can relax a little bit. They've been here for nearly three weeks, and from what I hear, they're getting sick of standing around and doing nothing. So expect them to be a bit lax."

They reached into the truck, and Sephiroth pulled both packs out and handed Cloud her pack. "Lax or not, they are trained to be alert for as long as they live." He said seriously, he wasn't going to relax on words of a person he just met.

Scarlet nodded. "Just keep your heads down and follow me." She swagged across the street and slipped into an alley that leads them right into a courtyard. She waved at a passerby and skipped up to the inn and entered. It was a small two-story inn with several rooms on the second floor. Sephiroth could see that the glass in the windows was nonexistent but had shutters and overlooked the city. Old Midgar was known to be warm and sunny almost year round.

"Shera, dear. Here are our guests." Scarlet approached the counter, greeting a plain woman in her mid-40s. Sephiroth realized they were twins and a polar opposite of each other. While Scarlet wore revealing clothes and bright red lipsticks, Shera wore no make-up and dressed in a simple romper dress with an oversized cardigan that covered her up modestly.

Shera smiled at them and handed a key. "Welcome to Old Midgar. Your room will be at the end of the hallway. If you need anything, call room service."

Sephiroth took the key and nodded his thanks. He turned to Scarlet and asked, "When should we expect the truck to be done?"

Scarlet shrugged. "Probably mid-morning."

Cloud smiled. "Thank you, Scarlet and Shera. We appreciate it."

Scarlet scoffed, waving her hand. "Ah, darling!" She smiled, "You're doing us a favor. Kick those ShinRa's asses. We've suffered under their rules in the last twenty-five years. Insane increases in taxes, underpaid employment, and lousy healthcare? Come on, it was better before ShinRa's rule."

Sephiroth stared at her stoically. He had heard enough complaints in his army about the same issues and didn't realize it also impacted the rest of the population across the kingdom. "We will."

Scarlet waved them farewell and sauntered out. Sephiroth and Cloud went up to find their room.

As soon they got in the room, she made a beeline for the bed and flopped down on it. He closed the door and locked it and slid the deadbolts in place. He hurried over to the shutters, looking out to the streets and closed it and latched the hooks. He worked his way around the room, inspecting and finally after thirty minutes, he sat down next to Cloud.

"Done with your inspection?" She asked.

"Yes. We should be all right laying low here for the night. Once the truck is ready, we're out of here immediately."

She sat up. "We're gonna need some supplies, we ran low on some stuff."

"Call room service and see if they can collect the supplies we need." He told her sharply and stood up. "I'm going to take a shower."

Cloud reached for the phone indifferently. "Sure."

When he got out of the shower, she greeted him with a smile, sitting back on the bed in tank top and underpants, eating chips. "Shera is having her nephew collect the supplies for us. I also ordered dinner for us."

"I am sorry if I seemed a bit harsh earlier." He said as he sat next to her on the bed and took some chips when she offered the bag to him.

Cloud leaned her head on his shoulder and replied, "Nothing to forgive. You had a long day, and I know being here surrounded by the Wutaian can make you tense." She sat up and turned to him on all four and smiling seductively. "How about a little fun before dinner arrive? We got an hour."

Sephiroth raised a silver eyebrow. "An hour?"

She hummed and peeled the towel away from his lap and looked down, "I know who agreed..."

He groaned as she ducked her head. "Ah!" The last coherent thought he had was wondering where the hell she learned to do what she was doing to him.

Vincent watched Lady Yuffie inspect the library. He was grateful for her company. He was getting antsy and wounded up staying in the palace. It wasn't the same as when he used to live there, he supposed it was all the prisoners he had locked away in different rooms across both wings. Commander Zack and the princess' lady in waiting, Aerith, were in the east wing while he had King ShinRa locked up in the west wing, closer to the dungeon. Prince Rufus had been stubborn and inconsolable, which he had kept him in his own wing. The Turks were closer to the king. He had not once visited the King; it did not matter to him. Old Roscoe ShinRa had nothing to offer. Of all of them, it was Hojo and Jenova that proved to be dangerous enemies, and he had them locked in the dungeon separately and heavily guarded. He did not trust them.

Lady Yuffie turned to him, holding a book. "You know, I just realized something…" She placed the book down on the table beside her. "In the entire palace, I have not seen one Book of Oracles. Don't this kingdom follow the belief of the Oracles?"

