NINE

When Barret and I reached the top of the wall, we stopped for just a moment to catch our breath. There wasn't much room to stand, but it was enough. Although heights didn't bother me, I didn't look down. It would get worse the higher we got, and I knew the footing would likely be even more precarious for most of our ascent.

Barret looked up. "Still got a long wayta go, merc."

"Yeah," I nodded, following his gaze. "But we'll get there. Got your grappling gun ready?"

He held it up and grinned. "You bet! We got three goals, SOLDIER boy! One—kick some Shinra ass an' save the planet! Two—save Aerith while kickin' even more Shinra ass! Three—make a flashy escape to the slums, kick Shinra ass, an' save Jessie!"

"Copy that," I agreed.

Taking aim, we fired at a low hanging edge of the debris and pulled ourselves up. The shattered remains of the plate were a tangled mass of wires, twisted metal, broken concrete, rubble, and other debris. We set down on a long, rusted sewer pipe about three feet across that must've been underground before the plate had collapsed. It rose up at an angle amidst a cluster of other wreckage.

We climbed carefully toward the top end, weaving past a jumble of torn cables until we got there. But with all the broken ruins around us, we couldn't see a place to fire our grappling guns from here. There was an actual airplane caught in the midst of it, a large one. Probably from Shinra's aviation museum. Jessie had told me about it once, during one of our long trips across the slums.

She, Biggs, and Wedge had ventured up to the Sector 7 plate earlier in the year to steal an engine part from one of the aircraft displayed in the museum, one she could convert into a motor to power the elevator in Seventh Heaven. They'd still been building it at the time, connecting it to the new hideout they'd been putting together in the basement. The theft had been a success, though Jessie had gotten a little distracted on the way out when she'd seen a huge mural showing an airship hovering over the main launchpad in Junon.

She'd been totally in awe of the thing and had nearly forgotten why she was even there. It wasn't until she had heard someone arguing with one of the staff that she had come back to herself. From what Jessie had said, the guy'd had a hell of a temper and a mouth to match. But he had noticed her gazing at the mural and had given her a little smile, as if he liked that she was admiring the airship.

After shooing the museum staff away, the pilot—Jessie had figured him from his outfit—had chatted with her for a minute. Apparently, he had come to town on business for a few days but was from somewhere far from here. Biggs and Wedge had found Jessie a little while later, and they had returned to the slums without any trouble. Then she had used that engine part to finish the elevator.

"Damn plane's blockin' the way," Barret muttered.

I took a closer look. "Yeah. If we could just move that propeller up a bit, we could jump on it to keep going."

He nodded. "Any ideas?"

At first, I didn't know. The plane was nose-up in the debris next to the sewer pipe, surrounded by the rubble of what might've been part of a hangar. But then I spotted an open panel in the fuselage. Inside was a fuse box of some kind, humming faintly. As I gazed at it, I remembered what we had brought with us.

"Yeah," I said. "The batteries Marcus gave us. If we put one in here, the propeller might work. See the cockpit?"

Barret looked around. "Right down here, Spike."

I took out a battery. "Okay. Once I put this in, try the engine."

"Will do," he said, reaching inside.

The plane was an older model with an open cockpit, fortunately, so all he had to do was take hold of the starter. I wasn't sure if he'd be able to hot-wire it with just one hand, but somehow he managed it. As I got ready to plug the battery into the fuse box, Barret used the barrel of his gun-arm to hold the instrument panel steady while he worked. It took only a moment, and then he was ready.

I inserted the battery. "Start it up, Barret!"

He did, and a moment later, the motor revved to life. It only lasted for a few seconds, but that was enough to move the propeller so one of the wide blades lined up with the next section of the wreckage when it finally came to a stop. We jumped lightly atop it, then climbed further up until we came to a jumble of broken tracks amidst the scorched and blasted remains of one of the smaller tunnels that ran across the plate. I started to reach for my grappling gun to move past it, then froze when I saw what was in the middle of the ruin.

The devastated wreck of a train lay twisted within the debris, glass windows shattered and smoke rising from the burnt metal. It looked as if some huge hand had just grabbed it and smashed it again and again. But the worst thing was, I could see shapes inside. Bodies of passengers and crew. They'd been caught in the collapse, likely trying to get out of Sector 7 before everything had gone to hell.

"Goddamn…" Barret shivered.

I sighed. "They didn't have a chance."

He grimaced. "I know, Cloud. We gonna remind Shinra 'bout that when we save Aerith, right?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "They'll get the message."

"Damn right they will!" he agreed.

I glanced at the tracks. "Look, there's a crossing gate here. If we can raise it, we'll be able to move on."

