25-

"Twenty injured and three casualties all on the civilian side. As for our men, we had only two minor injuries but they are back on duty as of today." Tseng ticked off the report with a clipped tone, his voice vacant of any emotions. "As for the status of Aeris…"

The new president waved the rest of Tseng's sentence away, cutting him off. "That is of no concern. Our men are in good order thus far?"

The raven-haired Turk seemed slightly taken aback by Rufus' comment, but managed to hide it well. "Yes, sir."

"Good, good." The cold-eyed blonde shifted through a small pile of papers in a manila folder, nodding occasionally, giving a grunt of approval. "Well then, I'd say this was a success." An indifferent smirk crept across his lips. "You men did a wonderful job subduing the crowd, I commend you for that."

The blue-suited team bowed their head, Tseng uttering his thanks. "It was our duty to protect you, Mr. President."

"As for the press coverage in Junon? How did that fare?" Rufus leaned forward eagerly, a hungry look in his eyes.

"It's still all over the front pages. They're deeming you a tyrant, sir."

At this Rufus threw back his head and laughed. "A tyrant, you say? Wonderful. I'll ask for a status report in a week or so, I want to know how things are going not only in Junon but in Midgar as well."

The leader of the Turks bowed his head. "Yes, sir. As for Aeris?"

A small frown formed on Rufus' mouth. "As I've said before, she is of no concern to Shinra at this time. I wish…no, I order that you do not become involved in that affair," he gave a pointed look to Tseng and Reno, "do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir." They all replied in unison.

"Well, then that is all." He turned back to his paperwork, ending their meeting.

They Turks all filed out of Rufus' lavish office, making their way down the vast corridor to the elevators. Tseng's features were hard to read, but he seemed displeased by the outcome of the conference. Still, none of them said anything, contenting themselves on their comfortable silence.

Reno expected as much from their new president; he had suspected all along of Rufus' intentions with Aeris. He had ultimately used her as barter to the Aka-Maru, ensuring the murder of the late President Shinra and of Professor Hojo. While the SOLDIERs were out looking for Aeris' whereabouts, they had run across the scientist in an abandoned building, strapped to a metal table, various medical instruments strewn about him. He had been brutally murdered, medics assessing that he had ultimately died from blood loss, the deep lacerations all across his body proof of this. Even worse, various animal parts were sloppily sown onto some of his sawed-off limbs, large blue veins stringing their way along his skin.

No one knew where Aeris had been taken, but Reno had a good inkling as to where Cabuto was hiding her. Still, they were given strict orders not to become involved in the matter, and they had to follow orders regardless of their disagreement with them. Still, Reno could not forget the hurt look on Aeris' face when Rufus had pushed her away from him, of how ultimately crushed she had seemed. It had taken all his will not to chase after her, although he wasn't sure what he would have done once he caught up with her. This had been particularly hard on Elena, she was thin from lack of food and sleep, dark bruises under her now-sallow brown eyes.

"I can't just stand by." Reno clenched his fists. "I can't let her fend for herself. This is Cabuto we're talking about, there's no saying what he could do to her."

"We are to follow orders." Tseng gave the red-head a stern look. "We are not to break those orders."

"I know, but…" Reno let the words trail, knowing there was no use; to the Turks, Shinra's commands were the final law, set in stone.

"Reno, you can't let your emotions get involved, especially not at work." The dark-haired man put a reassuring hand on Reno's shoulder.

Startled by their leader's comment, Reno shook off the other man's hand, internally glowering. "My emotions are not involved in this case. I am not taking this personally." Still, the words seemed empty to him. When did this happen? When did she become more than just a slum girl to him? When did he start caring about her in a more than professional way? And more importantly, why? These thoughts raged in his mind as the others looked on in concern. Turning his head away, Reno ground his teeth together, trying to concentrate on not letting his feeling take control of him.

Elena stepped next to him. "Reno…"

"And what if I do?" Reno's gaze challenged his partners. "What if I go out to look for her?"

