The guard they had seen far down the hall had slowly disappeared around another bend, and the three quickly walked by several rooms and another pathway, patting on the door from whence the child was taken from as they approached; there were murmurs from the other side of the barrier, though hard to hear.
Ichi tried his luck again with the buttons next to the pod's door, cursing softly when he failed. Merle looked about, tentatively creeping towards the bend the guard had passed by. Peeking, the man's back was still turned away from the peacekeeper; he eyed the rough hall filled with square white pods. 'Is Cloud here, somewhere?' There was no sign of any other person, familiar or stranger. The man wondered if Cloud had even found the place yet, or got stuck on some other trail. He figured they had enough time to try and evacuate the prisoners before the guard came by again, and if it came to it they'd just shoot him. 'Gonna be noisy...'
Merle came back to the pods behind him, several of them open and empty except for a table on the side of a wall and a drain on the floor; he could only imagine for what. A single one was closed, and he put his ear up to it after examining the others, hearing a muffled, grumbling snoring, and the clap of bare feet on floor tile as a young child babbled to itself. The combination made the hair on the back of his head shoot up, and he looked at the buttons available; there were only two, a red and green one. No locks? Merle went to press the green button, but slumped to the ground as heat passed through his brain, smacking his head into the door.
"Damn, not this combination...There!" Ichi saw the light turn green and the door swung open to a group of people staring at him in disbelief, obviously recognizing his uniform. He looked back at Merle, the man observing the other rooms, then brought his attention to the people inside. There were no more than ten, half adults and the other half children; one of the women in the room approached him swiftly as another girl followed.
"They took my baby!"
Ichi nodded. "I saw that...my partner's working on it."
She nodded, a cautious smile forming on her lips. "Where's the guard?"
"He's still around. We're gonna-" Ichi fell to the ground, dropping Cait Sith like a rag doll. The guard peeked in, then dragged the unconscious peacekeeper out of the way of the sliding door. There was a scientist behind him, and several assistants walking off with a body.
The guard's stony face peered inside. "False alarm, guys." The door shut unceremoniously, the woman quivering a sigh as her last glimmer of hope was lost.
Cait Sith stood up, dusting himself off. "This is o' bit o' rubbish!" he squeaked, the room staring at him. The robot waved with a smile, trying to calm the tense air of the room. "We're with the WRO, everyone!"
A man snorted. "You all were captured. I think your friends are about as screwed as the rest of us."
"They don't have everyone, laddy! M'boy'll fix this mess right up!"
The woman looked down at the cat worriedly. "...And if he doesn't?"
"Then, I hope we were followed in here." Cait Sith said cryptically.
She sat down, trying to keep her emotions in check; the cat came up to her and sat upon the floor. "It'll be too late for her, anyway."
The cat sighed. "Couldn't all of you overpower the guard?"
"Knockout gun..." A girl said next to him. "He used it on Mom when she wouldn't..." she turned away.
"Oh." Cait Sith looked about, both the AI and handler thinking. Perhaps he could acquire some information as he waited for a rescue. Who these people are, how they ended up here.
Tifa sighed heavily as she left the bed, pondering how she had felt not only today, but the last week; it slowly culminated into this. Her emotional bout had subsided, and she looked out of the window, wondering if Cloud was alright in Kalm. She heard a grumbling noise from her stomach; Tifa had not eaten that day because of her bout of nausea. 'What a day...' She walked down the hallway, stopping by the children's bedroom to check on the denizens within. They looked up at her from their board game, Marlene charging her for a hug.
"Hi, sweetie."
Marlene looked up at her. "Tifa, Cloud said you aren't feeling good."
Tifa smiled. "I'm feeling a little better. I'm gonna go downstairs and make everyone something to eat."
Rosa rose to her feet and stood behind Marlene. "Um, could I help, Tifa?"
"Sure, if you'd like." The woman cocked her head, surprised at the request. Rosa followed her downstairs after waving goodbye to the other children, and peeked at the people sitting about the bar; they were conversing here and there with each other. Looking about, a teen with dirt covered feet walked towards the galley; Rosa decided that must be Penny, the werewolf. She chewed on her lip, somewhat wary.
