Vincent sat on the outside of the huntress' window ledge as the sun peered over the horizon. He watched the woman sleep restlessly until the sun rose further, casting his haunting shadow into her room, covering her in darkness like a blanket. The bronze skinned beauty opened her emerald eyes slowly when the gentle warmth of the sun stopped caressing her face, only to be met by the sun's radiance once more. Must have been a bird..She thought to herself, as she guessed what caused the shadow that vanished no sooner than it had arrived.
In the next room, Claire woke to an empty bed. She rubbed her hand across his side of the bed, feeling the last lingering bit of heat left behind by the blonde who was nowhere to be seen. Wondering if he'd gone down for breakfast, the pinkette changed quickly and trotted down the stairs, only to be met with Vanille; who was destroying the kitchen in an attempt to make pancakes.
"Morning!" Vanille beamed. "Pancakes?"
"I'll stick to toast.." Claire said after inspecting the pancakes the bubbly red head had made. "Have you seen Cloud?"
"Yeah. He went for a walk about ten minutes ago. Said you looked to peaceful to disturb." She answered as she attempted to flip her pancake, sticking it to the ceiling.
Cloud walked through the dry and dusty tracks at the back of the house and entered the large mass of dead trees, scanning the branches as he walked, determined not to let his ghost like friend sneak up on him like usual.
"I see I was unsuccessful in my attempt to go unnoticed..." Vincent's deep voice mumbled from above him.
"I'm afraid so.. Catch." The blonde said as he threw an apple up to Vincent, who stayed perched on one of the thickest branches.
"You haven't told her?" The former turk asked.
"Fang? No.. If I had I'd imagine she'd have burned the tree's down." Cloud smirked. "So what's the plan?"
"I intend to keep an eye on her.. She seems... Vulnerable.." Vincent said.
"From a distance?" The cerulean eyed man asked.
"It's safer.. For everyone.." The crimson caped man said solemnly.
"You mean Chaos? I thought you had control of it?"
"It becomes active during heightened emotions.. I can control and utilize the demon's power when I'm angry. But when I'm with Fang I can feel It's wicked consciousness break free and mine pushed to one side.." Vincent said.
"I see.. And what do you plan on doing about it?" Cloud said.
"I have spoken to Rufus.. It may be possible to remove the beast and seal it into materia.. Then I can be rid of this cursed gift." The former turk said, despising his immortality.
The pair continued their conversation until the rotting woodland was sent into darkness by Cid's new airship that hummed above, casting a shadow on the land. Not wanting to be discovered by the others; who's lips where not as tight as the blonde, Vincent gave Cloud a thankful nod and disappeared deeper into the forest. The ropes on the airship fell next to the house as the blonde reappeared from behind the treeline, ready to greet his friends.
"Cloud!" Yuffie smiled when she rappelled from the airship, covering her mouth as she landed to stop the vomit. "urgh... I still hate those things.."
"Still have motion sickness?" Cloud said, placing a comforting hand on her back.
"Yeah.. that idiot's piloting didn't help. Waited till we all got comfy to test his evasive maneuvers.. Jerk..." The young ninja groaned.
"Quit ya moanin' squirt!" Cid barked as he slid down the rope.
Barret, who had Marlene clinging to his back; was the next to descend from the ship followed by Tifa who waited at the bottom for Denzel like a worried mother as he demanded her went down on his own. As he repelled down the thick rope, his eyes caught Claire's, who was walking out of the house with a half eaten piece of toast. She gave the boy a quick smile and he loosened his grip on the rope slightly, falling quicker until he reached the bottom, landing in a cool pose.
"You givin' me flashbacks of that cocky idiot jumpin' off a train." Barret said to Denzel as he had a flashback of Cloud leaping off the train during their first mako reactor bombing.
"Really?!" Denzel smiled from ear to ear with pride.
"It ain't a complement..." Barret shook his head.
"Did you say hi to Vincent for me?" Claire whispered in Clouds ear as she watched Yuffie raise her fists at Cid, ready to give the pilot a beating.
"How did you?.." The blonde said in surprise.
"Mako eyes.. Might wanna tell him to ditch the bright red cape if he wants to stay concealed." Claire replied.
"You've not told Fang have you?" Cloud questioned.
"No, She'd probably burn the trees down with him in it." She answered with a straight face."What's so funny?"
"Nothing." Cloud laughed. Not just me who thinks it then..
"Cloud, what did you bring us here for?" Tifa interrupted with a tired Marlene in her arms.
"Let's go inside.. I'll explain everything." Cloud smiled as he lead them to the house, stopping at the door. "Anybody who values their head would be wise not to mention Vincent.."
Everyone piled into the house, passing Vanille who was on her ninth attempt at a pancake. She pointed them towards one of the largest rooms in the house that contained a bitter and angry Fang. Cloud entered the room which contained a large, rectangular table that looked like it had been varnished in blood. At the head of the table sat the huntress, slumped in one of the dozen chairs that surrounded it with her slender bronze legs resting on it's smooth wooden surface.
"Great.. What do you all want?.." Fang moaned as she looked over the materia warehouse blueprint's she had printed out last night.
