I found pictures of Arien online that someone drew in 2006. If you've drawn such fan-art, please contact me... I'd love to see them. (And pretty much anything else that has my characters in it.)

Echo the Ethereal Swordmaster - I have about ten more chapters already written and are in the editing stage. I also got the novel recently so I did incorporate stuff from that. Your character will be making an appearance and will be playing a role, although she'll be backstage for a few more chapters.

I'm glad the access for this story's going up, as this takes some work to write. There's a lot of research going into this, mostly with military communication (hand signals, e.t.c.) and firearms. And Reno's not the easiest character to write. This thing is turning into a behemoth in terms of word count. In terms of plot, I'm about 2/3 done. 1/3 to go.

I WILL be reworking The Footsteps of Life and Dum Spiro Spero. The latter needs massive overhaul so that's going to take some planning. I also have another story in the incubator, a cross-over between Vampire: The Masquerade and Final Fantasy 7. So watch out for announcements?

Chapter 37: The Grand Punk Birthday Party

And those words he repeated to himself a few evenings later as he sat in the back room, staring at the ten screens. The Turks were all there, running surveillance and background checks on the guests and the staff. That is, everyone but Arien. She had left earlier than they to get dressed and be ready for the ball, and she'd be coming in with Rufus later, as his "date". Reno was still unhappy about it, and he secretly admitted it might stem from a bizarre inferiority complex. He was the president of the most powerful company in the world, and he, Reno, was just an employee. Women with any sense would go to Rufus, not him. And it was easy to prey on women with greed; dangle the prize in front of their noses and they went anywhere, usually into a man's bed. And well, shit did happen.

His eyes caught people all looking in one direction and he turned his gaze to one of the cameras to see Rufus coming in with Arien in tow. And he had to grudgingly admit that whatever the blond had in his mind, it had played out brilliantly, for the show was on and it was clear the audience was enjoying it. The young president had apparently angled for the "clever and stern yet benevolent new president" look, and was dressed starkly in white, while Arien, who stood next to him, one step behind, looked like his shadow. A beautiful man with a beautiful woman. Her dark hair was in a chignon, with few errant strands curling about on her white neck, and he bet the rope of black jewels around her throat would have fed a family for a good month. She turned her head slightly, and a serene smile was on her face, a smile he had never seen before. Her expression was that of a refined woman, a woman of mysteries, like a shadow behind a beam of light. She said something - he had no idea what she had said - and then Rufus smiled as he turned again toward the guest he was talking to.

"Reno!" said Tseng, breaking his concentration. "Run a background on the new guest. The name's Eugena Laque."

"Got it." He opened up a new window, and typed in the name. "Is that with a k or c?"

"Q. El-eigh-que-you-ee." Reno's fingers were a blur as he typed the name in, then his thumb hit ENTER. A new "RUNNING…" notification popped up.

Down in the ball room, Arien DeVir was standing next to Rufus, pretending to sip the champagne in her glass. She was armed with a compact pistol and nothing else, and she felt a trifle naked without her usual weapons. Reno had been exceptionally mischievous with her when she had left, and she was wondering what was going on. But most of the time she had no idea what he was feeling, so thinking about it was probably futile. It was part of her job to let Rufus know the name of each new guest, in case the new president forgot, and she was having a handful of that without needing further distractions.

"That's the president of TopCo," she whispered into his ear. "Name's Jin Sevrash."

Rufus nodded, but then turned his head to look at her. "Arien."

"Yes?" She looked up.

"Did you drink coffee?"

She stopped, taken back by his question. "No," she replied, shaking her head.

"I see." With that, the president's attention was diverted elsewhere as a new stream of guests came along. Arien knew exactly where the coffee had come from; Reno had kissed her before she had gone to her duty, as if he was laying a claim on her. The kiss had tasted of the dark liquid, sweet and bitter - Reno must have been drinking it before he kissed her - and she slightly blushed at the memory. She wasn't the one to drink coffee unless she was tired. She usually drank tea. He must have noticed the smell.