Tifa smiled at her. "Hi, Penny. Did you want to help, too?" She shifted about the galley, looking for her large pot.
The teen nodded. "I feel a little restless. It'd be nice to have something to do!" She looked at Tifa, squinting her eyes and making a face, as if something didn't smell right, still.
The pugilist finally found the pot she needed. "It'll be nice to have a few hands here in the kitchen." She looked down at Rosa. "Would you like to help Penny clean and chop some vegetables?"
The girl looked trepidatiously between the two, finally nodding. "I don't know how to cook very well..." She admitted.
"You wanted some hands on experience, is that why you wanted to help?" Rosa nodded guiltily and Tifa smiled. "That's fine. Cleaning and chopping vegetables is a good place to start, then."
Within a few minutes the two were working on the task, scrubbing potatoes and carrots as Tifa placed some celery stalks on the prep table. Penny focused on skinning a spud in her hand, her tongue sticking out a little as she scraped the brown skin off. "Oh, sometimes I'm glad I don't bother much with vegetables." She said to herself light heartedly.
Rosa looked up from the carrot she was carefully chopping. "...Are there even vegetables in the woods?" the girl asked shyly.
The werewolf started to slice the conquered potato. "Yeah! But Ithey's the one that looks for them to eat, I'm...not one for vegetables much, anymore." her cheeks blushed.
The girl resumed her root chopping. "Cloud told us upstairs."
Penny's cheeks blushed further. "O-oh. I feel kinda nervous, here. I don't know how he can stand so many people knowing about his secret..."
Tifa giggled behind her as she worked on an onion, avoiding the dreaded tears. "He absolutely hates it."
"Then why let everyone know?"
The woman shook her head, dumping stock into the pot. "It just happens. Cloud interacts with a lot more people than you do, so...it's a risk."
Rosa forcefully chopped her next carrot. She could easily admit to still being upset at the unfair situation involving Cloud, but how casual can one be about interactions? 'Why couldn't they both live?' The little girl didn't think either Cloud or Harry deserved to die that night. "Ah!"
Penny looked down, the girl next to her holding a bleeding finger. "Oh, you cut yourself!" she looked around helplessly as Tifa went behind Rosa, looking at her cut.
She motioned towards the stairs, giving the girl an encouraging, very gentle push towards the stairs. "I'll be right up, Rosa. Penny, could you finish chopping these up?" The werewolf nodded, and Tifa walked upstairs after collecting a few supplies from a nearby kit.
The girl was slowly walking with uncertainty through the hall until the bartender came from behind her, ushering her into the bathroom. She turned on the light and rinsed the bleeding digit in cool running water for a minute, then looked at the cut. "It's just a nick...You have to be careful and not let your mind wander too much when you cut food, Rosa."
Rosa's eyes were distant, Tifa picking up on her troubled thoughts before bandaging her up. "Everything's so unfair..."
Tifa nodded empathically as she wrapped gauze on the finger. "It is. We just make the best of what we get, sweetie."
"But..." She sighed, still not understanding. "I don't know how to cope with this. Harry was killed by the same person that freed me. It's..."
The woman nodded, patting the girl's hand. "Cloud regrets it a lot. But I don't think killing him would make you or Merle feel better."
Rosa shook her head. "I don't want him dead anymore. I don't really know what I want."
"Why not talk to him about it? It's not like he wouldn't listen." She stood up.
The girl rubbed her arm, walking out of the bathroom with Tifa. "...Maybe, after he gets back."
They went back to the galley, Tifa finishing preparation for the stew she was making before sitting down with a glass of water by the counter to rest; she felt fatigued. Vincent walked up to her quietly, and looked down at her. "Are you feeling better?"
Tifa chuckled. "Yeah, just a little tired now...I've been feeling weird all day. Cloud thinks it's from a frog."
The raven haired man snorted. "A frog? I don't know of an illness from frogs that causes even-tempered women to lash out at their spouses." He raised a brow.
"Me either." She sipped from her glass, her cheeks pink from embarrassment. "If it lasts much longer, I'm going to the doctor." Tifa began to think, going over her symptoms. It had only been today she had acted like this, right? 'I've been feeling a little off all week, but it really ramped up today.'
