Before Crisis 2: The Crisis


CHAPTER 43 – UNDERWATER ATTACK

January 11th [ ν ] - εγλ 0008, 9:00 AM

Rude was woken by the usual sound of his alarm, followed by the unusual sound of crowd noise, just outside his cabin. He sat up and peeked through the curtains across the room, slightly blinding himself from the sudden light. Through his blurred vision, he could see the rocket in the distance, surrounded by a large crowd of people at the gate. They seemed pretty fired up for today's launch.

But little did the public know, that the Rocket Plan was shaping up to be a massive failure. There were four locations of Huge Materia and two of them had been claimed by AVALANCHE, leaving just the one from Nibelheim in Shinra's possession. It was Reno's responsibility to secure the last one in Junon, but no matter what happens, Rufus had made it clear that they proceed with the launch.

After a quick shower, Rude found himself walking towards the gate, wondering if AVALANCHE was on the way. He still didn't know what their motives were but he'd been told not to worry about it. The time to launch was fast approaching... though as far as he was aware, none of the Huge Materia had been loaded onto the rocket just yet. According to Scarlet, they were to be shipped altogether as soon as the one from Junon was collected.

Arriving to the gate, he took a moment and looked up at the metal scaffold, which consisted of two staircases and a ladder. He picked up a few Shinra guards along the way and climbed up the structure, eventually reaching the rocket's entrance. As he settled, he glanced at his watch. Only a few hours to launch.


Reno paced up and down the walkway, watching the overhead crane ascend from the Underwater Reactor's compression chamber. He followed the crane as it began to glide towards the submarine dock, his eyes focused on the container that was fastened on the hook. Inside the container was the Huge Materia, which resembled a Summon Materia in terms of its shiny red color.

At the dock, several workmen scrambled inside as the crane was stopped just above the Red Leader. Reno stood at the front entrance of the dock, blocking the narrow passageway as he watched the cargo door open, allowing the Huge Materia to lower into position. Unperturbed by the loud mechanical noises, he waited patiently for the cargo door to close, and the workers to exit the submarine. Just as everything settled, a lone worker stopped in front of the redhead and stared him down.

"What are you doing? Help load." Reno scowled at the weirdo.

He pointed over the Turk's shoulder before running towards the Red Leader. Reno gave attention to his warning and turned around, only to come face to face with the trio of terrorists. His eyes widened at Cloud Strife.

"Cloud?!"

"Looks like we barely made it," Tifa said, looking around her surroundings.

Barret stepped to the front and raised his fist angrily. "We're gonna help transport the Huge Materia... Reno!"

"Either give it to us or else," Cloud snarled, tapping his foot impatiently. "Which is it gonna be?"

Reno stopped for a moment and observed the man. The former infantryman had definitely changed. His eyes, bright and infused with Mako, met the Turk's with a new level of confidence. He stood taller and more dignified than before, and his underlying insecurity and uncertainty seemed to have disappeared.

"Unfortunately, I don't have time to deal with you," Reno said, his hand reaching for his pocket. He pushed a button on the device and signaled to the Carry Armor, which rested a few feet away. The Roboguard stretched its legs and began shuffling towards the group. "My priority is the Huge Materia!"

Wasting no time, Reno turned to the Red Leader and took off running. He hurried up the ramp that led to the submarine, shoving aside a few workmen before finding himself inside.

"Fuck off, will ya? Move!"

He entered the bridge and hopped onto the driver's seat, turning on the ignition switch immediately. The engine whirled and the space around him vibrated, but the submarine didn't seem to budge.

"Why isn't it moving?!"

He hit the ignition switch again and shook the wheel furiously, punching other buttons on the panel. Had he forgotten how to pilot a submarine?

"Uh sir, the Mako tank is open," a crew member called out. Reno turned to him with a glare. "We weren't finished filling up... the tank."

"Then fuckin' close it! We need to get outta here asap!"

The man nodded and left in a hurry. As Reno waited, he peeked out the side window and glanced at the Shinra Sub 2, a second submarine docked on the far side. Several guards stood by the watercraft, watching the battle between AVALANCHE and Carry Armor. Reno turned to the other window with interest, only to frown as he realized he didn't have much of a view. He did, however, find that one of the Roboguard's arms had fallen to the ground.

"Sir, we're set to start."

Reno plugged on his headset and pulled the nearby transceiver to his mouth. "This is Reno... get the Gelnika ready for take off. We'll be there in twenty."

The Red Leader moved at last, bubbling smoothly below the water. Reno sighed in relief as he guided the sub through a narrow underpass that led to the open waters. All he needed to do after clearing the tunnel was surface, and avoid running into Weapon.

But even before clearing the tunnel, the submarine began to shudder violently. Reno looked around in confusion as the warning light came on, and he grasped onto the wheel tightly to steady himself. There was no way Weapon was here, so what had caused the Red Leader to shake? "Uhhhhh... what's going on?"

"Sir! Sub 2 is behind us!" the crewman yelled out. "They're firing torpedoes!"

"It's AVALANCHE!"

"Shit." Reno's immediate reaction was to stomp on the accelerator. How in the hell did they manage to steal a submarine?

The Red Leader took a moment to pick up speed, staggering to one side slightly as a result of the earlier damage. He turned the wheel left and right as it zipped down the linear path, in a blind attempt to dodge further attacks. He didn't know how far behind AVALANCHE had gotten but after that burst of speed, there had to be some separation between them. Detecting no threats on the Sonar Radar Screen, he focused on the path ahead, and relaxed on the accelerator as the end of the tunnel came into view.

"Torpedoes incoming, sir!"

"Sir, the ballast tank has been shot open! We're flooding!"

Just as he reached the open waters, another three torpedoes hit the back of the Red Leader. Reno cursed as it veered in the wrong direction, his grip loosening on the wheel. Screams ensued as another bang struck the submarine, causing it to flip multiple times in the water.

"WHOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAA!"

Falling off his seat, he had now lost all control of the wheel. Drops of water splashed onto him as his focus shifted to finding anything to cling onto.

"Sir! The escape pod!"

It took all of Reno's determination to lunge forward and press the "abort" button, followed by the successful entry of a four-digit passkey. Ocean water surged inside the submarine as its sidewalls opened without any warning, giving him no time to take in a full breath. Despite his efforts to save the crew, he felt himself panicking and slipping into darkness, the immense pressure overwhelming him completely. This could be the end...