"I want to go into enemy territory.. There's people there fighting the Disciples but if the Disciples are getting close to making Soldier strength troops they won't last long." Cloud said as he took a seat on the opposite end of the table.
"Do what you want, I'm going here." The huntress said bluntly as she slid a large map across the table to the blonde.
"It's only a few miles from where I want to go.. Why don't we split into two teams?" The blonde suggested.
"I don't need your help.."
"Listen you moody witch! I'm getting' tired of looking at your miserable face. Now we're helpin' you or you ain't goin' anywhere!" Cid barked as he stormed over to Fang who was now on her feet and in his face.
"You want me to beat that smug look off your face Highwind?" Fang said in a calm but sinister voice.
"I ain't had a cigarette in weeks, I'd like to see you try!" The pilot snapped back.
"Hmph.." She huffed before sitting back down. "Do what you want..."
"Well that was... Intense.." Barret said as he took a seat as far away from Fang and Cid as he could find.
"What can I say, I have a way with women." Cid joked as he sat next to the huntress and threw his boots onto the table.
Claire watched Fang roll her eyes at the pilot but she could also see the corner of her lips turn up into a faint smile. She sat on the arm of the blonde's chair as everyone else took a seat around the table, waiting for Cloud to speak again. The cerulean eyed man looked around the room and counted who was present. Me, Claire, Fang, Tifa, Yuffie, Barret and Cid.
"Okay.. Barret can come with me and Claire. Yuffie and Cid can go with Fang." Cloud said as he looked over the aerial photographs of the land.
"Erm.. What about me?" Tifa asked, trying to hide how annoyed she was that she hadn't been included.
"I need you here to keep Vanille and the kids safe. The town was making me nervous after the TV broadcast.. It's the only way I could keep you all safe.."
"Fine." She huffed leaving the room with Marlene. "You coming Denzel?"
"I wanna watch this." He answered honestly.
Claire watched Tifa leave the room, slamming the door behind her in annoyance but her attention soon returned to the pile of papers across the table that Fang and Cid were arguing over. Cloud sighed as their no nonsense personalities clashed due to just how alike they were and Yuffie ignored the pair and observed the map for possible entry points.
"That's the best way in." The huntress said, pointing to the eastern wall of the complex on the map.
"Like hell it is! That's the furthest away from the main warehouse! The west wall would be better." Cid argued.
"What the hell would you know?! You're a pilot not a soldier!" Fang fired back.
"And you're just a woman wearin' a ridiculous scarf!"
"Erm... Wouldn't the north wall be better?" Denzel interrupted timidly. "In all of these surveillance photos there's guards apart from this one with the gray building in it.." The boy said, pointing to a small pile of photo's that the pair had overlooked in their argument.
"Ya know what... I think the kid's right." Cid said, comparing the photographs with the blue prints.
Denzel looked over to Cloud and Claire with a sense of smug pride, earning himself a smile and a thumbs up from the blonde and a wink from the pinkette.
"Alright it's settled. Get yourselves ready, we set off in an hour." Fang said, rising from her seat and leaving.
Almost an hour later, Barret had hoisted up the last of the supplies that would help them in their battle whilst Yuffie was giving Fang an extensive materia lesson on Cloud's order, much to the annoyance of Cid who did not want her practicing magic inside the ship. Soon after, the spear wielding pilot set off but not before Fang's unwanted guardian angel, Vincent had managed to smuggle himself on board.
"Yo Cid! I gotta question." Barret shouted up to the pilot who had a grin plastered across his face that appeared every time he was flying. "How are we gonna get close to where we need to be without gettin' shot outta the sky?"
"Being the genius that I am I stole the data on the stealth technology Rufus and his CIA were working on and perfected it." He said smugly. "I can make the ship completely invisible."
"Really?" Cloud said in amazement.
"Your damn right I can, kid. Only works when your going slow or stopped though... I haven't found a processor core capable of keeping it active at speed."
"You should speak to Hope. He's a computer wiz." Claire said. "How long till we're there?"
"Even at top speed we're gonna be a few hours. Park your asses for a bit."
Not wanting to put up with Cid's abrasive personality for hours, Claire left the bridge with Cloud in her wake to find somewhere where they could just sit, undisturbed for the next few hours. The pinkette lead him to the outer deck, only to be met by Yuffie, who was on her hands and knee's with her head over the railings, vomiting periodically.
"Here.." Cloud whispered softly as he took a knee next to yuffie and pulled out a small packet of pills.
"You remembered?.." Yuffie said as she took the pill's; so happy that her sickness would stop, albeit temporarily. "Thanks, Cloud.." She smiled weakly as the tablets slowly began to take effect and she caught her breath. "I'll give you two some peace.."
"I'll have to keep my eye on that one." Claire said jokingly.
"hmm?" Cloud frowned.
"She likes you."
"She doesn't." The blonde dismissed. "She just gives me less grief than the rest because I'm nice to her."
"Yeah yeah, don't you go swapping me for a younger model." She teased as she lay down on the polished wooden deck and listened to the gentle hum of the engines.
