They raced down the bloodstained steps but Aeris stopped halfway, rubbing her hands together anxiously.
"Cloud… I just thought of something," she said, her thoughts turning to him. He was a strong man who had been in SOLDIER and who had fought bigger foes than that despicable man up there, but if Rufus was anything like his father then he would have some sort of trick up his sleeve. The Shinras' only ever knew how to play dirty.
"…I'll wait for Cloud," Tifa said reassuringly. "Everyone, get to the elevator!"
"Hmm, it's going to get pretty ugly from here on," Aeris warned as she, Barret and Red headed for the elevator. "We should check on our equipment."
Once everything was in order, Aeris pushed the button for the elevator. The door pinged open and they stepped inside. At first, nothing seemed out of place but as soon as the door shut behind them, Aeris got a distinct feeling that something was not right.
She had been blessed with an amazing sense of intuition since she was very young, always knowing when something bad was going to happen, or when someone had died or was near to death. It was a blessing, she knew that, but it was also a curse. Of course, being a Cetra was something to be proud of, and she most certainly was, but she also wished that, just once, she could be normal like everyone else.
That intuition had resurfaced again when the door to the opposite elevator pinged open. A fierce-looking robot complete with wheels and huge guns mounted on its heavily armoured roof barged its way inside. It locked onto its targets with incredible precision and shot a succession of bullets that smashed the glass walls of the elevators, showering the group in piercing shards.
Once the trio was exposed, the hulking robot shot at them repeatedly with its aux artillery weapons. Aeris was gifted as a natural healer and stood at the back of the group casting her healing spells and throwing in a potion or two, whilst Barret and Red pummelled it with gunfire and Bolt spells, each one taking turns and working together like a well-oiled machine. Eventually, it unleashed a devastating attack that knocked the entire group off its feet.
"Cure!" yelled Aeris as a flash of bright green healing magic sparkled around the trio, engulfing them in its energy before dissipating.
Barret fired another shot at the robot. It juddered and sparked, eventually falling to the floor. Thick black smoke snaked through the air, reducing the visibility to almost nothing. Aeris heard a whirring sound coming from above. She saw a shadow slowly materialise, growing bigger and bigger, and as the sounds grew louder, she eventually saw another robot descending into the opposite elevator.
It was a strange-looking robot. It stood upright, using its large metal arms for support. They were also its weapons, Aeris noticed as she paid careful attention to their shape and components. Not only did it rely on them for support, but they were also firearms, and they looked powerful too. Its body was oval, almost cocoon-like, and attached to the top of it were three spinning rotors set at opposite angles to each other.
The robot rose off the ground and when it did so, its whole body began to spin. No longer needing its weapons as support, it instead fired powerful shots towards the team which they were mainly able to evade, the odd wounds it managed to inflict being swiftly cured by Aeris' powerful healing spells. They countered the robot's attacks with Bolt spells and bullets, ravaging it until it stopped spinning and dropped to the elevator floor with a thud, joining the previous robot in eternal ruin.
Rufus Shinra paced the balcony, his eyes locked onto Cloud with steely precision.
"Why do you want to fight me?" he asked, his gaze unfaltering as he strode from left to right and back again.
"You seek the Promised Land and Sephiroth," Cloud sternly replied with a fixed stare. Rufus didn't scare him.
"Hm, exactly. Did you know that Sephiroth is an Ancient?"
Small talk, Cloud thought. He knew what a distraction technique was and could see it a mile off. What was Rufus planning?
"…A lot has happened," Cloud retorted. "Anyway, I can't let either you or Sephiroth have the Promised Land!"
"I see. I guess this means we won't become friends."
The young President lifted his left hand and clicked his fingers whilst cocking his shotgun with his right. A black hound with silky fur and a slender yet muscled frame darted around the corner of the balcony and stood at Rufus's side. It was statue-like, poised to attack, but only on its master's command.
Cloud barely dodged the first bullet. He could feel the hot blasts of burned air rush against his face as the deadly projectile zoomed past him, eventually coming to rest by embedding itself in the wall at the far end of the balcony.
"Dark Nation. Attack," ordered Rufus.
The guard hound locked its sharp unforgiving eyes onto Cloud, lowering its slick body to the ground before pouncing. With not even a split second to spare, he brought up his sword, effectively blocking the hound's vicious attacks. The beast was relentless, however, kicking at Cloud's sword with its thick hind legs and trying to bite his hands with ferocious hunger.
"Dark Nation. Retreat," Rufus ordered again.
It retreated instantly, backing away cunningly and not taking its eyes off Cloud, as if it was still trying to get the measure of its foe and already planning its next move.
