Days passed. Weeks passed. Life was getting nowhere for Jessie even as the world moved on around her.

The new life in Edge was…decent. Even Jessie had to admit that. She could at least finally see a clear blue sky above without any gigantic metal plate blocking the view. She could at least live her daily life without the fear of merciless soldiers and corporate suits coming bursting through her door and taking away everything she loves. At the very least, life was safer here.

But it didn't feel like home.

"From now on, you have to listen to everything I say," Erica Rasberry told her daughter upfront sternly and with a hint of anger in her voice, "Cut ties with your 'friends' in Avalanche or so help me, you're never going anywhere out of my sight again."

"But mom…"

"This isn't up for debate!" Erica raised her voice, "I'm commanding you to stay away from those dangerous people. Yes, I said 'command', because that's what you get for hanging out with goddamn terrorists. Those people, they almost got all of us killed! They got your father killed! They almost got you killed! And you expect me to let you continue to hang out with them?"

"That's Shinra's fault, not theirs!" Jessie protested strongly. How could her mother have said something like this!? This is just a blatant victim blaming of the highest order. If it was any of those brainwashed Shinra puppets saying this, Jessie would understand, but her own mother!? How could she!?

"Yeah, and whose fault do you think it was that brought Shinra's wrath down on Sector 7 in the first place?!" Erica retorted, practically shouting at Jessie at this point, "If they hadn't run around blowing up mako reactors, Shinra wouldn't have destroyed an entire sector just to get rid of them! And to think that my own daughter was involved in all this nonsense…"

"But...!"

Jessie wanted to scream. She wanted to knock some sense into her mother that the 'terrorists' she's talking about were the only people who gave a damn about saving the planet from the bastards who wanted to suck her dry, but she just couldn't. Flashes to the chaotic aftermath of the Mako Reactor 1's explosion kept replaying in her mind. All those wounded people on the streets, untold numbers more struck under the debris. And what about the hospitals whose power suddenly got cut? What about the emergency patients whose doctors were unable to do anything during the blackout? What about all those traffic lights at intersections? Signal lights at train stops and crossings? Heavy machinery at factories and construction sites? How much chaos had happened the night they blew up the reactor?

Then she remembered the night Sector 7 fell. The night she lay bloodied on the floor with only Cloud and Tifa there to see her life fading away, a fitting end for someone responsible for so much death and destruction thanks to her callous actions. But then she wasn't dead anymore. She's alive while so many others in Sector 7 are not, many of whom she had known for years. Pictures of their faces flashed right before Jessie's eyes. Suddenly her entire body shivered. She felt dizzy. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't even hear her mother's voice even as she was practically yelling to her face. Then her legs began acting on their own.

The next thing she knew, she was running at full speed through the alleys of Edge, leaving her mother and her new home behind.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do, Wedge."

Jessie muttered as she laid on a couch inside Wedge's new home, her eyes stared blankly onto the ceiling while she used one hand to pet one of Wedge's cats beside her absent-mindedly. Wedge, meanwhile, was struggling trying to move from his wheelchair to an armchair next to her.

"You tell me, Jessie," Wedge sighed, grabbing a diet coke on the table in front of him before cracking the tab open, "I feel like I'm useless most days now. How could I do anything when I'm stuck in this blasted thing? Back then, I was in the neighborhood watch, defending my friends from the beasts in the ruins. Now I could barely take care of my own cats without you guys helping."

"Hey, at least you're still alive," Biggs said in an attempt to cheer his friend up, "You're lucky that Mayor Domino found you when he did. That was a pretty nasty fall out of Shinra Tower from what he told me. How did that happen, anyway?"

"Beats me. One minute I was running around trying to help Barret and the others while they're under attack, then some ghost…things…just dragged me out of the window. I thought I was a goner!" Wedge explained, "I blacked out for two months after that. When I came to my senses in the mayor's personal residence, I was already like this…"

He gestured at his motionless legs, now unable to move due to his spine injury suffered from the long fall. By all accounts, Wedge shouldn't even be alive, and yet like Biggs and Jessie, he was also among those who miraculously survived something that should've killed anybody else. That being said, not all of them came out of their experience intact.

Jessie wondered about the 'ghosts' thing several times ever since she woke up. They showed up to her a couple of times, too. The first time in the slums, they broke her ankle after pushing her down, preventing her from joining Barret and Cloud in their mission to Mako Reactor 5 and forcing Tifa to go in her place.