"We need another battery?" Barret asked.

I nodded. "Looks that way."

After taking the second one out of my pocket, I plugged it into the open port at the bottom of the gate. Then I flicked a switch a short way up, and the arm lifted with a mechanical hum. That done, Barret and I moved on, following the tracks until they came to an abrupt end just a short distance away. Then we used our grappling guns to pull ourselves up to the next cluster of debris. As we made our way carefully across a thin, fallen stone pillar with nothing but air beneath us, I heard Barret muttering nervously to himself.

"Don't look down…" he breathed. "You can do this. Jus' keep goin'. Don't look down. Don't look the hell down…"

I kept my eyes ahead. "Relax, Barret. We're almost there."

He snorted. "I'm jus' fine, SOLDIER boy."

"If you say so," I shrugged.

We reached the other side a moment later and stepped down onto a large section of broken highway littered with rubble, ruined cars, and collapsed buildings. At first, the place was empty, but then three Shinra soldiers came running around the corner of a ruined wall. They raised their rifles as soon as they saw us.

"It's them!" one of them yelled. "Avalanche!"

Barret raised his gun-arm. "Bet your ass it is! Y'all don't know what sufferin' is! But you gonna find out!"

While he opened fire, spraying the soldiers with bullets, I scattered the group with a quick blast of lightning from my materia. Then I drew Buster and ran in, slashing low and then high. Although we took them down easily enough, another wave showed up only a few seconds after the first had been dispatched. Between the two of us, though, we made short work of them, my sword and his gun-arm tearing into them and leaving them sprawled out on the ground.

"They'll be coming for us," I said, shouldering Buster. "They know we're alive, or at least suspect it. Ran into another group while I was on the way back to Aerith's house with Jessie."

Barret glanced at me. "Bet they're history now."

I nodded. "Believe it. No way I was letting them touch her."

"You really got it bad, dontcha?" he grinned.

"Got what?" I blinked.

He chuckled. "Nevermind. Let's jus' get goin'. An' to hell with bein' subtle! Jus' thinkin' 'bout bustin' inta Shinra HQ's got me all fired up! I got enoughta keep me goin' for days!"

We moved on, hurrying down the section of highway and fighting a few more groups of Shinra soldiers as we went. They weren't much of a threat, though, and we took them down with barely a scratch to show for it. The ruins rose further above us, but I could see we were making progress. The top was closer now, and so was the center of the city. We had been heading toward both, since the ruins gradually rose up from the outer edge toward the middle.

Just as we were passing another wall, something suddenly flew past us, spitting a line of bullets along the road. It was just a blur at first, but then I caught sight of it as Barret and I dove aside. It was some kind of mech, small but deadly. A body shaped like an upside-down cone with a pair of gatling guns mounted on either side and a third on its back. It was held aloft by three sets of propellers and darted back and forth as it quickly circled around us and fired again.

"The hell's this?" Barret asked.

"Valkyrie," I answered, drawing Buster. "Heard about it when I was still in SOLDIER. Also called Heligunner. It's an advanced aerial sentry used for search and destroy missons."

Barret raised his gun-arm and grimaced. "Hey, Cloud… you think Jessie designed this one, too?"

I frowned. "If she did, she'd want us to destroy it."

"Yeah!" he agreed. "Let's take this son of a bitch down! For Jessie! I owe her for all the hell I put her through."

"Got that right," I told him.

As the Valkyrie swooped toward us, guns blazing, I quickly spun to the right and struck it with a backhand slash as Barret opened fire with his gun-arm, bullets chewing into the mech's metal skin. But although it was small, the Valkyrie was tough. It shuddered but held as it flew by and circled around for another pass. We were ready for it, though, and we weren't about to let up for a second.

I followed Marissa into an alley, slowing the Hardy as I went in. We had just enough room to fit the bikes, and after driving a hundred feet or so from the main road, we stopped for a minute. I'd seen the Shinra Building before going in here, and it was huge. Bigger than I'd thought. And Aerith was right near the top of it.

"What now?" I asked.

Marissa glanced over her shoulder at me. "There's a back entrance to the Shinra Building just around the corner at the end of the alley. It's a loading bay for deliveries and such. I'll have one of my contacts from inside meet me there to bring in the Hardy."

I nodded. "And then what?"

"First, we'll bring the bikes to the loading bay. Then you head over to the rendezvous point across the street to wait for Cloud and Barret. And while you're doing that, I'll get the Hardy moved inside. It'll be on the third floor—don't forget."

"Right, I'll remember," I told her. "But how will we know which car to steal for the rest of us?"