"You're lucky," said one woman to her. She turned her attention back to the matters at hand. "He's an exceptional man."

"Indeed." She smiled, looking at the blond man who was amicably speaking with a guest. "He is." She wondered what Rufus had told them, or if he had told them anything, and then doubted it. Establishing any relations with her right now would be a stupid move, and Rufus wasn't stupid. She looked around, saw a few familiar faces; Tseng had apparently enlisted Section AA for help, and Whistler had sent over the few of the best. She smiled, and then moved to Rufus' right, feeling a little more comfortable with her mission.

"Hey, Reno. Whassup?"

Reno heard a familiar voice and turned away from the screen, and saw Zen and Axil behind him. He turned his chair, narrowed his eyes. "Didn't know you guys would be here."

"Whistler's orders. We flew in last night." Axil sat down. "Virgil and York are in the field."

"Why aren't you in the field?"

"Because I'm Wutaian," said Axil with a shrug. "And Zen kinda looks like Rufus. Hey Rude." Rude raised his hand in reply. Elena frowned at the clear lack of respect she believed due to the Turks especially during hours, but then Axil grinned.

"Hey, Tweetie. How's it going?" he asked lightly, then pointed at the screen. "Isn't that Arien?"

"Er." Reno refocused his attention back to the screen. "Yeah."

"She's Rufus' date?"

"Bodyguard," the redhead corrected. "Why are you guys here?"

"Backstage support," said Zen. "Whistler has her hands full with the recon for Fort Condor attack, so she figured she'll send us in before something happens and we have to come in anyway. Call it a pre-emptive measure. Besides, we're pros at this kind of stuff."

Which implied that the Turks weren't. The redhead frowned at that, slightly peeved at the blond pointing out his ineptitude, but kept his mouth shut, because what he said was true. The Intelligence were excellent at staring at multiple monitors and fishing out suspicious figures. The Turks were more the squad to go in and beat people up.

Zen, in the meanwhile, was writing a message to Whistler that they had arrived, but got up to his feet and bowed slightly to Tseng, who had just come to see the little crowd. "Hello, Director."

"Thank you for your assistance," Tseng replied to the spy's greeting. "Weatherston, please assist Rude with monitors six through ten. Flescher, monitors thirty-six through forty."

The spies nodded. Axil moved to the end of the table as Zen sat next to Reno, opening his laptop and typing his password into the blinking box. The assassins and spies turned their attentions back to the screens, their eyes following Rufus Shinra and the woman who accompanied him.

Minutes passed, then turned into an hour. The clock struck ten. Coffee cups turned into two, then four, then six, and ashtrays slowly filled up. The work was tedious and slow, but Zen and Axil were used to it, and they did it without complaint. After all, this was what they did most of the time, combing through the piles of information that drifted through the network for something they were looking for.

Zen was excited to sit next to the person he admired, and found it a bizarre experience to find the man without his uniform. Reno was in a normal T shirt and jeans, and so were the rest of the Turks; Zen was reminded that Reno wasn't just a member of the Investigation Sector, but a living human with a personal life and a girlfriend. The girlfriend who was currently next to Rufus, pretending to be whatever she was to Rufus Shinra.

"Why wasn't it…" Zen paused, not sure how to address Elena DuBois, who had less career than he did, but ranked higher in the Department of General Affairs. Reno shrugged.

"Elena?" He typed something, adjusting the camera. "Might as well get used to her, Flescher. It's not like we never work together. And hey, you've already seen her drunk."

"I've seen the president drunk," Zen replied. "But I wouldn't really address him by his first name."

"Oh well, your loss. Hey, you're coverts, right?"

"There are other types?" Elena interrupted as she stared at the screen.

"Yeah," Reno said as he stretched, yawning. "Negotiator, psychoanalysis profiler - those we ask for help sometimes - and interrogation. Oh, and information operative, and communications."