Cloud lay beside her, staring up at the clear blue sky, enjoying the silent company Claire provided. After nearly four hours the pair where fast asleep, the only sign of life being the occasional twitch when the wind changed direction and blew across their bare skin. Their serene slumber was not to be however, as the bellowing voice of Cid Highwind on the intercom system woke them abruptly.
"Get yer asses to the bridge!" He shouted.
"Is he always this irritating?" Claire yawned.
"Pretty much.. His heart's in the right place though." The blonde answered.
"How do you always see the best in people?" She asked, still frustrated with the pilot.
"They supported me during one of the toughest times in my life.. I guess I can overlook their flaws.. Doesn't mean I don't think about killing them in their sleep every once in a while." Cloud laughed. "Come on. Let's go see whats up."
Cloud ushered the reluctant pinkette inside and returned to the bridge where everyone was waiting. Cid set the airship's autopilot and set the stealth cloak up before leaping from the wheel and into the middle of the group, ready to give one of his speeches.
"Alright! Listen up! Ship's now hidden so we should be able to get real close. I'm reading around a thousand lifesigns straight ahead so it's safe to assume that's your mini war." He said, nodding to the blonde. "No idea what percentage of that thousand is hostile but as its us lets assume 99%." Cid smirked, getting a laugh from the others. "I'll fly over real slow and real low but I ain't stoppin' so get ready to jump. Then me, Yuffie and moody ass will go mess up that materia factory. Questions?"
"Hey!" Fang shouted, punching the pilot in the arm.
"Good, no questions.. Right, you three get to the deck and get ready." Cid said.
"Wait!" Yuffie shouted. "The materia you told me to bring!" She said as she dragged a large metallic box across the floor.
Cloud smiled and knelt besides the box, unlocking it before he lifted the heavy lid to reveal an arsenal of materia. He picked up several green orbs and a red one before shutting the lid and standing again.
"Here.." He said to Yuffie, Cid and Fang. "A mastered quake materia each.. Cid can take my cure and Yuffie..." The blonde said as he handed over a red orb to the young woman. "Don't loose it.."
"I won't!" She shouted in happiness. "Pinky promise!" The ninja smiled, holding out her little finger.
Cloud sighed and shook his head, imagining it would be the last time he ever saw his titan materia. He did not have time to instil his displeasure if she lost it when Barret tapped him on the shoulder, signaling it was soon time to jump.
Cloud picked up the box of materia and followed Claire and Barret back onto the outer deck and looked down on the battle that was raging below. A force of nearly a thousand Disciple soldiers armed with a mixture of rifles, mortars, crossbows and machetes where cutting through the rebel warriors that where armed with swords that greatly resembled on of his, the mursame. Even from the air he could smell the blood and burning flesh that covered the ground below. At the front of the Rebel group stood a large man in strange plated armor that was coloured with black enamel. Purple layers of silk between the plates and a large crescent moon on his helmet where the only thing that distinguished him from the others of his clan. To his left and right stood the two hooded figures that he had seen talking to Fang the previous night.
The phoenix airship got closer and closer to the center of the battlefield but was still high in the air. Cloud watched the rebel leader cut through two of the enemy soldiers that advanced on him, dropping them to the ground instantly. His minor victory was short lived however, when a crossbow bolt found its way though the mass of people and into the man's shoulder, punching through the armour like it was paper. The man snapped the arrow shaft that stuck out of his shoulder and continued his charge; only managing a few steps before another bolt found it's way into the man's thigh, bringing him crashing down. The blonde watched on as a Disciple soldier marched across the battlefield with a crossbow on his back and a machete in his grip, ready to take his prize. The head of the rebel leader.
Without thinking, Cloud leaped over the railings and raised his sword above his head, letting the anger at what he was witnessing build. Not worrying about how fast he would hit the ground, the cerulean eyed man brought the sword down with all of the force he could muster, cutting the man in half and continuing the slice deep into the ground, splitting the earth in front of him and creating a large crevice that swallowed up around a dozen enemy soldiers. The injured Rebel leaded lifted his head slowly when the ground shook to find a small crater at his knees. Heavy looking boots stood in the center, connected to baggy black pants with a cloak that hung from one hip. His eyes continued to climb until they were met with the back of the man's spiky blonde hair. It can't be...
Cloud pulled his sword out of the ground and rested it on his right shoulder before turning to face the rebel leader who was close to tears when his first thoughts where confirmed.
"Cloud!? Cloud Strife?!"
"Do I know you?" Cloud asked.
The man didn't answer but removed his helmet instead.
"GODO?! You're alive?!" Cloud said in shock.
"You remembered me... Tell me.. Is my daughter still alive?" He asked with a hope in his eyes that only a parent could have.
"She is, sir.." The blonde smiled.
Godo could not hold back the happy tears at the news that the daughter he has been unable to find for so long was alive and well. Cloud didn't have the heart to tell him she was less than a hundred feet away just moments ago but promised himself that he would reunite them before the day ended. Kneeling down beside Yuffie's father, the blonde healed his wounds as Claire and Barret made their way to him; the latter carrying the box of materia he had forgotten in his haste to help.