He shook his head. "Not since that night. King ShinRa and the other houses had the book banned and burned every copy in the kingdom. They even went to extend to close down the temples and exiled all of the oracles. They were very throughout. Any generations younger than my son knows nothing of the Oracles."

"So, your son has no idea?"

"I'm inclined to believe he has not been taught." He went to her side and tugged her chin up. "But don't worry, once he is here, I will be sure that he learns and have him reintroduce the Oracles into Asgard once again."

She looked up at him and smiled. "That's good."

Vincent looked up as a warrior entered and bowed to them. He stepped back from Lady Yuffie and gave the warrior full attention. "Yes?"

"They were tracked to Kalm Town. They slipped away before we could find them. However, there were reports of Ramuh appearing in the sky in the north momently."

"So, they've found Ramuh." Vincent murmured. "Why are they collecting the summons?" He rubbed his chin as he thought.

"Sir," the warrior continued, "He has been seen with armors now."

"Armors?" Lady Yuffie asked. "What is he talking about?"


Vincent pulled a book out from his shirt pocket. Lady Yuffie recognized it to be the book he always carried around and watched as he flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for. He held it out to the warrior and asked, "Is this what he was seen with?"

The warrior looked up at the image in the book, it was a drawing of a king with the armors. "Yes sir, that very armors. And the bangles, I've seen him with them too."

"Thank you. You may return to searching for him. I would recommend you to move the search toward Old Midgar and the volcano."

Lady Yuffie turned to him as the warrior left. "All right, tell me. What is that book? You've always carried it around and writing stuff in it."

He chuckled. "I suppose I can tell you now. It's my notes on the Kings of Old. I was not considered the true king, but a consort king. Lucrecia was the one who carried the bloodline of the Kings of Old. I studied, spending a lot of time in this library," He gestured to the grand room with thousands of books on the shelves that lined the walls and rising nearly three stories high. "Since I knew we were going to have a son, I made it my mission to research on everything I can find on the Kings of Old and recorded them here. The bloodline went back nearly thousands of years; however, there were only seven kings born to the bloodline and each one of them has a legacy to pass on to the next king. When Sephiroth become a king eventually, he will create a new legacy and pass it on to the next king after he passes."

She took the book and flipped through it, surprised to see so many details crammed into the pages. Drawings, notes, and references. "You have collected a lot."

"Unfortunately, the only thing I was not able to collect was the locations of the tombs."

"Why? Shouldn't there be a record anywhere?" She raised her arms to the library around her.

He chuckled. "No, love. That's the thing when a king dies, he is not buried, but burned at a pyre. The queen will choose the location of the tomb and erect a statue in the king's image and leave a summon. It has never been recorded, but passed through words. Lucrecia never told me the location and she was the last to know and it is forever lost."

She paused at a page, and her eyes widened. "This one, it's in Wutai."

"Yes. The only one I know of. You see, that was King Gast, Lucrecia's father. It was Lucrecia's wish to erect his tomb in Wutai."

"That means, General Sephiroth and Princess Cloud will end up in Wutai eventually."

"If they continue the pattern and find the other tombs in the next few days."

"Shouldn't you let them find the tombs? It seems to be their goals." She asked, handing his book back.

He shook his head. "No. They must be here before the blood moon. Finding the tombs takes time, and they have no knowledge of where they are."

She crossed her arms and protested, "But they have found," She ticked her fingers, "Four so far. That's a lot."

Vincent frowned and turned away, stalking toward the window and stood there. "It's a fool quest. What purpose would that fulfill if they find all of the tombs? The world is in danger!"

Lady Yuffie sighed. "You are stubborn. I know you my whole life, apparently, your son is stubborn too!" She stomped her foot down. "It's too late for me to withdraw my warriors. Do what you want. I am leaving. I'm going to wait for them in Wutai. They are going to make it there, and that's when I will tell them about the blood moon. You stay here for all you want." She huffed and turned around, leaving the library but not without slamming the doors.

Vincent winced as the slam echoed. He sighed and gripped the book tight in his hand. "We'll find them. We have to."


Note: Thank you for being patient, I know I haven't updated in a while. I have been busy with other project and summer break. I might be rolling with this story to get it finished and out of the way.

How do you like it so far? Let me know. Thanks!