Elena glanced at the blond man who was sitting next to the redhead with a new-found respect. While it was true that she was ranked higher, it was undeniable that Zen had a few years of career ahead of her. And Arien DeVir, who was reputedly the best Section AA had to offer, was a competent member of the Turks, and in terms of handling guns, she was on par with Tseng himself. The Intelligence was a sector that raised such an operative; even if Arien was a special case, it meant Section AA had members who could work in tandem with her, at the same speed, with the same complexity.

"What's Section AA like?" Elena asked, intrigued. She knew what the Intelligence did - vaguely - but AA was just as mysterious as the Turks themselves, and even when President Shinra was alive, AA was allied with Rufus and the Sector of Investigation.

"Well…" Axil and Zen looked at each other from the ends of the table. "Mainly intelligence, espionage. We're spies," said the Wutaian brightly. "We're covert operatives. Arien was the ace after Darren, though. The only drawback was that she tended to plan the living daylights out of everything."

"Well, that hasn't changed,' Reno said with a grin. He turned to the computer, his hands moving on the keyboard, his teeth biting down on the butt of the cigarette. "Hm?"

Zen rolled over and looked at the screen. Virgil Eigner, a fellow Section AA member, was nearing Rufus Shinra, as Arien was moving away. Neither of them looked at each other, but it was clear they were moving according to a protocol. Arien continued to move toward the back of the hall as Virgil, disguised as one of the media hounds, began talking to Rufus Shinra. Reno narrowed his eyes as he tried to read his lips, but could not see it well enough to figure out what Virgil was saying.

"She noticed something," Reno said. "She's coming."

His prediction hit the mark. The handle descended, and the door opened, revealing the woman who stood in the doorway. In the otherwise sterile and shabby room, a fresh and opulent feel entered the atmosphere, along with a faint hint of perfume.

"What's up?" Reno asked as Arien leaned on a chair. "Something happened?"

Arien poured herself some water, looking tired. "I saw some movements outside the windows," she said, crossing her ankles and sipping the liquid. "Are the monitors outside rolling?"

"Yep." Reno hit a few keys, and turned the computer monitor for Arien to see. Arien narrowed her eyes as she checked, then pointed with a slender finger.

"That," she said. "That shadow. See it?"

"That's a few yards out from the wall," Zen said with amazement. "How did you see it?!"

Nobody answered; mako levels were classified information, requiring a special light to see the numerals on the ID card. Tseng came over, noticing the discussion. "What is it?"

"Arien noticed something," Reno explained. "Here." He rewound, then pointed at the shadow in question. "If this shadow's armed, we're in serious shit."

"Reno." Tseng looked over at the redhead, who glanced at his boss with a smile. "Go check it out."

"You got it." He stood up and left.

"Weatherston, go with him," Tseng ordered crisply. "If it's just Reno, we might not be able to contain the situation."

Axil nodded, stood up, and followed suit. Arien straightened, and left as well. Zen shifted his seat, taking over Reno's monitors. Rude took over Axil's monitors, and Tseng sat down between Rude and Elena, taking over the Rude's computer terminal. The monitoring continued in silence as the party continued beyond the corridor.

Reno went around to the easternmost wall, his upper body lowered. His Jericho was loaded and ready to shoot, and his EMR was charged. It was turned off - the blue light would give his location away - but he had screwed the suppressor on as he went out the back door and to the left. His black shirt blended into the darkness, and he had avoided the windows, crouching beneath it instead.

Axil had caught up as Reno was leaving the building, and now the Wutaian was behind him. They ran through the grass, keeping to the wall, Axil with his sword in katana in his hand and Reno with his baton and his pistol.

Reno turned his head, saw Axil in his usual T shirt and leather trousers get up, and then gestured him to halt. He continued to gesture.

You stay, Reno gestured. I'll go and hound the idiots into the trap.

Axil gave a thumbs-up. Reno disappeared into the darkness of the trees that spread in front of the building, his posture still low. Axil watched as the redhead stopped, then jumped up, grabbing the nearest branch. He tested his weight on it, then swung, lightly landing on the branch like a monkey. There, he waited for the prey like a cat on a tree.