Marissa went on. "One of my contacts will tell you, Tifa. If you can make it past the 60th floor, you'll meet him. He can be a little eccentric, but he's a good man and cares about people."

I smirked. "Sounds like us."

"True enough," she chuckled. "Once the Hardy's inside, I'll ride the Gust back to the slums and look after Jessie."

"Will she make it until we get back?" I asked quietly.

Marissa sighed. "I'll keep her with us for as long as I can, Tifa. But unless you guys can save Aerith and bring her back in time… she'll die. Jessie only has a day or two left, like Elmyra said. But… to be honest, I think she was trying to be optimistic."

I stared at her. "What do you mean, Marissa?"

"It's just that… it's not the kind of news anyone in medicine likes to deliver," she explained. "What she said was true, but it's more likely that Jessie's only got a day at most. Maybe less. Two was if she held out and responded well to the treatments."

"But she hasn't, has she?" I shivered.

Marissa shook her head. "No. Like I told you all before, Jessie's got too much internal damage. She's barely hanging on. So you guys really need to hurry. We don't have much time."

I nodded. "Then let's move."

We did, heading down the alley and around the corner to the back of the Shinra Building. I saw the loading bay Marissa had mentioned a moment later, and we parked the bikes alongside it. After getting off, I handed her the keys to the Hardy. There was no one else there yet, but I wasn't worried. Marissa was already reaching for her phone. She gave me an encouraging smile as she pulled it out.

"Better head over to the rendezvous point now, Tifa," she said. "I'll take care of things here. Good luck."

I took her shoulder. "You too, Marissa. Thanks."

Then I hurried back up the alley, keeping to the shadows as I made my way back to the street. There were guards out in front of the Shinra Building, and I didn't need them spotting me. So I snuck quietly across the road to another alley and slipped just inside. And then, my eyes on Shinra's towering corporate headquarters, I folded my arms in front of me and settled in to wait for Cloud and Barret.

After a few minutes, though, I began to wonder about them. Were they getting close? I was sure they'd have found a way to get here, but I didn't know what it would be or how long it would take. Unless… with them avoiding the Corkscrew Tunnel, the only other way up would be to climb the ruins. That had to be it.

Judging by how Marissa and I'd had to fight our way up here, it was a good bet that the guys would run into Shinra's forces as well. I knew I was supposed to wait and meet them here and that they were perfectly capable of kicking ass, but I still felt restless. I was worried about Jessie and Aerith, too, especially after what Marissa had just told me. And as I thought about that, I made my decision.

With a last look at Shinra Headquarters, I jogged down the alley to the next street. Sector 7—or rather, the edge leading to where it used to be—wasn't too far away. Cloud and Barret would be climbing toward it to get here. And with this being the center of the city and where all the different sectors met, the border between it and the ruins wouldn't be a large one—the sectors were shaped like giant wedges with their points all connected here at the heart of Midgar.

If the guys had gotten high enough, I'd be able to see them coming. I raced down the street and around another corner, heading northwest until I finally came to the edge. And I deliberately kept my eyes low so as to avoid looking at the terrible view that was surely spread out below me. I thought I'd go crazy if I did. So instead, I took a breath, crouched down, and scanned the ruins for my friends.

At first, I didn't see anything. But then, after a moment, I spotted a a pair of tiny figures about two hundred feet below me. They were on a stretch of broken highway sloping upward amidst the crumbling ruins of several skyscrapers. It was Cloud and Barret, alright. But something was following them, firing and then darting away before they could get in more than a hit or two as they climbed.

Narrowing my eyes, I clenched my fists as I stepped down onto the wreckage. It descended at a fairly steep angle from here to where Cloud and Barret were, and the footing was treacherous with all the shattered pieces of metal, concrete, and other debris piled everywhere. But I had to get to my friends and help them out. So, as carefully as I could, I ran down the slope, ready to join the fight.

"Run, dammit, run!" I yelled. "Move your ass!"

Cloud followed me behind another section of wall jus' as that flyin' metal mosquito buzzed past us, guns blazin'. I fired off a few shotsa my own but only grazed it before it sped outta range again. That'd been the battle so far—hit an' run as we kept makin' our way upward. Cloud had gotten in a cut or two but not much more yet. Damn thing was fast, an' it didn't like stayin' close for very long.

Holdin' his sword ready, Cloud flattened himself nexta me with his backta the wall. "What do you think I'm doing!?"

"Damn thing's tryin' to sting usta death," I muttered.

"Any bright ideas?" Cloud asked.

I snorted. "Don't get killed."

"Wasn't planning on it," he quipped.