Vincent nodded. "If anything happens during the night, let us take care of it." his voice had a rueful quality to it, knowing full well Tifa wanted to protect the bar too. He looked over at Penny, the girl passing him as she walked towards the front of the bar; she gave him a meek look before turning to face the door to the bar, her obvious destination.
Evan was near it, talking with Kyrie; they had introduced themselves to the teen earlier, after Cloud had left. They seemed nice, but she hadn't the courage to say anything about her secret to them. Did they know Cloud's? Kyrie kept looking over at her feet. Evan looked her over and gave a nod; the werewolf's face turned red and she faced the door, arms crossed. 'I'll watch the door. No one else can smell intruders!...But that one that attacked Yuffie didn't leave behind a trail. Maybe I'm just a liability here.'
"Penelope?" It was Ithey. "You okay?"
She smiled at him. "...Yeah. I guess I feel out of my element."
He nodded. "Same. All these people. I barely know what to do or what to say." He motioned towards Vincent. "He's nice enough without saying anything." Stoic, silent, not particularly judgemental.
"He looks kinda scary to me." Penny found it amusing to think it, he wasn't someone that turned into a monster. His scent was so strange, though.
Ithey shrugged. "Tifa and Yuffie are casual as can be around him, so maybe he's not that scary, right?"
She nodded. Turning back towards the door she guarded, Penny let out a little sigh, praying they wouldn't have to fight some murderous wolf tonight. Turning back after a few moments, she watched Tifa as she taught Rosa how to cook whatever it was she had been making for everyone, chopping a few more vegetables and tossing them into the steaming pot.
Turning back, she looked at Ithey. "I think I'll get some fresh air for a few minutes. Wanna join me?" Her mate smiled and nodded, and they both left for the front steps of the bar.
The little girl bumped her tiny fists on the door after being shoved inside the simple room, upset she was torn from her mother and sister. "I want mommy!" she protested, the door never budging nor anyone responding to her little chant.
That man somehow made her mother fall asleep, then he took her away from everybody, shoving her into this strange room. It was cool and sterile white like the other room, but no one was there to keep her warm. The little girl's feet were cold on the hard tile, adding to her discomfort.
She gave up, rubbing her cheeks of tears and looking about the well lit room. There were swords hanging off a wall, and a table full of clothing. Looking on the floor she saw a big, yellow wolf creature sleeping on its side and snoring softly, the being catching her attention the most; it reminded her of the dog they kept at home, a golden retriever. If golden retrievers were huge with brown faces, and covered in whispy blonde spikes.
"Doggy." The little girl walked up to it, and rubbed one of the long, soft ears that flopped forward. It flicked about here and there, tickling her hand. She giggled, but the creature continued to sleep soundly despite the girl's curiosity as she pat its muzzle. Looking around, the little girl eyed the clothing; the room was cool and her clothing was thin. "I'll be back, Doggy."
Her little hands grasped for a piece of clothing on the table, and she pulled it off; wrapping it around herself she pattered back to the wolf. "You don't need people clothes." She sat next to the creature, leaning onto its furry chest for more warmth. Her body rose and fell with powerful exhales and inhales, the beast still snoring soundly. She jumped when a thud came from the door, then dragging noises; the little girl held onto the shirt and looked towards the beast's head.
"You'll keep the bad man away, right Doggy?" The girl got a grumble in response, as if it were trying to form words in its sleep. She snuggled into the soft, furry chest in an attempt to keep warm, eventually falling asleep with the big yellow wolf.
"So these two were snooping about, and almost freed the specimens?" The voice belonged to a nasally scientist. "That's twice in a week!" He began to examine the knocked out peacekeepers, humming as he checked their eyes and vitals. He looked over at another scientist, younger than himself, and nodded.
"We could always use some more peacekeepers in the WRO's ranks. Put them in the converter, then get as much information out of them as you can afterwards." He looked over the two large machines, then pressing several buttons on a console nearby that opened the hatches of the machines. The large guard placed a peacekeeper in, one after the other, then went back to his patrol duties silently.