A helicopter hovered overhead, causing Cloud to momentarily lose his composure. Rufus used this to his advantage, taking another shot at his adversary, successfully this time, hitting him with a bullet to the right shoulder. Cloud cried out in pain but gritted his teeth, countering the attack with one of his own. Rufus fell to the floor as the sword crisscrossed along his chest.
"Heh… that's all for today," Rufus said breathlessly as Cloud pulled out a hi-potion from his rucksack and took a swig. "Dark Nation… finish him."
The dog flung itself at Cloud just as he had taken the last drop of the potion. The empty bottle smashed against the hard concrete floor of the balcony as he brought up his sword, slashing the beast lengthways across its chest, blood and guts spilling across the floor. It let out a final agonising howl, dropped to the floor and was still.
Rufus looked up as the helicopter hovered close to the ground, not even glancing towards his fallen comrade. The hound was merely a tool to him; nothing more, nothing less. It was disposable too, just like his father was, whose body was probably still warm. His successor was a cold-hearted man who held only himself in the highest regard. Midgar would go downhill rapidly from now on and hope was fading fast.
Cloud turned and left the balcony as Rufus climbed on board the helicopter. He met Tifa inside who was waiting anxiously for his return.
"Where's Rufus?" she asked him.
"I couldn't finish 'em," Cloud replied stubbornly. "Looks like this's gonna get complicated."
Aeris and the others finally made it to the ground floor. It was completely void of people and an eerie silence enveloped the entire space.
"I'll go on ahead!" yelled Barret as he barraged through the front doors.
The silence was short-lived as he fired at Shinra soldiers who had homed in on him like missiles as soon as he set foot outside the building. He backtracked slowly towards Aeris and Red, maintaining a fierce deluge of bullets towards the swarm of soldiers until they eventually backed down.
"Shit!" he hissed. "Surrounded, huh?" He turned to the team. "If I was alone this wouldn't be a thang, but I gotta reputation to protect."
"You all get out while you can," Aeris said, calmly. "It's not you they're after… it's me."
She might only be young, but she had had her fair share of turmoil in her short life, and things were always brighter the next day. You just needed hope and the drive to carry on, otherwise what was the point in living? Tomorrow would come. And it would be brighter, if not for her, then for her friends. She felt her lips turning upwards into a smile. People said smiling was hard but for Aeris smiling came naturally.
"Yeah, well that ain't happenin'," replied Barret defiantly. "You got caught up in this over Marlene. Now, it's my turn to watch out for you!"
He turned to face the Shinra soldiers outside.
"Ok, playtime's over for you jackasses…"
He fired another round of bullets and watched as bunches of soldiers scattered off into the distance. The whole of Shinra was shook up now that their President was dead, but it wasn't over yet. They still had to get out of this place, and Midgar for that matter.
"…Thank you, Mr. Barret!" Aeris chimed.
"Who you callin' Mr. Barret?" he scoffed. "That don't sound right!"
"Well then…" Red interrupted, "if you are through talking, may I suggest that we think of a way to get out of here."
Barret turned to the red-furred canine.
"Huh? Oh, oh yeah," he said, his features turning into a slight frown. "You a cold man. Just like someone else 'round here I know."
"Did you say something?" Red replied sarcastically, cocking an eyebrow.
"Notta thing," Barret answered. "So, what're we gonna do?"
Just then, the silence was permeated with Tifa's voice as it echoed around the spacious lobby.
"Barret!" she called as she bounded down the steps towards them.
Aeris glanced around looking for the all too familiar sight of Cloud's spiky blonde hair, but Tifa was on her own. Had he been… killed? No, she defiantly told herself. No way. Cloud's story was only just beginning. He was planning something, she was sure of it.
"Tifa!" Barred called out. "Where's Cloud?"
Tifa ran to the left-hand side of the lobby, gesticulating wildly with her arms for the group to follow her.
"Everyone, over here!" she yelled.
"Huh? What's up?" Barret questioned. "Where's Cloud?"
"I'll tell you later! Hurry, Hurry!"
Aeris and the team followed Tifa as she darted through a small side door that lead to a sales forecourt displaying some of the Shinra's company vehicles. Sat on a small podium was a sky-blue pickup truck proudly emblazoned with the Shinra logo. Tifa took the wheel whilst Aeris jumped into the passenger seat. Barret and Red jumped into the truck's cargo area which was open to the elements, giving Barret an opportunity to shoot at any soldiers that tried to pursue them.
Cloud was still nowhere to be seen but then Aeris heard the roaring engine of a motorcycle coming from inside the Shinra building…
To be continued…