Jus' then, the Valkyrie flew toward us again, bullets diggin' inta the other side of of the wall we was standin' behind. I spun 'round an' fired a few shots at it while Cloud shocked it with a blasta lightnin' from his materia. The mech sparked an' wobbled, but it held together. Tough lil' bastard. All I could do was nick it before it started circlin' again, an' we hadta get our asses back behind cover.

When the mech flew back only a few seconds later, it didn't use its guns this time. It fired a paira rockets at us, smoke trailin' from behind 'em as they streaked right for us. My eyes widened as soon as I saw 'em, an' I got movin' right away, runnin' up the broken highway with Cloud jus' behind me. Fire an' thunder chased us the whole way as the rockets exploded, an' then the Valkyrie fired two more.

I glanced over my shoulder. "Oh, you gotta be shittin' me!"

"Just shut up and run!" Cloud snapped.

I did, pumpin' my legs and climbin' the debris as the rockets struck the cracked pavement not ten feet behind us. Heat swept over me, an' I dove to the side to get away from the flames while Cloud did the same. We came up on our feet in a large open area partway up the slope. The city above was a lot closer now, with the Shinra Buildin' in the middle. My blood boiled when I saw that place.

Didn't have no time to think 'bout it, though. That mech swooped in an' hovered a few feet above the ground, firin' its guns as it went. Me an' Cloud split upta divide its attention, him goin' left while I ran to the right. Bullets was chasin' us the whole damn way, but now we was close enoughta really strike back at the thing.

I whipped up my gun-arm an' took aim. "Finally! Was gettin' tireda playin' tag! Timeta rock!"

"Less talking, more shooting!" Cloud called.

I did jus' that, firin' a steady streama bullets inta the Valkyrie while SOLDIER boy sliced at it from the other side. We got in some solid hits but nothin' that did any real damage yet. After scorchin' it with a quick blasta fire magic from my materia, I unloaded on it with a big shot, the orange balla flame flyin' from my gun-arm an' hittin Valkyrie dead on. It shook an' sparked but didn't go down.

Cloud jumped, did a forward somersault, an' struck the mech with a huge overhead chop that knocked it off balance. As he came down, it shot streamsa fire in all directions, lightin' up partsa the debris with its napalm jets an' turnin' the area into a friggin' inferno. Then I saw it was gettin' readyta fire more rockets at us.

"Aw, shit…" I swore.

Jus' then, though, I heard footsteps runnin' down the slope toward us an' a sharp intake of breath as whoever it was suddenly jumped inta the air. I turned to look, but at first I only saw a slim silhouette flippin' forward across the early afternoon sky. When she let out a loud yell an' started slammin' the mech with her fists an' feet and sent it flyin' back, though, I knew exactly who it was.

"Tifa!" Cloud an' I shouted at the same time.

She smirked as she landed. "Hi, guys! Need a hand?"

"Damn, girl!" I grinned. "You sure know howta make an entrance! An' I thought Spike was the flashy one!"

She smiled. "Thanks. It was pretty good, wasn't it?"

"You bet," Cloud agreed, givin' her a faint smile. "Glad you're here, Tif. Thought you were on the plate, though."

Tifa nodded. "I was. Marissa's getting the Hardy in place right now. But while I was up there, I realized I couldn't just stand around and do nothing. So I went looking for you."

He eyed the Valkyrie again. "Good thinking."

"Ready to take out the trash, guys?" Tifa raised her fists.

"Oh, hell yeah!" I whipped my gun-arm back up as we all faced the mech. "Let's blow this bitch outta the sky!"

We went at it, shootin' an' hittin' an' slicin' again an' again, attackin' it from all sides. The mech fired back, but we kept on movin' an' stayin' aheada the bullets. Then it started spinnin', lettin' loose in all directions at once. We scattered, Cloud an' Tifa peltin' it with their magic as I kept up the pressure with a focused shot.

Suddenly, the Valkyrie rose up overhead an' then slammed straight down toward me, the drill on the bottom of its body damn sharp. With a startled cry, I dove aside an' rolled backta my feet as the mech struck the ground where I'd jus' been. Cloud an' Tifa rushed in an' whaled on it before it could rise back up, an' I added my bullets inta the mix along with another bursta magical fire here an' there 'till the Valkryie started spinnin' like a top an' chasin' after me.

"Shit! Little help here, guys!" I called, runnin' like hell.

Cloud an' Tifa went right at it as I circled the area, stayin' jus' a step aheada that giant metal mosquito. Soon as they got it off my back with a flurrya slashes, punches, kicks, an' cuts, I whirled back 'round to face the mech an' blasted it with a concentrated streama gunfire. The mech lurched, smoke risin' from it, then shot back inta the air.

