Chapter Five: Monster Hunting
Cloud Strife was not a puppet.
It was completely obvious to Tifa, and yet she had almost not believed it at first. She'd found him lying by the train station like a puppet with its strings cut. Everyone else just walked by him, aside from a guard.
But he'd responded to her when she remembered his name.
Cloud had said things about being in SOLDIER, and his eyes had the faint glow to prove it. But he'd been completely helpless for almost three weeks. Whatever had happened to him, it had fractured his memories. He hadn't even been able to remember his name for the first few days, not until Tifa said it at him all day.
Hours had been spent slumped in front of a television while she worked, watching the news. Sometimes, he'd see President Shinra or others speaking and think he was real. He'd almost been a child; only then he'd come up with some extremely good military assessments.
Then he'd started hunting monsters and done a very good job of it. All of a sudden, it was as if they'd been close their whole lives.
Maybe they had.
Cloud descended and cut down a huge worm with a toothy maw as it went after Tifa. Cut in half; it fell dead. Another came at Tifa, but she moved aside and dropkicked the creature into a rock. It died, and she landed before kicking another in half while Cloud cleaved three more in moments.
Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge had been hunting too. Over the course of the past few days, they've been wiping out fiends repeatedly. It had gotten tiresome over time, but it had helped their wallet. And that
And then they stopped, and Tifa turned to Cloud, halting. She remembered something, faintly, a promise. A starry sky, it had been a long time ago, before the burning of Nibelheim. Before Sephiroth.
"They say that Mako sickness can do terrible things to the mind," said Tifa suddenly. "It can wipe away your memories and destroy your whole identity." Why say that now?
"I know," said Cloud. "I was in SOLDIER."
Tifa did not believe that for a second. She had seen Sephiroth in action, seen Zack in action, and seen Cloud in action. And Cloud was not on their level, at least not a SOLDIER first class. But what was the point of saying it?
He clearly believed it. And they needed him.
"I need I need to leave," said Cloud suddenly.
"What do you mean?" asked Tifa.
"Get out of Midgar," said Cloud. "I want to see beyond this place."
That was an absolutely terrible idea.
Cloud was still spaced out now, and then she constantly reminded him to do things. He'd almost forgotten his sword this morning. Yes, he was getting better, but better at living in Midgar with a roof over his head. If he wandered out into the wilds, he could die. Or worse, get picked up by Shinra.
"But Cloud," said Tifa. "You can't work as a mercenary for Shinra anymore. And, you need a sponsor to get into most resistance groups. How are you going to find work?"
"I can hunt monsters," said Cloud, kneeling down to begin prying out the teeth on the worms. You got paid per tooth.
"You can hunt monsters here," said Tifa, working on a different one. "And the people could use your help. You're turning your back on them, on me."
"Barret and his men are all going to die," said Cloud. "Picking a fight with Shinra in the middle of Midgar is not courage. It's a suicide bombing.
"And when he goes down, everyone nearby will go down with him.
"Why don't you come with me? You're good at fighting. I could use your help."
The question was too far.
Except it wasn't too far.
Cloud seemed to think that he'd known her all his life, and she hadn't done anything to discourage the idea. So Tifa didn't have a right not to play along. "There are people who need help here."
"They should just leave," said Cloud. "Drop everything and get out while they still can. Midgar is doomed."
"What do you mean?" asked Tifa, surprised.
"I was reading your grocery list," said Cloud. "You put it on the table. Food prices are much higher than they used to be. I was here before I came to SOLDIER, and they were lower.
"Back then, all the factories were operating.
"Scarlet's factories were producing things for all over, for the wars.
"But most of the factories are gone, see."
He pointed, and Tifa saw a ruin. She didn't usually come out here, but there it was. It was a hollowed-out facility with crumbling walls. All the machinery seemed to have been moved out, and there was graffiti on it.
"What are you saying?" asked Tifa.
"Shinra is killing the planet," said Cloud. "But they don't need the Mako Reactors anymore. Those power plants were made for a full-scale military-industrial complex. Shinra doesn't need that.