It did not take long. The shadow ran right under the tree, and Reno, who was crouched onto the tree all this time, fell through the air. He waited until he fell on top of the mysterious figure to hit the head with his baton, and then grabbed the back of the neck. He dragged the body to where Axil waited, successfully moving without resistance and choking off any screams in one fell swoop.

"Yo, Ax," he whispered, "see anyone else?"

Axil squinted. "No," he hissed back. "But I might be wrong."

"Right. Better tell Tseng."

They dragged the body all the way back to the building, and Axil shoved the stranger into a room reserved for such things - he, or she, was dressed entirely in black, and it was impossible to tell the gender from under the mask the figure wore - and Reno went to the monitor room to get Tseng.

Tseng came right away. After bidding Axil to return to the monitor room, the Director and the Ace of the Turks disarmed and tied the mysterious black-clad figure to the chair, then Tseng took off the mask. Reno, who was leaning onto the table, was hitting the palm of his right hand with his baton, his long legs crossed at the ankles. He raised an eyebrow to see an ordinary man under the black mask.

"An HK handgun and a rifle," He noted as he took notice of the weapons. "All-right, something's goin' on, Boss. When we arrived, some bastards said hello by shooting at us at the hotel. Now this."

Tseng looked at the redhead with a nod. "He looks like a native Junonese," said Tseng. "Go back to the monitor room, Reno. I may need you and Rude to go outside again, if he has any more 'friends'."

"Gotcha." The redhead left the room. Tseng whirled to face the man, now tied up to the chair. "Well," he said, his face impassive. "You can answer my questions peacefully, or you can answer them painfully. It is your choice."

The subsequent scream was drowned out by the soundproofing that had been installed into the chamber, giving no one any notice that the director of the Investigation Sector was forcing answers out of the new captive.

Tseng returned to the monitor room with a grim face. The occupants of the room all turned to look at him. The Turks noticed his grim look, and immediately snapped their full attention to him. They were used to noticing Tseng's expressions and reading cues from them. The AA members were a little slower, but they eventually turned their attentions to the leader of the assassination squad.

"We have a problem," he said grimly.

"Big surprise. What did the idiot 'fess up?" Reno asked, hitting the back of his neck with his rod. "Don't tell me they're gonna blow this building up."

"No," Tseng simply denied. "But there are people trying to take out Rufus. I'm issuing security level A until Rufus leaves Junon tomorrow morning."

"We need to relay that to Arien," Elena said.

"I'll get on it."

"Good. Reno, Rude, go do a perimeter, just in case." Tseng sat down as Rude stood up, taking over Rude's monitor as Zen adjusted the headset he was wearing to contact one of the agents in the ball room. Reno followed Rude and left the room again as Axil rolled over to Reno's post.

"Hey Chev," Zen spoke into the microphone. Elena turned a curious eye at the mismatch of the name. "Yeah, it's Hal. Tell Gunslinger it's Code A… yeah. Until tomorrow morning." He paused and looked at Tseng. "Shall we inform the president as well, sir?"

Tseng looked at the blond man, his eyes sharp. "Yes," he said. "Better let him know."

Zen nodded, then went back to the conversation. "Yeah, let the president know. I know. Reno and Rude are doing perimeter." Zen switched off the microphone, then went back to the monitors. Elena saw York Carlstedt near Arien; he talked to her for a few minutes, and she seemed to be answering, and then the man walked away as Arien went back to Rufus.

Reno and Rude came back half an hour later, reporting that they found nothing amiss. The ball ended without any attempts on Rufus' life, for which the staff were entirely thankful. Arien went back to the hotel with Tseng and Rufus Shinra, while the rest of the crew returned to their respective hotels. Reno, Elena, and Rude went back to the suite; Reno waited, alone, for Arien to return, tired from the tension, but eager to see her as herself again.