"Ah, I wish this process wouldn't take so long. Enhancements are so much quicker!" He and the other scientist readied the machines, and after a few minutes the tanks began to work, filling with a mako vapor. "Hopefully with more notes we can streamline the process. Try not to get too bored, now." The elder scientist left, two of the assistants coming with him as several stayed behind to take notes and assist with any fluctuations in the touchy machines.
The remaining scientist wrote upon his clipboard, watching the machine fill up. One of the occupants had woken up already, and was slamming against the door. "That's not going to work, sir." he said coldly. 'They need to ramp up security here, we're getting way too much attention now.' Sure, there were three guards, one of them a genetically enhanced werewolf that a Junon crime-lord brought over to make sure they could dispose of any troublemakers, but he couldn't help but think that there would be a time they'd possibly have to deal with large WRO forces before enough peacekeepers were converted.
"Sir, tank 01 needs more mako." an assistant said. The man gave the go ahead, and she fidgeted with the console. Listening to the hiss of gas, they watched, observant for any troubles the machine could have; it was considered rather temperamental equipment because of its age and change in usage. Content with present levels, they went back to their notes; the tall man still trying to make the door budge.
A strange canister smacked into the machine and fell unceremoniously to the floor, rolling towards the young scientist. He squinted, looking at the ugly greenish-yellow cannister that he stopped with his foot. The top was twitching and his eyes widened; before he could shout it released a massive electrical jolt to the five onlookers with such ferocity the remains were charred. The man in the machine gawked, looking about as the green mist made it more difficult to see. A dark silhouette of green appeared from the hall in front of him.
The man outside seemed to look over the presumably dead employees, then looked up to meet Merle's eyes. The man went to a large console and played about with the buttons and switches here and there; suddenly the mako stopped flowing into the small chamber and the hatched door released him from his prison. He gasped the fresher air of the room, almost puking from the concentrations he was subjected to. Ichi fell out, scrambling away from the vile contraption.
"It truly was prudent to purchase some items in Wutai," Came a calm and deep voice. The two peacekeepers looked up to a man wearing a black suit, his black hair slicked back and hard brown eyes watching them. This was a Turk. "Reeve requested our assistance. My name is Tseng."
"Tseng of the Turks...what was that you tossed at those bastards?" Merle said awestruck as he helped himself up with a grunt. He looked about the room, at the charred bodies whose smell bothered his nose, and the various machinery that was in use; though quite possibly ruined by the electrical discharge.
The Turk chuckled. "It's a Swift Bolt. Wutaian made, they had to develop items that mimic materia." He looked at the machine the two had been released from, scowling. "I know what this is. This was used to mutate SOLDIERS into Ravens." He looked at the two men, obviously not enhanced. "I wonder what they did to this machine..."
"No idea," Ichi said. "but we got some prisoners down the hall and we're not really sure where Cloud is." The peacekeeper figured if Reno knew who Cloud was, Tseng knew him, too.
The Turk shrugged, taking out a long, heavy baton made of shining metal. "I'm sure he's fine. Until we meet him again, let's see if we can clear the area of enemies first." He turned around, walking down the hall. Ichi and Merle looked about the room quickly and found their rifles; equipping them they headed off with the Turk, glad that their boss seemed to have so many strange connections.
He felt something sting his arm, a burning sensation tearing up his veins. Cloud thrashed about irritably as the burn poured through his body. The sensation was so familiar, sending him back through his memories to when he was sixteen. Awake upon an operating table, his limbs tied to the corners, he looked down upon his pale chest and noticed a scar he earned from challenging Sephiroth. Looking up a leering Professor Hojo was finishing another round of injections.
"It's almost over, now." Shadows untied his limbs and picked him up towards a large tank full of mako, the teen too weak to fight back after all the injections that madman had given him. The shadows lifted him up and dunked him into the green, glowing liquid, Hojo taking notes as he stared at the spiky haired boy. "Fascinating, very fascinating!"