"You're one reckless son of a... Godo?! Is that you?!" Barret shouted as he sent a wave of bullets towards the enemy.
"It is indeed. Am I to assume that they sent for you?" Godo said, pointing to the two hooded figures that were still in the middle of the battle.
"Yeah.. Do you know who they are?" Cloud asked.
"I do not know their names and they do not remove their hoods, I have seen mako eyes under the man's hood.. that I am sure of.. the other is a woman.. very caring and sympathetic to our ways despite her affinity for technology- It looks like they are regrouping! Samurai! Get in formation!" Godo roared, his words causing instant action.
"Samurai?" Claire asked.
"It means 'to serve' miss. We serve the memory of our lost home of Wutai. Our home may be destroyed but nothing shall destroy our memory of it."
"Hey! You still remember how to use this stuff?" Cloud asked, kicking the box of materia over to Yuffie's father. "We'll hold them off, divide that between your best and join when you're ready."
Godo gave Cloud an appreciative nod as he ran into battle with the fusion sword by his side, heading straight for a mass of Disciple's that ran towards the hooded archer. He ducked under the first man's blade and punched him in the gut, dropping him on his back as he dodged a crossbow bolt from a distant soldier that began to panic as he attempted to reload the crossbow. He locked the bowstring back and took a bolt from the quiver and began shakily trying to place it in the groove and nock it onto the string.
"Hey.." Claire whispered into the man's ear, causing him to spin on his heels and fire his crossbow blindly, hitting one of his own troops in the chest just before the rose haired beauty pushed her buster sword through his torso. "Hey, Cloud! Who's Godo? You seem like you know him." She shouted across the battlefield to the blonde as she cut through a Disciple machete like it was made of tin foil.
"Godo is Yuffie's father!"
"Really!? No wonder she never found him! You'd have to be nuts to come here!" She laughed realizing she had just called them both nuts. "Mortar! Look out!" She screamed at Cloud as she watched the explosive begin its decent over him.
Cloud never herd Claire over the sound of gunfire and clashing steel and held his ground against nine soldiers that circled him like vultures, waiting for him to make a move. The pinkette ran towards him, slicing the arm of an enemy solder off and using another as a stepping stone to launch herself into the air. With her spare hand she reached into the back of her skirt and pulled out the pistol she had taken with her at the start of they journey. Still in mid air, Claire took aim at the explosive shell that would fall on the blonde and squeezed the trigger until a bullet left the barrel, blowing up the mortar in mid air as she felt the slide push another round into the chamber.
Barret fought on the other side of the battlefield, enjoying the action that had been sparse in his life for quite some time. He enjoyed the quiet life with his adopted daughter Marlene but on the adrenaline fueled battlefield he smiled to himself as he ran, mixed in with Godo's samurai towards the enemy.
(JUST NORTH OF MATERIA WAREHOUSE)
"Okay! Jump!" Cid shouted as he threw himself over the side of the airship, landing just before the treeline near the north wall.
As soon as Yuffie and Fang landed beside him, the three sprinted to the towering stone wall that looked like it would stop a train. They could see the roof of the main building that contained all of the materia and the gray building that was nearest to the wall that Denzel pointed out. Yuffie took a few steps back and sprinted up the wall, gripping the top and pulling herself up, just enough to peer over.
"The kid was right, no guards." The ninja whispered. "Come on."
Fang threw her spear at the wall, sticking it into the stone three quarters of the way up. After a short run up to the wall, she jumped off it and gripped her spear, using it to pull herself up.
"Come on, old man." Fang shouted as quietly as she could.
After five minutes of swearing under his breath, Cid finally managed to scale the wall and sat on the top of it while he caught his breath. Fang, who was the first to jump down, crouched behind a metal door that led into the gray building they would start their search at. The huntress was about to open the door when Cid tapped her on the shoulder with something cold and metal. A silenced pistol.
"Nice one." Fang nodded as she grabbed the handle and turned. Locked... "Don't suppose you have a lock pick too?"
"Of course, never leave home without it." Cid winked before standing up and kicking the door in. "Opens every door, just like a skeleton key." He grinned as he wiggled his boot in Fang's face.
"CID!" Yuffie scalded. "Someone could have heard that!"
"Yeah, yeah.. Come on.."
The two women shook their heads and creeped into the building, scanning the corners for hostiles while Cid casually walked behind them with his spear over his shoulder.
"Look at that. It's huge." Fang said pointing to the tank in the middle of the room.
"Well.. I don't like to brag... Oh, you mean the tank.. Yeah that means business all right.." Cid said, earning him a disgusted look from the huntress.
"Shut up and check it out, idiot." Yuffie ordered.
Cid rested his spear against the tank's tracks and climbed into the artillery vehicle through the small opening at the top. After a few minutes of snooping, he returned to the others with his findings.
"Its a mako powered tank. But look at this.." Cid said, taking a shell he took from the tanks cannon and pulling it apart. "They're crystallizing mako and mixing it with the gunpowder.. That makes one hell of a bang."
"How big a bang are we talking?" Fang asked.