Tseng sighed, a heavy sound in the small elevator. "When you wear that suit, Reno, you are obliged to do as Shinra says. Once you overstep your boundaries, we have to terminate you."

The elevator doors slid open, revealing an empty hallway to their office. Stepping out, Reno stripped himself of his beloved navy jacket, throwing it on the ground. "Then I guess I have no choice."

The others looked on in shock, not sure what to do to calm their fiery teammate. Rude finally pushed past the other two, his mouth a thin line against his broad face. "Reno, ya gotta think straight here. You can't give up your job just to go chasing after this girl. The Turks…this is your life."

Reno hung his head. "I'm tired of all this; of not thinking for myself. I've given Shinra all I can, but this is where I have to draw the line. I'm sorry guys."

Sighing, Tseng shook his head, picking up Reno's wrinkled suit jacket. "Well, I see we can't convince you otherwise. I'll expect this as your resignation from the Turks." He wrapped the navy material across his arm, smoothing it down. "They'll come looking for you, once they find out what you're after."

Opening the door to the staircase, Reno nodded. "I know, but I'm willing to take the risk."

Tseng gave his now ex-student a glimmer of a smile. "We'll give you a head start."

"Well, she's a pretty one, isn't she?" A gruff man grabbed Aeris under the chin and turned her head from side to side. "A little on the thin side, but we can fix that." He pinched her waist, emitting a small scream from Aeris. The man laughed, giving her a distorted smile. "Hurt, did it?"

"That's enough, Tien." Cabuto emerged from the doorway. "I would like to talk to her alone, please."

The husky man named Tien nodded, giving Aeris one last sneer before exiting the room. Sighing in relief, Aeris primly sat herself on a hard wooden chair, waiting for Cabuto to speak. She had been locked away in a small room for the past three days, aimlessly passing the time by thinking of Rufus. A dull ache proceeded to eat away in her chest; an unnamable sort of hurt burning her body. The men of Aka-Maru were crass and dirty, leering at her every chance they got. It was a shock to see a man such as Cabuto in their presence but he didn't seem to mind, and neither did his followers. He was a tall angular man with deep gray eyes the shade of gravel, his sharp nose remnant of a hawk's beak. He wore impeccable suits made from a tailor in Kalm, his shoes always free of dirt and grime. His hair was always neatly combed, so fine and thin that if one looked hard enough they could see the pink skin of his scalp. He could not have been more than thirty, small lines surrounding his big eyes and mouth. He sat across from her in another chair, languidly crossing his legs. "Are you faring well?" He asked this in a manner as if he were talking about the weather.

"Yes." Aeris lowered her eyes, not wanting to make contact with Cabuto.

"That's a surprise. I would think a girl who has just been traded to a gang lord by the man she loves…well, I would expect you to be at least a little perturbed." He cocked his head to the side an almost playful look on his face.

He had stung her, although she tried not to show it. "I guess things could be worse." She looked at her dreary surroundings, wondering if that was true.

Cabuto chuckled. "How so, may I ask?"

"I could be with the Professor." Aeris couldn't help but shudder.

"Ah, yes, our dear friend, Hojo." Cabuto rubbed his chin. "I wouldn't worry about him, he's been taken care of." He rested his arms on his knees, leaning forward. "And aren't we so lucky to have someone as charming as you in our company."

"What do you want from me?"

The blonde leaned back, tapping his fingers against each other. "I haven't quite decided yet, but I feel you would make a very entertaining spectacle to my men."

Aeris was unsure what he meant by this, but didn't like the sound of it. "Spectacle?"

"How are your fighting skills?"

"Fighting skills?" Aeris definitely did not like where this was headed. "I've never had any reason to use violent force…"

"Hnn, that's a pity. It'll make things so much harder for you, but you never know, people have known to surprise in the past." With this, Cabuto stood, throwing a malicious grin at the small brunette. "I have a good feeling about you, Aeris."