'I don't feel fascinating...' A heat welled up in his body, different than the burning feelings from the injections. His body felt so very strange now; his teeth ached and his toes curled in the liquid he floated in. Weakly he put a finger to his mouth, jabbing his finger with a sharp tooth. He gasped, feeling helpless as his body flowed into another form without his permission. 'What is this..."
Cloud heard a scream, and looked back to see Tifa looking up at him with saucer eyes as she held Marlene, Denzel and Zeph. He looked around, in the low light of Seventh Heaven, his home. Their home. He looked down at himself, shredded clothing everywhere and a bloodied arm by his clawed foot. "What happened?" he tried to say, but only confused growls came out.
They ran away after he looked up, towards the garage. He followed worriedly, trying to shout their names. He entered the pitch black room and immediately fell through the floor, the door to the bar quickly retreating; his hand came up to grasp at it, human as it had been most of his life. He floated in this space for what felt like forever, until a young voice entered his mind, asking him a question.
"You'll keep the bad man away, right Doggy?"
"...Yeah, I'll keep him away. Don't worry."
Cloud blinked several times, his pupils contracting as artificial light flooded his eyes as his head rested on an arm. '...What happened?' He felt different, and his other arm felt sore. There was something warm on his chest as he laid on his side, was it moving? He lifted his head and looked in front of him; his clothing was there upon a low, white table, his weapons and sheaths hanging from the wall. The smell of mako was coming from his fur, and his eyes momentarily widened. Now he remembered why, remembered his dreams, and suddenly felt as violated as that day he found himself in the basement of the Shinra Mansion; Hojo had patched him up only to pump him full of alien cells and douse him in mako for his sick experiments. Here he was again, unintentionally a lab rat, or so it felt to him.
He growled.
"Doggy?"
He frowned, looking towards his furry chest, the voice ripping him out of his brooding mood. 'Someone's here...' A head popped out at him, a child of maybe four watching him with a silly grin; the girl was wearing his shirt like a blanket. Cloud cocked his head, looking around a little before turning his eyes back to her, his brows up in mild surprise. The girl used him for support to get up, then walked up to his head. 'She's not afraid at all?' What was she doing here?
She rubbed his muzzle with her tiny hand, giggling. "Good doggy!"
Cloud snorted. The girl must have been his "something to eat." He was rather hungry, but the werewolf would have to wait for a real meal. He slowly sat up, and looked about for somewhere to change where the girl couldn't watch. Looking down at the girl, he pointed towards a corner of the room, and then put his paws over his eyes, then pointed at her. She merely smiled and covered her eyes a few moments, as if it was a game. The werewolf sighed, then tapped a claw as he thought; he looked back at the table and reasoned it would have to do.
Standing up he walked towards the table, awkwardly moving his pauldron and bracer to the ground, then shoving his clothing to the other side of the floor. Cloud gripped the table and effortlessly tipped it towards him; satisfied with his barrier, the werewolf quickly walked behind it and crouched down. He focused, and soon found himself back as his usual self, scratching the back of his head while looking at the little girl, blushing.
"Uh, hello." He said, grabbing for his boxers.
The girl cocked her head. "You turned into a person!"
Cloud grinned at her. "Yeah, I did." He put on his pants, zipping them up, then finding his necklace in a pocket. 'She's as cute as Marlene when she was that age.' he thought wistfully. The warrior moved in front of the table after donning his socks and boots, holding a hand out for his shirt; she looked reluctant to part with it.
"I'm cold..." she pouted. Cloud nodded in understanding as goosebumps formed on his arms.
He looked around, then found his side sash. Picking it up, he gave it to her. "How about this instead?" It seemed to sate her, and he regained his shirt. Cloud looked back at her as he equipped his weapons and armor, her eyes lighting up under the makeshift robe as he donned the articles. "Do you have a mommy and daddy?" He slipped his gloves on.
The girl nodded. "Mommy's in the other room. The mean man put me in here!"
Cloud sighed, nodding. "Let me bring you back to your mommy. Okay?" He held out his hand, the girl grabbing it. He looked at the door, and found several buttons that were too high up for children to reach; he tentatively pressed the green button, and the door opened up into a familiar setting of white square pods and rough rock passage. The warrior peeked about and saw nor heard anyone; he sniffed and smelled familiar scents. 'They're here?' Shrugging, he walked towards the pods to his right as the little girl held onto him. He knocked on a few doors until he heard a muffled response from one; he looked about at the button panel, but it was made for a code or a card that he didn't have.