"I'd say five of these tanks could take the capitol city." Cid guessed.
"Great... We'll have to deal with it on our way out.." The brunette sighed.
The trio proceeded through the building, making mental notes of where every door was or piece of potential cover should the need arise. At the opposite end of the room was a door that would lead them to their destination; the main warehouse. They approached it with caution and Yuffie peered through the keyhole to check if the coast was clear.
"There's a few guards but they all walk up and down the same routes.. I say we have an eight second window to get to the nearest cover." The young ninja calculated. "As soon as I open that door, you both need to be behind me, moving low and quick. Ready?"
Fang gave her the thumbs up, signaling that she was ready and Cid gave a nod so Yuffie opened the door and sprinted to the nearest line of wooden crates that filled half of the warehouse. Cid placed his hand against the rough wooden crate he was hiding behind, not needing to look inside to know it was full of materia.
"I can feel the stuff through the box.. Must be hundreds just in this one crate.." Cid whispered.
"I know... I have to destroy it no matter what the costs.." Yuffie replied.
"We need to take out the guards first. I count six.. Two snipers on the platform above and four patrolling the floor.." Fang said as she pointed them out. "We need to take the snipers first. There's more chance of them spotting us. You two take the left flank, I'll take the right. Use your radio when your in position."
Yuffie nodded and tapped the pilot on the shoulder to follow as she used the rows of crates as cover, weaving in and out of them silently like a wraith. As she worked her way around the warehouse, keeping a constant eye on the soldier that patrolled the metal walkway with a sniper rifle, the ninja had missed the guard on the ground that was walking straight for her. She continued her stealthy crawl across the room oblivious to what was about to happen behind her. Yuffie became brutally aware of the guard when she felt the cold metal of a barrel press into her back and the fire selector click from safe to semi.
"Don't move.." He said as he took one hand off his rifle and reached for his radio.
Yuffie closed her eyes, waiting for the bullet to end her until she couldn't bare it any longer. Timidly she turned to find the wooden pole of the pilot's spear across the soldiers throat, choking the man from behind until his body went limp.
"Ninja my ass.." He said as he dropped the unconscious soldier. "Lets go."
Yuffie graciously nodded to Cid and proceeded to flank around the edges of the crates until she came to the steel ladder that lead to the walkway that ran in a loop above them. On the other side of the room was another that the huntress was surely waiting under. Pressing the small button attached to her chest, the Wutaian told Fang that she was at the bottom of the ladder.
"Okay... wait... wait...now." Fang said down the radio as she propped her spear against the base of the ladder.
Fang and Yuffie bolted up the cold steel ladders in silence as if they weighed nothing on the on the metal rungs, until they reached the top. The pair raced around the walkway to their respective targets, both having their presence made known by the steel lattice floor that creaked as they sprinted across it. The huntress glanced across quickly to watch Yuffie dodge a bullet the sniper had fired in haste and throw her shuriken at the man, knocking him over the railing and down onto the crates below. The bronze skinned beauty looked back at her own enemy, who dropped his rifle and went for his side arm, drawing it and firing. The bullet grazed Fang's cheek as she gripped the man's wrist, pointing the gun into the air as it went off for a second time. She looked into the man's eyes as she wrestled with him, noting his strength and the eyes that looked like Cloud's. Quickly realizing she was loosing her battle to keep the barrel away from her body, Fang reached for the Pistol Cid had gave her and quickly fired a shot in the enemy's kneecap, dropping him to his knees before releasing two bullets into the side of his head.
Sparks bounced off the railings as the three remaining guards below opened fire on the walkway. Watching the scene unfold before him, Cid gripped his spear and ran up the staggered row of crates are shouted over the gunfire.
"HEEEYYY! Shoot me instead!" He shouted as he leaped off the box and thrust his spear through one of the soldiers that stood below.
Fang ran back to the ladder, firing shots over the railing towards the soldier below as she dodged the bullets that ricocheted off the roof. The huntress leaped over the edge near the ladder, firing until the slide locked back on the pistol, signaling it being empty before she gripped the edge of the ladder and slid down. Her claw bladed spear remained where she had left it at the bottom of the ladder so the huntress gripped it and charged, only to find the man dead on the floor, a bullet hole in his chest. I must have shot him... Running through the warehouse to help the others, Fang found them stood over the final guard; Yuffie's shuriken sticking out of his neck.
"Let's check this place out quickly, they could have radioed for backup." Fang said to the pair.
The trio split up, opening crates periodically, finding every one contained hundreds of materia. Yuffie continued to a door that lead to an enclosed section of the warehouse and carefully opened the door.
"Errr... Guys... You need to see this..." Yuffie said down the radio as her eyes met the contents of the room.
Yuffie walked into the room cautiously, scanning the entire room with each step forward. Stood before her were rows upon rows of mako tanks, each containing a man. The ninja approached one of the tanks slowly, never taking her eyes off the human inside and picked up the clipboard attached to the handle.
Soldier number 5, materia fusion test commenced. 3 fire materia added to mako. Subject Shows promise as absorption progresses.