And the other time they showed up to her, it was when they came for her life...

A Shinra helicopter flying just in front of her. She stared at the pilot flying it, also staring back at her behind that menacing helmet with those devilish red lights. The Shinra bastard was daring her to make the first move. Well, she'd be happy to oblige. Pulling out another specialized homemade grenade from her belt, she kissed it before taking her aim. Her free hand pointing defiantly at her opponent as she grinned.

"Today's your unlucky day, 'cause I never miss!"

Suddenly, there was a strange chilling feeling creeping up from behind her. Her grin began to waver. 'What the hell was that?', she wondered. Still, she didn't turn to look back. The Shinra helicopter should be her biggest concern. She can't miss this shot, as it meant the difference between life and death.

She pulled the pin and took her shot. It was her last mistake.

As the grenade flew away, several ghostly figures cloaked in shadows flew past Jessie at unimaginable speed, taking her by surprise and she lost her footing. It happened way too fast for her to process anything, but she caught a glimpse of the grenade she just threw out impossibly flew back to her.

She didn't even have a chance to duck out of the way as her own grenade literally exploded in her face. The shockwave sent her flying backward like a ragdoll. Her chest armor prevented some of the shrapnel from getting through, but not all. She couldn't even shriek out as the extreme pain paralyzed her entire body. She felt her back slammed into concrete, hard enough to bounce her forward again and fell into the ground. Maybe it's a metaphor for her life in a way: to be thrown into one mess after another until she couldn't take it anymore. Moments later, debris from above, affected by the explosion, came crashing down on top of her, burying her under the whole mess as the cherry on top of the disaster domino she herself caused. One final mistake in the failure of a life she's about to lose.

As her visions blurred all around her, all she could see were glimpses of those ghostly forms flying all around her, as if they were mocking her. She let out a pained bitter chuckle as a response. "Got what you wanted now, didn't you? You wanted me dead so much, then take me already."

Unfortunately for her, they weren't done with her yet. They had to put one final nail in her coffin by having Cloud and Tifa showing up right then and there. Now, she could finally get to act out that dramatic death scene she wanted to do so much.

'That's how it's gonna be, huh? Enjoy the show, then. My farewell performance's about to begin.'

"…sie…Jessie!"

Jessie felt Wedge's hand shaking her shoulder, bringing her back to reality. "You looked like you just saw a ghost there."

"What?"

"You were, like, in a trance!" Biggs added, "Hell, I was calling out to you several times: 'Planet to Jessie. Come in, Jessie', but you didn't even hear a single thing I said!"

"Sorry, I was just thinking about something." Jessie quickly replied, trying to change the topic. Whatever the things that caused her 'death' were, they didn't matter now, and she shouldn't let it make her lose herself like this. If they didn't bother Biggs and Wedge, then why should she let them bother her?

"You sure you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine!" She insisted, "Anyway, what were you guys talking about?"

Biggs and Wedge shared a quick glance, then Wedge just shrugged and went back to playing with one of his cats. "Well, we were just talkin' about the new airship made by Wutai Engineering. Looks pretty neat, actually. Hard to believe they put it together in just half a year."

"Well, now that they didn't have to worry about Shinra breathing down their necks, Wutai finally got a chance to show what they're really capable of," Biggs added, "Now all they need are some pilots to fly it. Heh. Maybe you would've made a good pilot, Wedge!"

"If only my legs weren't busted," Wedge bemoaned, "Ironic, isn't it? We actually beat Shinra against all odds but now I can't even walk, let alone try to pilot something."

"Hey, never say never, bro," Biggs tossed another diet coke at Wedge, who despite his weariness was able to catch it effortlessly, "Your reflexes are still as sharp as ever, and I'm sure I can find somebody who could craft those neat prosthetics for you. I also think that Barret could get you in touch with a new pilot friend of his…some guy called Highwind or somethin'."

"What? You mean Cid Highwind!? I love that guy!" Wedge's eyes lit up like a kid seeing a toy he liked, "He's like a legend among pilots with so many things he pioneered. Heard he was even supposed to be the first man in space, too, before something went wrong. I even had a model of the Tiny Bronco back in Sector 7! I heard he just designed a new airship, too. And you said the boss knew him!?"