"Okay..." He looked down at the little girl. "Hey, I need to find something to open this door up. You're gonna have to follow me, but when I fight someone, you have to not look, okay?"
She peeked out from under the black fabric, nodding. "Okay!"
Cloud etched a mark on the door with one of his smallest swords, then continued on, the little girl trailing behind him; he decided it was best not to expose the entire group of people to whoever might be around. Footsteps made their way to his ears, and he took out First Tsurugi eagerly and he ushered the little girl to a wall to wait. The footfalls were heavy, made by someone much heftier than he himself, and soon a man in a light grey suit greeted him with a raised brow.
"What's up with you?"
The warrior narrowed his eyes. "You gave me some little kid, right?"
The guard huffed. "Yeah. Not enough for you or something?" He looked at the huddled black mass behind the warrior, the only thing visible small legs. "...Not hungry...?"
Cloud was disgusted by how casual he was about it. He swung his sword, the man dodging at the last second; his arm was nearly severed below the elbow as his arms went into a defensive position mid-dodge, and Cloud brought out another sword to strike the man's side. Viscera weeped out of the cut, but the guard went in for a desperate attack. The warrior dodged the fist easily and bisected the man with a swing of his main sword.
He licked the blood that ran from his cheek as he rubbed it away; it was sweet tasting. 'He wasn't a werewolf...' Cloud looked down at the man and searched the body, finding a card he could use to open the door hopefully. He looked back, the child pattering towards him blindly. The warrior took the card into his pocket and held the child's arms before she bumped into him, and she giggled. "Be careful!" He heard more footsteps nearby and scowled; there were more coming. "Follow me..."
He walked towards a fork in the passageway; there were more footsteps coming from it. Cloud sheathed his secondary weapon and quietly walked towards his destination, estimating there were three others behind the bend. Crouching, he stopped the child where she was and stealthily creeped closer and tensing as he came to the corner; he listened and heard quick breathing, making him frown. Sniffing the air, the scents were familiar, his eyes widening. "Wait-"
Thump. Cloud saw stars as something heavy and metal smashed into the side of his head, collapsing him to the floor in a groaning heap. He heard someone swearing in surprise and the little girl squeaking far behind him, then felt himself being lifted by someone. The warrior's eyes refocused slowly, blinking, and a grimacing Tseng greeted his vision; the Turk seemed to be looking him over.
"I thought that would do a bit more damage, considering the silver coating. Burning scalp, at least." He said dryly.
"Nice to see you, too, Tseng." Cloud's brows knitted together. "...It was silver?" The Turk nodded, and the warrior looked down at the metal baton Tseng was wielding. He motioned it towards him, and he pressed his arm against it. Nothing. "I guess...the treatment worked."
"Treatment?" Ichi echoed.
Cloud nodded. "Scientist knocked me out, thought I worked for a Junon crime-lord." He regained his footing, feeling the peacekeepers' strength wearing down from the combined weight of he and his swords. "This place is for research and experimentation." He picked up First Tsurugi from the ground and sheathed it.
Tseng laughed mirthlessly. "So I've seen. I had to rescue these two from a damnable contraption I thought I'd never see again." He motioned towards Ichi and Merle.
"This place is a damned nightmare." Merle said, looking about. Cloud nodded.
"There's a few captives here, down the hall. They should be safe until this place is cleared out." The warrior said, motioning the way he came.
Ichi sighed, looking down the hall. "We saw them. What were they doing with them? Making more slaves?"
Cloud nodded. "That scientist said they used them for experimentation and conversion, the kids for visitor food."
Tseng snorted. "Did they give you one, Strife?"
"Yep."
"...That was you in that room. What'd you do with her?" Merle asked, his voice more curious than accusatory; the warrior had never shown any form of aggression towards children, much to his relief.
The answer pitter-pattered towards them, the girl kicking Tseng with a bare foot. "Leave Doggy alone!" She stomped her foot to the ground, her word final.
