Chapter 15: To Find A Fallen Angel
Vincent stood in front of the group of twelve outside the house. Behind them, the old man and woman sat on the porch.
"Today is the day that we begin our journey, as a single group," Vincent addressed the crowd, "We may not like everyone we're working with, but through unforeseen circumstances, we've all wound up together in this anyway. I trust that no one's personal feelings will get in the way of what we need to do,"
Everyone looked around uncomfortably.
The sound of an engine could be heard in the distance. Looking up, Vincent saw a large airship making its way past the mountains.
"Least it's not that crazy-ass pilot again…" Barrett muttered.
Vincent smirked. "Don't get too excited, Barrett,"
"Hey! Everyone- if I may have your goddamn attention, please!" a familiar voice shouted over an intercom after a minute.
"Shit!" Barrett cursed.
"Hey, at least he can't run us over with that thing," Aeris pointed out.
"…Since my prior appearance was not approved of, I will ask everyone to stay away from the open space until I land the damn airship! This, my friends, is The Highwind, designed by yours truly. You wanna board this ship, you follow my rules. The rules are: no brawls, no trashing the rooms, and if you're gonna puke, find a toilet or a wastebasket. Otherwise, you clean it up yourself. Anyone who has a problem with that, don't board the goddamned ship! This is your one and only warning!"
"What's his problem?" Tifa wondered aloud.
Cloud shrugged.
"I think he's a riot!" Zack grinned, "This should be fun,"
"For once, I agree with soldier-boy," said Reno.
The airship slowly descended about a hundred feet away from the group. A ramp was then lowered to the ground.
"Now hurry up and get your asses aboard!"
The old couple waved goodbye as the ragtag group began to board The Highwind.
"And how is everyone else?" Vincent asked Elmyra over the phone as he sat in his cabin.
"We've all evacuated Midgar," Elmyra replied, "Shears and Elfé each led the rest of us to safe hideouts,"
"Good," Vincent said. "We can't take any chances on your getting caught. It was one thing to have Rufus as a prisoner, but there are also four other Shinra employees involved now. We can't be too careful,"
"I understand. Good luck…and…be safe,"
"…You too,"
Vincent hung up his PHS just as he heard a knock on the door. He opened it, revealing Rufus.
The young VP stepped inside and handed some sheets of paper over to Vincent. "Here are the latest documents on the Jenova sightings. Thank goodness we're finally somewhere that has a printer,"
Vincent looked at the documents. "Excellent,"
"I've also called the best inn down there and made reservations for everyone," Rufus added, "When will we be landing?"
"Cid says it should be about six hours," Vincent replied, "Do what you like until then,"
"That was my intention," Rufus told him.
"You must think you're something else if you can't be bothered to take orders," Vincent remarked.
"I guess we'll just have to see, won't we?" Rufus said as he walked away. We'll see…if these people are the ones who can dispatch my father…then we can finally do things the right way…
Jessie eyed the beer bottle carefully. Stepping back, she raised her arm and quickly brought it down.
The tip of her leather bullwhip shot forward, effectively knocking the bottle off the concrete block she'd placed it on. Grinning, she gathered the whip and wrapped it into a coil.
I'll clean up the mess when I'm all done…
She went over to the empty six-pack, and grabbed another empty bottle. Placing it on the block, she stepped back a good ten feet and tried again. Like last time, the bottle was effortlessly knocked off the block, where it shattered into pieces.
"I certainly hope no one decides to wander this area barefooted,"
Jessie looked behind her to see Rufus standing there.
"So not only are you good with video games and electronics," he observed, "But you've also got impeccable aim with that thing,"
"And before you elaborate any further, I've heard all the dominatrix jokes," Jessie coldly informed him.
Rufus chuckled. "I'd like to think I'm more clever than that,"
"To be honest, I'm surprised," Jessie said as she wrapped up her whip and set it down. "I was prepared for us to have to tie you up and drag us with you. Yet, you seem perfectly happy to be coming along with us,"
"Happy may not be the right choice of words," Rufus told her, "But I do currently think that this may be in my best interests for now,"
Jessie grabbed a broom and dustpan from nearby and began to sweep up the broken shards. "Why?"
"Because the idea of having to deal with so much red tape back home to take care of Jenova gives me a headache," Rufus answered simply, "Things…actually seem to get done with you guys,"
"So why did you take the job as vice president of Shinra Inc.?" Jessie asked.