"Alright, flyboy. Cool your jets." Biggs chuckled, amused at his friend's fanboyism. At least it managed to cheer him up, "I'll see what I can do when boss comes back from the north."

"What 'bout you, Jessie? What're ya plannin' to do after this?" Wedge asked with a curious expression, "I heard there's a job fair at the WRO Recruitment Center in the town. They're always looking for more mechanics for their reconstruction projects. Maybe that's your thing?"

Jessie sighed, "I dunno. The guys in charge are mostly former Shinra employees, and you know how I feel about 'em. Besides, my dear mom would never let me step an inch out of town without her permission, and those people worked across the planet."

"Ah, yeah, about your mother…" Biggs noted sympathetically, fully realizing the predicament Jessie was currently in. Mrs. Rasberry had made it clear to him some time ago that she never wanted him, Wedge, and by extension everyone associated with Avalanche in her daughter's life ever again, "I'm…sorry that it all comes to this. I really am. Sorry that we dragged you into this Avalanche business back then."

"Nah, not your fault. I chose to join by myself." Jessie quickly replied, "Nobody was doing anything to protect the planet, so somebody has to step up. It doesn't matter what my mom thinks. She of all people should know that Shinra had to be stopped. Didn't she learn this after what happened to my dad? Her own husband?"

"Well, you're not wrong, Jessie, but is it really worth it?" Wedge added, "I mean, she's still your mother. Of course she's gonna be worried about you. I don't mind if she hated us for dragging you into this, but what about you? You still love her, don't you? This is hurting the relationship between you two, isn't it?"

"Why? What makes me more special than you two? Special than the others who also lost somebody they loved thanks to Shinra?" Jessie demanded, raising her voice, "Barret also has Marlene to take care of, Biggs also have the orphans at the Leaf House, and you have…well, these cats, but you get my point! Everybody has something to lose. That's life. What makes my mother's needs better than others?"

"Because you are all she had left," Biggs replied calmly, "Marlene, the orphans, even Wedge's cats…they can all go on with their lives without us around. There are others who could take care of 'em should anything happen to us, but you, Jessie, you're irreplaceable to her. The poor woman already lost her husband. The last thing she needed is losing you as well. She'd be devastated if anything happens to you."

"Yeah, Biggs has a point, Jessie." Wedge added, to Jessie's surprise, "I mean, I wouldn't want to leave those little guys alone if I can help it, yeah, but they don't really need me to stick around. Me and Biggs, we're expendable. We don't really have to worry about people waitin' for us back home, but you do. You still have your mother. You know she's having it rough ever since Mr. Rasberry fell into a coma. I don't think it's a good idea if you give her more reasons to worry, Jessie."

"So you're saying it was a good idea for me to do nothing while my dad was slowly dying every day!?" Jessie argued. Now she was definitely getting angry, "Damn it, why are we even still talking about this? We're supposed to be talking about what the hell we should do for a living in this godforsaken town! What happened between me and my parents is really none of your business!"

"Alright, alright, chill out!" Biggs put his hands up with a resigned look, "You're right. Let's just go find ourselves a job. I know you don't like the people at WRO, but right now they're the only ones with vacant positions in this town, so…"

"Might as well get it over with, then," Jessie cut him off, launching herself up from the couch as if she was preparing to go to war, before heading toward the front door, "Not like there's anything else out there for me, anyway…"

"I don't remember her being this scary…" Wedge whispered to Biggs once he was sure Jessie was out of their sight. Biggs shrugged nervously in response.

"I'll look after her, don't worry." Biggs replied, "I'll see if I can get in touch with some prosthetic makers at the fair. Will get you some diet cokes and cat food, too."

Wedge chuckled. At least one of his friends was still optimistic about things. "Heh, what would I do without you, buddy?"

"Well, you can take care of those little fellas, for one! There's no way I can handle all of them." Biggs grinned back, gesturing to yet another of Wedge's cats currently scratching her claws on the window curtains, before going after Jessie, "I'll say hi to Mayor Domino for ya."

The walk to the WRO Recruitment Center wasn't a long one, but it felt like forever for Jessie. Hundreds of things seemed to run wild inside her head as she tried her best not to go insane. What if the WRO is just like Shinra under a new management? What would Barret say about this? What if I'm forced to do something I don't want to? What if I ended up like my father? Why won't Biggs and Wedge just shut up about my mom? Why did my mom have to get so worked up about what I do with my life? Why can't I just get a job as a dancer somewhere?!