The Turk smirked, looking down at the girl and then to Cloud. "Your name is 'Doggy' now?" he started to chuckle, Cloud scowling at him. Lowering his gaze to the child again, he nodded at her. "I'm sorry, I thought 'Doggy' was someone else."
Cloud sighed, picking up the little girl. "I needed a key card to get inside the captive pen, and I have one now. But I heard you three, so I didn't think the area was safe enough to evacuate." He patted her back. "Where's Cait Sith?"
"He's stuck with the captives...I dropped him when they knocked me out." Ichi said.
Cloud nodded, then looked back at Tseng. "Is the area clear?"
He nodded. "There weren't many around in the first place." He pointed the way he came, his face neutral. "There were some scientists and a guard up there, seeing to that converter machine."
That reminded the warrior of what that scientist had told him. "...Kalm isn't safe. Some of the peacekeepers have been put through that thing."
The three others cursed. "Well, how're we gonna tell who's who, then?" Merle hissed.
"I don't know. It depends what the treatment does."
Tseng nodded. "We'll figure that out later. For now, I'm going to sabotage that lovely machine of theirs, and this place as well."
"Meet us at the front entrance when you're done." Cloud said, pointing the way he came. "I'm gonna bring the kiddo back to her mom." He walked off, taking the card out of his pocket, Ichi and Merle trailing him. Finally at the door, he fumbled with the card as the peacekeepers stood watch with their recovered weapons; they wouldn't be caught off guard again.
The light turned green, the door sliding open. The people within eyed him wearily; he noticed a crying woman was sitting next to Cait Sith, the robot trying his hardest to console her. He looked up and his feline face seemed to brighten; he stood up and waved, the woman looking up towards Cloud.
"There you are! Took you long enough."
Cloud snorted. "Was kinda preoccupied." He looked around and then waved towards himself. "We're bustin' everyone out of here." The exit was surprisingly subdued, as if they had lost hope in there. He couldn't blame them, but they'd probably return to normal after a few days away from this hellish place. He looked inside, the woman and a child the last to leave; the woman's face was haunted and empty, causing Cloud to frown. "Miss?"
She shook her head. "They took my baby." she said quietly.
He silently sniffed. "Oh, you're her mother..."
The woman snapped her head towards him, then noticed the black mass in his arm; there were little legs poking out. She moved the fabric, a little face smiling back at her. "Hi, Mommy!"
Cloud gently gave the child back to the woman, the little girl hugging her mother's neck. The woman looked back at the warrior with a soft smile, relieved her child was rescued after all. "Thank you for saving her...to use her for such a thing..." He gave a nod, satisfied that the little girl was reunited with her family. He put his sash back on, adjusting his belts.
The little girl looked back at Cloud, waving. "Thanks, Doggy!" Cloud blushed, suddenly uncomfortable.
The woman's brows knotted together. "...Doggy?"
Before the warrior could make up a half baked excuse, the little girl chimed out an answer. "He was a doggy, then he turned into a person!" The woman looked at her and then Cloud, a brow raised.
"Uh...Let's get you guys home." Cloud's face was beet red, the three females looking at him with various expressions from glee to confusion. Cait Sith climbed and perched on his shoulder, slapping his back as he walked off towards Ichi and Merle. "Wonder where 'home' is for these people."
"Those three are from Kalm, but the rest are from Junon, Edge and Fort Condor." Cait Sith said. "I'll have transport ready for them soon."
The warrior sighed, shaking his head. "Your peacekeepers in town are compromised. They have some of them, just like the one that tried to kill Yuffie."
"Damn! Hounds and silver won't work on them, then." The cat scratched its head. "It's alright, transport won't be from Kalm, anyway."
"A stink-bomb might work on them, you know. When Marlene lit one up, I was choking...It was terrible." Cloud heard his friend chuckle on his back. Reaching the two peacekeepers, he took out his blades, combining them together. The two looked over at the beastly weapon, brows raised as the warrior rested it on his shoulder, the robot holding onto the pauldron.
"A bit of overkill, don't you think?" Merle said.