"This is creepy..." The ninja muttered to herself as she replaced the clipboard.
"This ain't good, is it?" Cid said quietly as he and Fang made their way into the room.
"Here must be hundreds..." The huntress said as she visually counted the rows of tanks.
"They're not just infused.. They have been throwing materia into the mako, dissolving it so it can be absorbed into the skin.." Yuffie explained.
"So they could potentially use magic without the materia?" Cid asked.
"They'd be like L'cie... An army of L'cie..." Fang said as a shiver ran down her spine. "We need to bring this building down now.. right now..."
"I think that's why Cloud gave us earth materia. If we each take a corner of the complex and damage the supports the warehouse should cave in on itself with the right incentive." The young ninja smiled, rolling the summon materia the blonde entrusted to her.
"Right then, lets go." The bronze skinned general said as she darted from the room.
The trio split up and set off towards three of the four corners of the warehouse, radioing in once they had got into position.
"Okay, lets do it. Be careful not to destroy it completely or we'll be buried alive. I'll finish it off." Yuffie spoke into her radio.
Cid took the earth materia out of his pocket and rolled it around his palm before pushing it into the slot in his spear where the shaft meets the blade. Raising his spear into the air, Cid jammed it into the ground, causing the floor underneath his feet to shake wildly. The pilot kept his tight grip on the spear's pole, keeping the materia active until large cracks began to form in the walls, weakening its structure.
"Alright, I'm done. Meet up at the entrance." Cid said as he rested his spear over his shoulder with a sense of pride and reached for the packet of cigarettes that spent most of his adult life in his jacket pocket, finding nothing. Give me a break...
Yuffie was the first to reach the door they used to enter the facility originally and waited for Cid who appeared moments later, casually strolling towards her without a care in the world. After a minute past with no sign of the huntress, Yuffie began to worry but her mind was soon put to rest at the sound of footsteps. Running footsteps.
"Run!" Fang screamed as she came into view.
The pair frowned at the brunette, confused as to why she was sprinting towards them like a mad banshee but as she neared the a feint thud began to grow as hundreds of men ran after her. Yuffie's eyes widened as she saw the men that dripped with mako chase after the huntress. Jamming the summon materia into the central hole of her shuriken, the ninja thrust one of the four spikes into the ground just as Fang ran past her, piercing the smooth concrete floor.
"Squirt! Let's go!" Cid shouted as he pushed Fang through the open door before leaving himself.
Yuffie turned and ran with a smile as she heard the sound of cracking concrete behind her. The mass of mako infused men ran after the trio but where stopped when the ground that was struck by the ninja's shuriken was split open from below. Two colossal hands pushed the earth apart, revealing the lifestream below that consumed several of the closest men. The other infused Disciple's turned their attention to the summon that slowly rose from the ground like a Goliath.
The men began to use their magic spells on the fifty foot tall Titan, doing little to no damage to the rock skinned summon that picked up its nearest enemy and crushed him with his massive hand. Titan turned his attention to the task that was mentally given to him by his master and threw his fist through the nearest wall like a wrecking ball and pulled the brick and steel in around him. The summon continued his rampage of destruction, pulling the building in on itself wall by wall as the mako soldiers bombarded him with magic, slowly but surely damaging the giant.
"What the hell was that?!" Fang shouted to Yuffie as they ran to the wall.
"Titan. One of Cloud's summon materia." Yuffie smiled as she held up the blood red orb in her hand.
"Keep smiling squirt. The closest you'll ever get to blondie's balls!" Cid teased as he tried to keep up.
"Your a pig, Highwind!" The huntress shouted, trying to suppress the slight grin on her face.
The trio turned at the sound of Titan's defeated roar to find the colossal building that once stood behind them was reduced to a pile of rubble. The ninja watched as what was left of the structure was consumed by the lifestream below but her sense of accomplishment was soon disturbed by the sound of the slowly sinking rubble moving and around sixty men crawl from the wreckage.
"We won't make it over the wall without them getting us. We'll have to fight.." Fang said as she held her ground.
"I was afraid you'd say that..." Yuffie sighed. "Get ready old man"
The men formed a line and ran towards the trio, sending a barrage of fire and lightning spells as they charged. Yuffie used her assortment of materia to shield them from the elemental onslaught and launched her weapon into the air towards the Disciple soldiers, slashing the throat of the closest before returning back to her.
"There's no way we can fight them all off..." Fang shook her head.
Just as the huntress spoke, three shots rang out from behind them, dropping three of the advancing soldiers. They all turned to find the silhouette of Vincent Valentine stood on the wall, his tattered red cape rippling in the breeze.
"Get over the wall..." He said calmly as he jumped down, landing in front of them.
"Vincent!" Yuffie shouted in sheer joy. "Am I glad to see you!"
"There are too many.. You must leave now..." The former turk said as he shot at the quickly advancing force.
"We ain't leavin' you to die!" Cid shouted, gripping his spear tightly.
"Get Fang out of here... She doesn't need to see this..." Vincent said to Yuffie, turning to make sure she could read the hidden message in his blood red eyes. Chaos is coming. "Cid, There is a packet of cigarettes waiting for you in the airship.. Get them out of here.."