Biggs was trailing behind her at a fair distance, watching Jessie pacing through the streets stiffly with her head down. Something was definitely bothering her and it definitely wasn't just about the WRO. Jessie hasn't been the same person she used to be ever since she woke up at the hospital after her coma.

Biggs wanted to find some way to help her, he really does, but he wasn't sure how. He was familiar with taking care of the orphans at the Leaf House. They were easy to figure out. When they got upset, all they needed was a hug and some encouraging words. That was not the case with grown-ups like Jessie. Some scars run deep, some probably never even heal. Losing her father and everything she once knew along with seven months of her life were more than likely to be these types of scars. How could one even begin to recover from that? What should he even say to cheer her up without accidentally saying the wrong things and make the situation even worse?

Hopefully finding a job she's interested in at the fair could cheer her up. He thought to himself. Wishful thinking, maybe, but it at least took away some of the worry in his mind.

The WRO Recruitment Center was located in a medium-sized building that used to be a warehouse, located at the Central Plaza in Edge. There were already dozens of people lining up inside at the job booths, each crewed by one or two people in nice blue suits with ID badges hanging from their necks displaying prominent 'WRO' letters on white backgrounds.

Jessie sighed as she glanced around the large hall. "There's no way I can avoid them, isn't it?"

"I'm not saying that you have to work with them, Jessie." Biggs replied, "I'm just saying that you should at least see what they're like, and then you can decide whether it's your thing or not."

Here goes nothing.

Finally admitting defeat, Jessie headed toward the nearest WRO booth in her vicinity. There was a young woman of about similar age to her wearing a distinctive blue WRO dress sitting with a slightly bored expression. She sprouted a long red hair that completely clashed with her blue uniform, and Jessie briefly wondered if the same would happen to her. She always felt awkward in those elaborate suits and uniforms. It made her feel like she lost her identity. Just another corporate social climber. Another cog in the machine.

The WRO isn't Shinra. The WRO isn't Shinra.

She recited the mantra in her mind, trying to calm herself down. If Biggs told her to give them the benefit of the doubt, then she oughta do it. Biggs has been one of her most trusted people ever since they were both young, so there was no reason not to believe what he says. Besides, he was there since the WRO was formed. He might've really known what he's talking about instead of just parroting propaganda nonsense like most Shinra supporters did.

When she arrived at the booth, the lady immediately greeted her with a smile – a sudden contrast from the bored face she was making earlier. Either she was being professional or she was really good at faking good impressions. Not the best start, either way.

"Welcome to the World Regenesis Organization! My name is Cissnei. Glad to be of your service today!" The lady, whose nametag attached on her shirt appropriately read 'Cissnei', spoke enthusiastically. "Here we have job openings in all kinds of fields in all branches across the planet! We're always looking for new promising pioneers who want to make the world a better place to join us!"

Cissnei? What kind of name was that? Sounds more like an alias than a real name. Jessie wondered to herself. This place is weird.

"Ah, I was hoping to learn more about the organization first?" Jessie asked, figuring she should test the waters a little before getting into detail, "Like, I know about the basics, but what is this place really about? What's your philosophy and your current goals?"

Cissnei smiled as she handed Jessie an expensive-looking tablet displaying an infographic of the WRO, "The WRO was created as a response to the damages done to the planet by Shinra, both directly and indirectly. Our founder, Mr. Tuesti - a former Shinra employee himself - believes that we all hold a responsibility to do our part in restoring the planet back to how it used to be and make up for the mistakes we did in the past. Over half of our volunteers here are former Shinra employees who wish to atone for their actions while working for the company, and we all share a common purpose: the planet herself came to the rescue in our greatest time of need, and it's up to us to strive to do the same for her as well."

Jessie nodded politely with a return smile, but her inner thought did not reflect her expression. Those are fancy words, but can you put your money where your mouth is? Shinra also did nice speeches all the time, too, and they were no saints. Why should I expect anything different from you?

"I see in here that you have a…Regenerative Technology Division?" Jessie asked as she scrolled through the data in the tablet.

"You are correct! It's one of our first divisions created, actually. It's based in Junon, but we're opening up a new branch here in Edge as well," Cissnei explained, "The Regenerative Technology Division primarily does what its name implies: coming up with new inventions that contribute to improving the state of the planet. Anyone who has a creative idea to share with the world are all welcomed to join. I've been to the HQ in Junon a couple of times and it's probably the nicest workplace I've ever been in."