"I saw the lousy work so many executives did," Rufus told her, "I thought that if I were in a position of power, things might actually get done. I was wrong. Everything is so tangled that it's impossible to actually do anything,"
"So why didn't you just quit and find something else to do with your life?" Jessie asked as she dumped the pieces into the trash.
"If executives could barely get the job done, then I didn't want to think of what regular people were like,"
"Well…now you're about to find out," said Jessie.
"I suppose," Rufus relented, "Well, I'm off. I need some sleep so I don't suffer from jetlag too much. I'd advise you to do the same,"
He walked away.
Is it just me…or could it actually be a blessing that he's actually behaving like a team member and not a hostage?
Jessie shook her head and walked back to the room she was sharing with Aeris and Tifa.
The large island of Mideel could be called a tropical paradise, if one were viewing a picture of its lush greenery and beautiful jungles, complete with exotic wildlife.
Except actually being there was a completely different story. Vincent was tempted several times to fire his gun at the air if only to stop the endless complaints from the others of bug bites, animal droppings, and the intensely hot and humid weather.
Several layers of clothing had been shed by nearly all of the party members, including Rufus. Cloud had found himself holding his helmet over his lower abdomen after watching Tifa take off her leather vest and tie her hair back. Zack had spent the rest of the journey to town elbowing the mortified trooper knowingly.
Without a doubt, Cid had chosen the worst possible spot to drop them off. And he was now on his way back home in the air-conditioned cockpit.
Vincent barely managed to keep his patience in check for the hour-long hike into civilization. He was also thankful that Jessie's navigational device had come in handy, or else they might have been traveling through the steamy jungle for a lot longer. Either way, he could feel his already streaked hair turning greyer as he listened to the constant whining.
And a middle-aged man like myself can tolerate this kind of travel. What's wrong with this picture?
"Holy shit- we made it!" Reno shouted as the group approached a town.
The group erupted into a cheer, save for Vincent, Rufus and Tseng.
"About time!" Biggs exclaimed.
"Damn straight!" Barrett agreed.
Vincent turned to face the group. "Do what you like for now. But I want everyone to meet at the inn in an hour. Remember that, all of you,"
Jessie grabbed Biggs' arm. "Let's get some ice cream or something!"
"Oh, you said the magic word, little cousin!" Biggs said with a grin.
"You coming?" Jessie turned and addressed Aeris and Tifa.
"Right behind ya!" Tifa beamed, "Come on, Cloud!"
Vincent watched as everyone, save for Rufus, the Turks, and Medea, ended up following Biggs and Jessie in search of ice cream.
"Like little children," Medea chuckled.
"I'll go set things up at the inn," Rufus said before looking at the Turks. "Come on, you two. Afterward, we'll go find a bar and cool off the grown-up way,"
"Hah! That's what I'm talkin' about!" Reno exclaimed as the three walked away.
"I guess that leaves me to stock up on supplies," Vincent muttered.
"Do you need any help?" Medea inquired.
Vincent shook his head. "No. I'm sure you're hungry after such a long journey. Go do what you want. I'll take care of things for now,"
"If you say so," Medea bowed politely and left.
Aeris lay awake that night while Jessie and Tifa slept in their beds. It was a pattern she was beginning to notice. A lot had happened in one short day. Well, not really that short, as they'd been up with the sun, which was rather early for late July.
The afternoon had been a blast once they'd reached town. They'd found an ice cream parlor like they'd hoped, and had all pigged out on either ice cream, milkshakes, or lemonade. Poor Biggs had suffered from brain-freeze on more than one occasion, with Jessie scolding him for not being more careful.
Cloud and Tifa had sat next to each other, seemingly in their own little world. It didn't look like they were going steady just yet, but Aeris couldn't help but smiling at seeing them together nonetheless. They really did make an adorable couple.
After meeting and discussing what to do next, Vincent once again dismissed the group until the evening.
Barrett and Sephiroth had eaten the most at the ice cream parlor, yet neither of the two men seemed to be suffering from their over-indulgence at all. In fact, three hours later, they had no trouble finishing off their dinner at the town's bar & grill.
Aeris, Tifa, Cloud, Zack, Jessie, and Biggs had decided to catch a movie playing at the local theater, only to a bad science fiction B-movie as the main feature. Since the run-down theater was nearly empty, the three spent the whole feature making jokes at the bad acting and special effects.