"You heard the man! Let's go!" The pilot said with new found enthusiasm to leave.
Fang stood speechless, unsure if she wanted to kiss or punch the cloaked man who had came to their rescue. The option was taken away from her when Cid gripped her around the waist and threw her over his shoulder as Yuffie brought down the wall with her earth materia. The huntress kicked and screamed all of the way to the airship but the pilot's strength outweighed her own... Just...
Vincent watched as the three boarded the still camouflaged Phoenix airship and where out of sight before closing his eyes and calling upon the demonic power that resided inside of him. For as long as you infest this body you shall submit your strength to me, demon... Releasing a demonic roar that could be heard for miles, Vincent let the destructive power flood his body, transforming him into the winged demon, Chaos.
"We can't just leave him down there!" Fang said Just before she heard a bone shaking roar. "What the hell was that?!"
"You don't wanna know.." Cid said. "Trust me, you don't want to be anywhere near this place for a little while."
Fang stormed out of the bridge and to the outer deck for a better look at what was going on only to see the mass of men fleeing desperately from where they had left Vincent. The huntress' emerald eyes strained to focus on the figure that floated in the air, raining death down onto the men that were vaporized by dark blasts of light. Assuming it was another summon, Fang repelled down from the airship to assist Vincent, despite his orders for her to stay away. She ran to the crumbling wall and peered around its broken face to find the last soldier get his throat ripped out by a humanoid figure that had a mass of black and red spikes protruding from its head and red, bat like wings that were riddled with holes. It was then her eyes found the golden clawed gauntlet on its left hand. ….Vincent?..
The hand the huntress was using to keep her balance on the wall gave way as her concentration faded and she stumbled into the open, presenting herself to the demon's back. Suddenly becoming aware of her presence, Vincent turned to face her; his yellow eyes flickering back to crimson subconsciously, confirming his identity. Fang took a step towards the former turk, instantly causing him to step away. He could feel the beast, who's power he was controlling begin to fight its way out of the protomateria's chains as he looked at the brunette.
The woman that stood before him; the woman he valued above all else looked at him with a warm smile, unknowingly assisting in the demon's release. Vincent turned his head away in the hope that without the sight of her Chaos would stop but the pain grew worse.
Give in to me... It is futile to resist...
The voice made him worry even more that before, adding to the strain on his racing heart. He had always felt Chaos inside of him but he had not been strong enough to talk since they were first merged together. Vincent dropped to one knee and dug his clawed gauntlet into the ground as the battle for his body waged on. His eyes remained focused on the dirt below him until a pair of tanned knee's fell in front of his. The former turk looked up to see a pair of emerald eyes staring into his own with the greatest of concern as she raised her right hand and placed it gently on his face, in an attempt to relax him. Finally, taking his right hand with her left, she placed it onto her chest, right over her heart.
"Can you feel it? Look at me and count." She said softly, hoping that the slow and steady rhythm of her heart would somehow ease him of his pain.
Vincent felt the brunette's pulse through his fingertips and counted each one as he breathed slowly. To the long haired man's amazement, the pains faded and his form returned to the normal, human Vincent. He only managed another breath before his eyes stopped their resistance and he collapsed onto Fang's shoulder.
"So this was your secret..." She said to the unconscious man as she stroked his face.
"What part of run away do you have a problem with?" Cid asked as him and Yuffie appeared from behind the wall.
(Rebel VS Disciple Battlefield)
"Light! On ya left!" Barret shouted, as he took aim at the four Disciple soldiers that advanced on the pinkette.
Claire ducked just in time as the gun armed man unleashed a mass of bullets into the four enemies. The rose haired warrior continued cutting through the wave after wave of troops, keeping one eye on the blonde that was twenty yards in front, decimating all that stood before him. A stray bullet found it's way into the pinkette's shoulder pauldron, knocking her off balance but doing it's job in protecting her. Claire's mako eyes pierced into the shooter's eyes, freezing him on the spot. With her sword by her side she marched over to the man, only to watch a scarlet blade burst through his chest and blood pour from his mouth.
"My friend, do you fly away now? To a world that abhors you and I? All that awaits you is a somber morrow. No matter where the winds may blow.." Genesis said in his usual flamboyance.
"Great.. The poet..." Claire sighed. "Who's side are you on anyway?"
Cloud turned to check on the pinkette to find her staring down at Genesis, who's sword dripped with blood. Quickly sending bolts of lightning towards his nearest enemies, the blonde ran to her aid, separating one of the short swords from the main blade just before he struck.
"My friend, your desire is the bringer of life, the gift of the goddess." The auburn haired man strained as his sword clashed with the blonde's.
"You're no friend of mine.." Cloud said as he thrust his short sword at Genesis.
"Cloud, leave him to me. Go help the others." Claire said, determined to put an end to the man. "Please."
The blonde sighed but knew better than to argue with her so leaped back behind Claire and used his enemy skill materia to cast big guard on her, increasing her speed and resistance dramatically before returning to the front line.