"Sounds lovely," Jessie noted. She didn't buy the idea yet, but after looking up some of the ongoing and finished projects the Regenerative Technology Division had done in the tablet, seeing the smiles on the faces of people responsible for them in the photos, even she had to admit that it got her curiosity somewhat, "Huh, that's a fancy looking water filter design."

"Yup, the brainchild of a promising young inventor from Icicle Inn," Cissnei smiled proudly, "Ever since the Meteorfall, the town was struggling to maintain itself due to lack of tourism revenue, so its population try to do what they can to generate income. Then comes this fella, Mack Kanady, who came across a new natural spring not far away from the town and figured that it would make for a good export, so he put together a homemade water filter to process the water from the spring, and the rest is history."

"Sounds familiar, right?" Biggs tackled Jessie in her shoulder playfully, "Reminds me of someone I know from Sector 7, don't you think?"

"Hahaha," Jessie laughed sarcastically, though she did find Biggs's joke amusing, and he made a good point. Mack's water filter design really got her interest. It reminded her of a design she once drew up in her spare time back when she was living in the Sector 7 slums, making water filters to fund Avalanche's operations. This really did take her back, even if for a brief while.

"You know, this could actually be my type of work," Jessie noted enthusiastically, something that even surprised herself. The initial antagonism she had toward WRO was still there, but she couldn't deny that the appeal of inventing new things for the betterment of mankind sounds like an idea she could get behind. It isn't acting, but at least it's something she knows how to do well.

The WRO isn't Shinra. The WRO isn't Shinra.

As Jessie kept scrolling through the tablet, something else also caught her interest, "Hmm? Isn't that a Shinra Reactor?"

"Oh, that's one of the newest projects from the Junon branch!" Cissnei said excitedly, "The Faremis Environmental Restoration Facility Project. Its goal is to repurpose the abandoned mako reactors around the world into cutting-edge facilities capable of restoring nature in their surrounding areas previously left desolated by lifestream extraction."

"And how exactly do you plan to achieve that?" Jessie immediately asked. The topic of mako reactors was still a rather sensitive subject for her and she wanted to know if the WRO was planning to do something about them, "Aren't they all out of commission since Shinra went out of business? They shouldn't even be functional right now."

"That's…half-right," Cissnei explained, "Only the mako generators themselves were shut down. The power converters and capacitors are still functional. One thing I'd give to Shinra is that they built their tools to last, and those things are still in decent condition even months after the company's fall. With some modifications, along with the use of our revolutionary – and patented! - Ifalna Solar Cells – we can generate one-hundred percent clean solar energy to power the facility itself and beyond!"

"Wow, that's…that's really something!" Jessie couldn't help but be impressed. Her inner-engineering soul she got from her father showed itself as she took a quick look through the Ifalna Solar Cell's specifications. Though solar panels weren't exactly her forte, she could probably come up with some suggestions about the materials used to create them and how to improve their quality and cost efficiency.

Cissnei was smiling as well, and it even felt more genuine this time around. She was certainly happy that someone was being very enthusiastic about what her organization was trying to do, "If I remember correctly, I heard they're planning a test run on a prototype facility at Reactor 1 in Midgar next month. It's hard to believe, but much of the equipment in there was still functional. It's also the one reactor that didn't turn into some monster hive like the others, so it'd be easier to settle in there."

"Reactor 1?" Jessie immediately asked. She couldn't believe what she was hearing at first, "But...wasn't the reactor already blown up? By the…I mean…"

By my hands. Jessie finished the thought in her mind. She couldn't bear to speak it out loud. To be reminded of her failure again. The failure that cost probably hundreds of lives and led to an attack on Sector 7, which led to even more deaths. It was something she wanted to distance herself from but she also knew that it's impossible. This mark of shame that she was branded with will stay with her until the day she dies…again, that is.

Seeing Jessie's uncomfortable look, Biggs decided to fill in for her instead, "What my friend is trying to say is that she had heard that Reactor 1 was blown up in an accident. Something related to a faulty conversion tube that caused a chain reaction that devastated much of the reactor, right?"