Cloud shook his head. "For these freaks? Keep them safe, I'll be back." He walked off, trailing the scent of the scientist that tinkered on him without his permission; Cait Sith hid on his back as his friend made his way down the hall. Turning into the room that held the scientist, the man raised his brows as he turned from his assistants to look at his former patient.
"Feeling alright after your nap? Sometimes the vats leave patients feeling nauseous."
Cloud nodded. "Yeah. Couldn't eat after I woke up..." He glanced about the room, his rage building. They stuck him in a vat...The warrior had spent enough of his life in a vat. "So, you stuck me in one of these things..." Cloud walked over to it as if examining it, then smashed his giant sword through it. "I've spent a lot of time in one of these." He said grimly, turning to the scientist.
"My equipment!" the scientist squeaked, fumbling for his knockout gun as his assistants scattered. Cloud smashed the man into a wall with his sword, not done toying with him yet; he made sure not to injure him too gravely, yet.
"I didn't tell you how much I hate people like you, playing God on innocent people." He tore through the rest of the room with a flick of his wrist, tearing through sensitive equipment. "And what's worse, you decided to help hide a den of monsters willingly." He bent over the man, his thinly veiled rage warping his usually stoic face, the man looking back at him like he was a wild animal.
"Is this how you repay me?!"
Cloud crouched down and punched the scientist in the jaw. "I didn't ask you to touch me, you son of a bitch." he spat.
"Cloud!" Cait Sith squeaked. He looked up and then rolled away before a large claw had a chance to tear into him. The werewolf was unusually large, brown furred with a black face baring large, pointy teeth at the warrior. It looked back and forth between the two quickly, then scooped up the injured scientist and hurriedly ran off.
"I don't think so!" Cloud gave chase through the hallway, the beast faster than he was; the desire to change was so very tempting at that moment, just so he could catch up and rip and tear at both of those bastards. He shook the thought out of his head, and readied his sword for an attack by raising it high up as they left the facility. With an angry grunt he brought it down, a shock-wave slicing into the giant wolf's back and making it fumble to the ground, bleeding. "I'm ending this..."
He came ever closer to the two, the smell of blood in the night air exciting the ravenous werewolf. The large beast scrambled to get up with the injured scientist, recovering from the spirit attack gradually; Cloud brought his weapon up with a growl as he crunched through grass and pebbles quickly. Before he could bring it down, the man heard his friend squeak in surprise; he turned around as the sound of gunfire made its way to him, and he brought his sword up to deflect the bullets.
Peeking behind it there were several peacekeepers aiming weapons at him or escaping victims; cursing his luck he leapt closer to the new opponents while disconnecting a sword to use as a shield. Cloud looked over, seeing Merle and Ichi take positions and shooting at the intruders as a loud noise came from the sky. The warrior blocked more gunfire, his shoulder was grazed by a bullet as he came down on a peacekeeper; the one next to him lost his head. He heard a grunt as several bullets smashed into the last troublemaker, killing it as the back of his skull imploded.
"Merle?!" Ichi went over to his friend after the battle, the man grasping his side on the ground.
Cloud came up to them as he disassembled his weapon, concern growing on his face. "Damn!" He bent down, moving Merle's hand to look over the injury. Cautiously looking at his backside, there wasn't an exit wound, and he shook his head. "Can't use a potion..." He looked up to the sky and saw the transport Reeve had spoken of; it was the Shera! Looking back down at the injured man he picked him up.
"Hurts like hell...Wonder if I'm gonna make it..." Merle asked, feeling light.
"Hold on, man." Ichi said as he watched over the rescued people on their way to the airship.
Cloud trudged on, and looked down at the peacekeeper; he was hard to carry because of his length. "Merle. You better survive, or your niece is gonna have to live with me."
He saw a ghost of a smile on the man's face. "Over my dead body, mutt." The warrior chuckled, picking up the pace as the airship landed.
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that."
Ah, we're getting closer and closer to the end of the year! Please review for whatever reason, I love hearing on things in case I can improve or an idea that can be placed with in. The story is so long, I might make a second after this one is through for the sake of fun. Cloud is a busy person, isn't he?