"I thought you were helping the Disciples?" Claire asked as she spun the grip of the buster sword in her hand.
"I am not as petty to take sides in a pointless war.. I'm here to remove your tainted cells from the planet."
"Then why were you at the Disciple headquarters?" Claire questioned.
"I was searching for a friend but it matters not... I can do this on my own."
Claire swung her sword across Genesis' chest, missing him by an inch as he dove out of the way. Waves of fire erupted from his hands and shot at the pinkette who gracefully moved out of the way as she countered with a bolt of lightning. The red coated man received the full shock from Claire's spell but his relentless nature kept him focused.
"You fight better than the man who gave Cloud that sword... And his predecessor.." He said, shaking of his twitching muscles.
Claire reached over to her shoulder pauldron and pulled off the crimson orb that Tifa had found, gripping it tightly in her free hand. Unsure what was going to happen, the pinkette focused on the orb until she felt it shatter in her closed palm. In shock, Claire opened her hand to find a mass of tiny shards had chipped off the top of the orb, turning it from a perfectly smooth ball to a rose bud. The rose haired warrior's eyes took a moment to register what she was looking at and was distracted from the former soldier's blade, that he brought down on her with a killing blow.
Instantly, the sky went black, covering the battlefield in a veil of darkness, and a lone crimson lightning bolt descended from the sky, hitting the orb in her hand. Claire's mako eyes could not believe what she was seeing when the flash of lightning subsided and stood in front of her was Odin, using his serrated S shaped sword to block Genesis' attack.
"Odin!?" Claire shouted in amazement. "But how?"
The woman who guards the lifestream has tasked me to protect you once more, master. The pinkette heard the eidolon say in her mind.
Genesis looked visibly shaken by the colossal humanoid's sudden presence and backed off immediately to reevaluate the situation. Odin never gave the man chance to rest and pushed him across the battlefield with his emerald shield as Claire charged after him. Genesis felt his rubs crack with the force of Odin's strike and in his panic thrust his hand into his leather coat; pulling out a red materia of his own. He used it just in time to watch the ground that separated him from the pinkette crack and rise, blocking her view of him.
"Even if the morrow is barren of promises... Nothing shall forestall my return.." Genesis heaved in pain.
The earth shook the battlefield, knocking all but a few soldiers off of their feet. Steam rose from the cracks that separated Claire from her target and was swiftly pulled back further by Odin, just as the ground erupted with a mass of flames that burst out of cracks across the war torn area.
"It's an Ifrit.." Cloud said as he joined Claire's side.
"What is?" The pinkette asked.
"Watch..."
A monstrous demon bust from the ground below, dripping in molten lava. It stood at the same height as Odin and had brown skin covering its muscular body and a bright orange mane like a lion. It's large ram like horns and legs where distinctly demonic and the flames that poured from its mouth send all but the braves soldiers running for their lives.
Cloud ran towards the demon summon, who's footsteps scorched the ground and set the bodies around its feet on fire. With his fusion sword dragging across the ground, the blonde thrust his sword into the beast, only to be batted off by it's powerful arm. Claire who was right behind him, ducked under the summon's swing and pushed the buster sword through it's arm and into the ground, pinning it in place. Odin leaped into the air and spun at great speed, throwing the arm that held his sword out as he landed, removing the head from Ifrit's shoulders, killing the beast.
Cloud limped back over to where Ifrit fell and pulled his Fusion sword from it's chest as it faded back into the ground. With it's job done, Odin knelt before his master and bowed before breaking up into thousands of tiny shards of crystal and evaporating into the atmosphere. Looking down on her sword she saw the crimson rosebud sat in the materia slot and smiled, happy that her faithful friend had been returned to her.
"Look at this place..." She said, looking round at the near silent battlefield. "Genesis has gone again.."
"We'll stop him eventually.." Cloud said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "No..."
"Whats wrong?" Claire asked as she felt the blonde's hand leave her and him run away.
Cloud knelt beside Godo who had two crossbow bolts in his chest and on in his leg, as well as several bullet holes. The blonde removed the man's helmet and looked down on his bloodstained face before pulling out his phone and dialing.
"Yuffie... It's your father... I've found him... Yuffie, he's..."
A/N: Okay that one was a little longer... I've had a little constructive criticism and I hope ive addressed it with his chapter. The battle was short but this was like a fort condor battle. The main 'fights' in the story will be huge. Now... to answer your questions. Yes that was the nibelhiem safe code, good call ;p. Yes the Genesis battles are supposed to be short. At the min he's kind of like the turks in ff7, they pop in and out with a short battle but he has a big part of the story which will all become clear eventually. It wasn't so much that I rushed it but it felt like I was having 6k chapters that consisted of them getting out of bed lol. Thought you deserved a bit of action. Geraze90 I was originally going for a police chase bit I decided him being tasered and having to get bailed out was funnier lol. Serah's baby... I was hoping it wouldn't be a 50/50 split so Autumn810 being the first gets the choice of girl. The big decision you have to make now is the cliffhanger i've left you with.. Does Yuffie's father live or die? You decide. Let me know what you think, and as always, thanks for reading.