"Oh…you're one of those who fell for Shinra's lies, too? I get it. They were pretty convincing, weren't they?" Cissnei frowned, "Actually, the reactor just looked like it was destroyed. All those nasty explosions seen from the outside? Most of them were just exterior explosives detonating for a big light show. The only real damage done was to the reactor core, which was destroyed by a small-scale explosive device."

"Wh..what? I…don't understand." Jessie mumbled. This didn't make any sense. She thought that the explosive charges she used for the bombing were too strong and somehow caused a chain reaction that destroyed the entire tower. What was Cissnei talking about?"

"Mr. Tuesti ran an investigation himself," Cissnei continued, "And he found out that President Shinra ordered General Heidegger to deliberately initiate the reactor's self-destruct sequence. In other words, they bombed their own reactor. In reality, though, the explosions were meticulously contained so that the only destroyed parts were ones that can be easily replaced later, and the whole structure remained mostly intact despite the massive explosions outside. Knowing Shinra, they wouldn't just discard one of their money-making machines so easily."

"Why would Shinra go to the length of doing something like that?! Biggs asked. His expression was also that of confusion and shock, "Why would they blow up one of their own reactors if they didn't actually want it destroyed in the first place?"

"Because they wanted to pin the blame on someone else, that's why," Cissnei sighed, "You probably saw it in the news on every channel back then. Avalanche, Wutai, names of all known oppositions of Shinra. They probably blew up their own reactor so that they can blame their enemies for it, engineering fear and paranoia within the population so they will support Shinra and turn against their opposition. To put cherry on the top, the fact that they didn't actually destroy the reactor so they can reclaim it later means the people of Midgar would see them as responding quickly to organize reconstruction efforts. Heh, those people were the masters of propaganda tactics, I'd give them that."

Jessie dropped the tablet on the desk before taking a couple of steps back, feeling sick in her stomach. She spent her entire life, literally, blaming herself for everything that happened since the bombing of Reactor 1, all the death and destruction, how it led to Shinra's assault on Sector 7 and the deaths of so many others including her own father. And it was all a goddamn lie.

"Jessie, are you alright?" Biggs asked with concern, holding her shoulders to provide what little comfort he could. He was also reeling from the sudden revelation himself. Why did Barret never tell them any of this? Did he deliberately try to hide the truth from them or he genuinely didn't know? No matter the case, it didn't do Jessie any favors with having a random stranger breaking the truth out to her like this.

And it couldn't have come at a worse time.

"Hey, Cissnei! I can't find the star charts from Cosmo Canyon you were talking about!" A familiar energetic voice shouted from somewhere to the right. The speaker was a young man with an impatient look on his face, and he certainly was someone who had no concept of subtlety. His extremely unkempt flaming red hair and unbuttoned suit jacket distinguished him from the crowd even from a far distance.

Yet it didn't take the lack of subtlety for Jessie to immediately realize just who the figure in front of her was.

"Second squad, move in! Secure the lower floors! Get rid of those pesky Avalanche thugs while we're doing our thing! I see one of 'em moving about right now. A girl, eh? Real shame. Hey, Rude! Fly us into position!"

"…you."

She could never forget that face. The face that haunted her every time she had nightmares about the night when Sector 7 fell. That man…that monster…he was there, too, hanging from the side of a pitch-black Shinra helicopter shouting orders to the grunts down below. The man who was responsible for destroying everything she ever loved. The man who killed her father.

"Come on, we don't have time all day! Tseng will have my ass for this if I don't get them to him soon!" Reno continued as he arrived at the booth, walking right past Jessie and Biggs as he did. He didn't even recognize them in the least.

"Alright, alright, I'll get to it! Jeez, it's like you forgot that I don't work for you anymore," Cissnei replied in an irritated voice, before gesturing to Jessie and Biggs, "Mind filling in for me while I do your job?"

"Heh, how hard can it be?" Reno chuckled as he turned around to face them with a grin. That smug grin. He really didn't care at all, did he?

"Hi! World Regenesis Organization welcomes you two fellas here! What can I do for you today?"

Reno presented himself in an overly over-the-top persona, as if that clown act would wipe away all the pain and misery he had caused to her all these months, as if they all never happened.

"Hey, is your girl doing alright? Her face's looking a bit too red for comfort." Reno asked Biggs, who did his best to remain calm as possible in the face of someone who almost killed him, to no avail.

"You don't remember them at all…do you…" Jessie clenched her fists, her voice almost as soft as a whisper as she glared daggers at Reno, "Everything you did that night…all those people…my dad…"

"What are you even talking about?" Reno frowned, "What night?"