"There's nothing left to conquer, now that Wutai has surrendered.
"They'll pull out of Midgar if it suits them and shut down the reactors. Once they do that, food shipments will stop. Everyone will be in a rush to leave before they starve. This means that getting jobs out there is gonna be hard.
"If people leave now, it'll cut the death toll and make things easier."
"Well, why would they scrap Midgar!" said Tifa. "It's their capital!"
"They scrapped Nibelheim," said Cloud. "And a lot of other places. All they care about is money. President Shinra won't care if we all starve to death because he doesn't care about the plate above us.
"He cares about the plate in front of him, with gourmet food on it. We're just puppets dancing on strings to him. Besides, Junon is more scenic, and they've gotta be building a huge canon there for something."
Tifa found this idea horrible. "Well, even so, destroying the Mako Reactors now might hurt their company. And if they don't care about Midgar at all, then forcing them out could be a big win."
Cloud looked down. "Maybe. I don't know."
"Zack?" asked a voice. "Zack, long time no see?"
Tifa looked up and saw a red-haired guy in a black jacket with a shock stick over one shoulder. He was very pretty, with red hair, and walked with confidence. At one side was a gun and a hulking, bald man with him.
"What the..." said Tifa, taking a stance and being careful not to move too quickly into it. Having breasts as large as hers caused problems with martial arts. Once, she'd accidentally given herself a black eye. "Who are you?"
"Easy there, Lady," said Reno. "The name's Reno, don't mind me."
Tifa halted. "Cloud?
"Who is this person?" Did he know them?
Cloud shrugged. "Never seen him before in my life.
"What do you want?"
"Well, aside from reminiscing over old times, I've got something for you," said Reno. He drew out a letter and threw it to him. It went like a shuriken toward his face, and Tifa caught it before it hit Cloud.
"What reunion, what are you talking about?" asked Tifa.
"What are you, his Mother?" asked Reno. "Let him make his own calls."
Cloud stiffened and grasped his sword.
"Attend if you want to find out," said Reno. "Oh, and Aerith says hi. Rude, let's go."
Rude bowed respectfully. "It was nice meeting you. May I have your name?"
"Tifa Lockhart," said Tifa, surprised. Idiot. What did she tell him her name for!
"Farewell," said Rude before walking over.
"So, that guy is simultaneously rude and polite," said Tifa, frowning. "Cloud, I'll keep this-"
Cloud snatched the letter from her hand and opened it. Then he unfolded it.
"What does it say?" asked Tifa.
"It's my mail," said Cloud. "I don't have to show you it."
"Who is this Aerith person anyway?" asked Tifa.
"I don't know," said Cloud. "Maybe the message-" Then his eyes fixed on the letter, and he fell to one knee. Grunting, his eyes began to glaze over. A different expression went over his face, and Tifa kneeled by him.
"Cloud!" said Tifa.
"Aerith..." said Cloud, voice completely different. "I have to find-"
Tifa grabbed his shoulders and hugged him. The move felt unnatural and manipulative, but how else could she stop it. "Cloud, snap out of it.
"Calm down; who is this Aerith person?"
"I..." Cloud halted. "I made a promise to her, I think I..."
Tifa broke the embrace and looked hard at him. "Cloud, that is an obvious trap.
"You don't know who this Aerith person is. You don't know what she wants or who she is or what you promised or even if you did. I'm right here, and we're going back to cash our bounty.
"We can talk about it there.
"Also, we're going to take an indirect path I don't want to be followed." Then again, she'd already given her name.
"Right, that's smart," said Cloud.
"Can I see the letter?" asked Tifa. "I need to know what caused you to freak out like that?"
Cloud passed it to her, and she read as they walked.
"Are you doing well? Where are you?" Tifa read silently. "It's been four years. This will be the 89th letter I've written, but I will not send out anymore. I hope that you will receive this last letter. Zack, the flowers are selling very well. It makes everyone smile. It's all thanks to you."