Rufus and Tseng showed up at the inn, carrying a sloshed Reno up to their room. The redhead had drunkenly insisted that he'd be fine the next morning.
Aeris had no idea where Vincent had gone to. She'd only found him sitting in the lobby when she returned to the inn for the second time. Medea had done the same disappearing act, and had turned up much later. When Aeris asked her why she was smiling, Medea spouted some nonsense about the kids being able to grow up in a quaint little town like this.
Too tired to comprehend the woman's non-sequiturs, she'd politely said goodnight, and went back to her room.
And here she lay, awake in the middle of the night, trying desperately to keep her thoughts of a certain surrogate brother of hers at bay.
Maybe once I see Mama and Papa again, things will go back to the way they used to be…
Not letting herself doubt that thought, she closed her eyes and tried once again to fall asleep.
It didn't work.
The next day had been the busiest any of the group had been in a while. All of them had gone about asking the residents about the woman known locally as "the angel lady". Rufus and Jessie stayed in their respective rooms, researching more sightings on the internet.
"How convenient…" Reno had muttered.
He and Tseng had both noticed the vice president's growing impatience with their constant presence. Finally, he'd thrown them out of his room, insisting that they'd be better off helping from outside.
After a day of hitting nothing but dead ends, the group reconvened in Vincent's room.
"So, Rufus and I both noticed a pattern," Jessie announced, "The sightings vary each day, and from what we've put together, we've noticed Jenova heading in a southwesterly direction. Rufus has a theory that he has yet to share with any of us,"
She then looked at Rufus expectantly.
The VP pointed at Aeris. "You," he said, "Ancient,""My name is Aeris!" she snapped at him, "You could at least try to remember that!"
"Fine- Aeris," Rufus corrected himself, "What do you know about the Temple of the Ancients?"
The Cetra looked thoughtful. "From what I remember my mother telling me, it's not accessible without some kind of…keystone,"
Rufus raised an eyebrow. "Keystone?"
"Yeah- just a simple rock," Aeris explained, "But it's actually a key,"
"So how do we get our hands on that?" Biggs asked.
Aeris shrugged. "Don't look at me. I just know some of the story. Why are you even bringing up the temple?"
"The island to the west of Mideel is supposedly the location of said temple," said Rufus, "And well…it's rumored to house some ultimate destructive magical power. Not enough proof for my father to take any interest in, but at this point, I don't know what to believe in anymore. In any case, there's a chance she may be there. The rumors, and the direction she's gone, all point to that one place,"
Barrett shook his head. "That still doesn't explain how we're gonna get our hands on the keystone,"
Jessie's eyes twinkled. "I know a way…" she offered, "But…it could very well cost us a lot,"
Everyone immediately looked at Rufus.
"Oh, go to hell!" the rich young VP spat.
"Bear with me," Jessie began to type at her laptop, "I'm sure you're all familiar with the online auction site,"
"Do you think they might have one of those things on there?" Rufus asked.
"I'm sure they do," Jessie continued to type, "There's gotta be more than one of these things that was made. And one of them is bound to be on here. Anything rare usually is. Hah! Found one already!"
"That's our girl!" Barrett declared proudly.
Rufus peered over the girl's shoulder. "How do we know it's the real thing?"
"We don't," Jessie admitted, "But it's the only keystone that my search turned up. Honestly, I don't think we really have a choice. Bidding is currently at a hundred-thousand gil,"
"WHAT?!" nearly everyone exclaimed.
"And that's where his highness comes in," Jessie smiled sweetly at Rufus.
"You really think I'll just be able to withdraw that much money?" Rufus protested, "I'm sure that all my accounts are frozen in light of my disappearance,"
Vincent waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it. Start bidding. I'll see about getting ourselves the money we need,"
"Just like that, eh?" Rufus looked at Vincent.
"I'll be back," Vincent left the room.
"Okay…" Jessie murmured as she typed, "We'll bid…one hundred-fifty thousand,"
"Whoa- are you sure that's a good idea?" Aeris asked worriedly, "We've only got so many…uh…financial connections,"
"Don't worry about spilling any beans in front of me, if that's what you're worried about," Rufus told her.
"Done!" Jessie declared, "The bidding ends tomorrow afternoon. Let's hope no one else bids too high until then…"