Then it unloaded with a barrage'a gunfire, rockets, an' napalm that sent us all divin' for cover. An' in the midsta all that, the damn Valkyrie fled, flyin' away toward the Shinra Buildin' like a bullet from hell as we coughed on the smoke an' picked ourselves up. By the time the grayish haze had cleared, the mech was long gone.

"Shit…" Cloud swore.

I grimaced. "Nearly had the damn thing. Typical Shinra coward! If I see it again, I'm gonna finish its ass!"

Tifa nodded. "We all will. Everyone okay?"

"Ain't nothin' hurt but my pride, Tifa," I chuckled. "You?"

"I'm fine," she smiled.

Cloud shouldered his sword. "Same. Let's go."

Leavin' the burnin' section of broken highway behind us, we made our way up the resta the ruins, climbin' up the smashed remainsa what usedta be a city. It was quiet now, which was kinda strange after all the ruckus from the fight we had jus' finished, an' we didn't talk much. Jus' kept climbin', movin' past the empty shellsa skyscrapers an' up the high mountaina rubble an' debris.

A few minutes later, we finally reached the top an' pulled ourselves over the edge an' out onta the street. But while we did that, Tifa looked back the way we'd come from, an' the color left her face like water goin' down a drain. I didn't needta ask her why. She jus' stood there, her eyes wide an' haunted as I turned 'round to see for myself jus' what she was lookin' at. Cloud did likewise, an' none of us said a word at first. All we could do was jus' look at that terrible sight.

"No…" Tifa breathed.

Sector 7 lay all spread out below us, a wasteland fulla wreckage an' debris descendin' from here an' stretchin' all the way to the outer wall. I shivered when I saw it. Felt like a goddamn graveyard, an' I s'pose that's what it was now. Wedge an' Lena had gotten a lotta people out, but not nearly everyone. There'd jus' been no way. The slums had been hometa nearly fifty thousand people. Before… this.

An' then there was all the folks who'd been livin' on the plate itself. We'd spotted a few survivors on the way up, but not a lot. I hoped more had gotten outta there before it had all come down, though. But either way, too many people had died last night. An' I was gonna make Shinra answer for it, that was for damn sure.

I glanced at Tifa. "Don't you ever forget this view."

She sighed. "It's… I don't have the words, Barret. I still can't believe they actually did it. So many people… gone."

"I know," I said. "Use it, Tifa. This anger. Let it drive ya."

Tifa swallowed. "Was this… our fault?"

I shook my head. "No! Shinra pulled the trigger on this, not us. We went after the reactors, but they chose this. They coulda gone after us a different way, but they didn't. So don't take on."

"He's right," Cloud added. "They chose to drop the plate."

Tifa nodded. "That's true, isn't it? Shinra didn't have to strike back at us like that. They could've done something else, something a lot less drastic, instead of this. Bastards…"

I laid my hand on her shoulder. "That's it, girl."

"It's a miracle we were able to find Jessie in all of… that," Tifa said, her eyes on the broken hellscape before us.

"It was," I agreed. "An' we ain't gonna waste it."

Tifa looked us. "Yeah. She's got less time than we thought, guys. No more than a day at most, from what Marissa said. Probably less. Jessie's just… slipping away. So we've gotta hurry."

Cloud's blue eyes never wavered. "We're going. Now."

Without another word, he turned an' headed down the street. Tifa an' I followed right behind him, determined to save Jessie an' Aerith an' give Shinra a lil' pain while we was at it. We made our way through the roads an' alleys, keepin' to the shadows to avoid bein' spotted by Shinra soldiers, an' a few minutes later, we was there.

Shinra Headquarters loomed overhead, a huge tower risin' inta the gloomy sky like somethin' from a nightmare. Huge mako pipes twenty feet across went into it an' out all across the city, belchin' fumes up inta the air. The damn place was ugly as hell with that weird sideways drum section sittin' up near the top, an' the Shinra logo was stamped above it as well as on the two glass front doors.

Cloud, Tifa, an' I gazed at our destination, ready to kick ass an' get Aerith outta there. With luck, we wouldn't be here too long, an' we'd get back downta the slums in time for her to save Jessie. I reached up for a moment an' touched the red stripa cloth tied 'round my left arm. I had let Jessie down, but now I was gonna make it upta her an' repay Aerith for all the good she'd done for me, for savin' Marlene. I was gonna save her jus' like she'd saved my little girl.

An' kick Shinra ass every stepa the way.