That was the point when something just snapped in Jessie.

She lurched forward at Reno before Biggs even realized what was going on. Reno didn't even have a chance to express his shock before Jessie's left fist punched him right in the face with all the fury of a girl who desperately wanted catharsis.

"YOU LYING PIECE OF SHIT! YOU FUCKING MURDERER!"

The force of the punch sent both Reno and Jessie into the ground, where she continued to attack him again and again. The whole world seemed to blur all around her, and she could only see the face of the man who took everything from her as she beat him to a pulp. She didn't even care anymore that she was doing this in front of dozens of people. To her, nothing else mattered except this.

"YOU KILLED MY FATHER!" She screamed, "YOU LIED TO EVERYONE! YOU BLAMED US FOR YOUR ATROCITIES SO YOU COULD KILL ALL THOSE PEOPLE! YOU AND THE MONSTERS YOU WORKED FOR!"

"…ha…hang on…" Reno mumbled out weakly, trying to speak through all the blood that covered his mouth, "..I…I'm sorry…"

"No, you don't get to say 'sorry'!" Jessie cried out with venom in her voice, grabbing Reno up by his shirt collar before spitting in his face with all the disdain she had in the world, "You don't deserve it! You deserve nothing!"

"Jessie, stop!"

Amidst the chaos, Jessie finally felt Biggs's hands on her left shoulder, along with a softer pair of hands holding on to her right – Cissnei's, trying to pull her out of her frenzy. Tears flowed uncontrollably from her eyes, but she didn't stop. She couldn't stop. Flashes of the Reactor 1 explosion, the fall of Sector 7, and her father lying motionlessly on the bed kept replaying in her mind even as she continued to bash Reno's face. They motivated her to keep going, and going, and going…

"That must be just another day at work for you, huh!?" She screamed again, yet another punch launched into Reno's gut, making him spit out even more blood, "Just another job Shinra sent his dogs to do because that coward won't get his hands dirty himself! I bet you got showered with rewards killin' people that asshole, didn't ya?!"

"Please, miss! Stop this or I'm calling the cops!" Cissnei pleaded, trying even harder to pull Jessie back, but all it did was make her even more furious, "Somebody call Tseng! Elmyra! Anyone!"

She needed this. She had to avenge everybody who lost their lives that night. Everybody who suffered and perished to Shinra's numerous crimes. She'd make sure to send the red-headed thug who was Shinra's loyal dog to hell if it's the last thing she does.

"Die, you asshole! Die like all those people you killed!" She screamed again, yet another punch slammed into Reno with all her hatred and pain, "Die with Shinra!"

"Shinra. Is. Gone!" Biggs shouted as he finally managed to pull Jessie away before she could mess up Reno any further, "They're gone! They're not your problem anymore! It's over now, Jessie!"

"NOTHING IS OVER! NOTHING!"

Jessie shouted back. How dare he!? Biggs of all people should've known how she felt. He also lost his parents to Shinra when he was young, too, so why was he trying to stop her!?

"Goddamn it, let go of me! LET GO OF ME!"

She tried to break free, but now that Biggs and Cissnei finally had firm grips on her and the initial unbridled rage she had earlier worn away a bit, Jessie couldn't. A couple of guards came to Reno's sides and helped him up, miraculously still conscious even after the savage beatings he took, and were about to carry him away.

Jessie's mind was racing. No, you're not getting away again! Not this time. Not this time!

Mustering every ounce of strength she still had left, Jessie made one final push to get out of the hold, stepping on Cissnei's right foot and biting Biggs's left hand in the process. Nobody will stand in her way of avenging the fallen.

"FUCKING DIE!"

Like a berserker, Jessie charged forward, intending to put an end to the red-headed bastard once and for all. Before she could reach him, though, she was tackled from the side by another man she didn't see coming. She fell to the side and felt a sharp pain as her head hit the ground, then everything turned dark.

Failed…again. Story of my life.

Once more, Jessie found herself slipping away, unable to move her body as everything kept getting darker and darker. She heard someone's voice speaking over her. A voice that sounded really familiar to her.

"Thanks for your help, Rude. Take them both to the infirmary. I'll take it from here."

"Yes, Mrs. Gainsborough."

That was the last thing Jessie heard before she lost herself completely to the darkness.