Zack had mentioned something about this Aerith person when he'd been in Nibelheim. A girlfriend he'd been planning to get back to. Apparently, he'd never come back, and nobody knew what had happened to him.
Tifa had assumed he'd been killed in the Nibelheim incident or otherwise gone into hiding. It wasn't as though she'd ever had a chance to search the place. No public announcement of his death had ever been made. So he obviously wasn't still in service.
How did Aerith fit into this?
"Where did you learn to fight like that anyway?" asked Cloud.
"Oh, Master Zangan taught me after we left Nibelheim," said Tifa, happy to answer some questions. "Well, actually, Master Zangan was teaching me before that."
"So uh, Jessie mentioned that you were in the infantry that let the citizens of North Corel escape. You were in command of Scarlet, right?"
"Yes," said Cloud.
"What was she like?" asked Tifa.
"Why do you ask?" asked Cloud.
"Well, I'm interested," said Tifa. "I used to really admire her. My Dad worked for her writing reports, and I met her at a few parties. Then Dad died and, well, when I met her again, the woman was a complete bitch.
"True colors, I guess."
"It could be worse," said Cloud. "The person you most admire could burn your hometown and proclaim himself God-Emperor."
"There's always that," said Tifa, wondering when he'd had the chance to hear Sephiroth do that. "Did you work with Scarlet?"
"I was one of her favorites," said Cloud, looking away.
That was uh...
Ominous.
"That must be how you got into SOLDIER, then," said Tifa.
"Well, maybe," said Cloud. "I mean, we didn't exactly part on good terms."
"What happened?" asked Tifa.
"Scarlet has no social skills," said Cloud. "She a mercenary before she joined Shinra. I think she underwent an early version of the Mako treatment. She did very well, though not as well as Sephiroth, Angeal, and Genesis.
"She all business and has no idea how to talk to people. I was very good at following orders and very good at completing them. And I think she liked the way I looked.
"People are sort of like puppets to her; you maneuver one way or another.
"I guess she liked that I didn't complain when she pulled her strings."
"Well, you do look nice," admitted Tifa, who thought Cloud looked cute when he was all serious. And also when they were in bed together.
"After North Corel, there was a party," said Tifa. "Scarlet let the thing pass because she didn't really care about a couple of civilians, and there were only a few.
"I got a medal, I think...
"And I was invited to a party. Only I was a complete outcast. See, there were a lot of super-rich people at the party. Guys in suited who thought the world was theirs because they'd inherited a lot of money. Maybe they were right."
"I uh..." Tifa thought back to those days. Father's business had done very well, and they'd been going all kinds of places. The space project was underway in Rocket Town, and there was a constant stream of supplies. "I think I remember that. Dad was invited and took me there. It was after the Wutai war. I met President Rufus Shinra, and he pointed me in your direction."
"And then you ran back to him?" asked Cloud. "I was disappointed."
"I..." Tifa paused. "I kind of dismissed our old friendship as something over with. And Rufus was so charming and polite.
"Although, I guess we're even on that." She remembered waiting by the gates of Nibelheim for the party to arrive.
No luck on that.
Now she knew why. Maybe they all did a little forgetting.
"What are you talking about?" asked Cloud. "I met you at Nibelheim."
"...Of course," said Tifa quickly.
One of these days, Tifa was going to have to come clean with Cloud.
But how could she? If she told him what she knew, it could break him. The lies he believed were the entire basis for his identity. Undercut them, and she'd be risking his health.
Later.
Then, Cloud halted as he saw something. Tifa turned to see what it was, moving her hips as she did. Looking out, Tifa saw a shrine. But it was not like many shrines to storm or anything like that. It was a twisted and misshapen figure, seemingly dancing and giving off a kind of maddening joy.
People lit candles by it.
"What kind of shrine is that?" asked Cloud.
"That," said Tifa. "That's a shrine to Kefka."
"People worship him?" asked Cloud.
Tifa didn't begrudge him the incredulous. Stories of Kefka's terrors were legends. His actions had ruined the world, and it was only when King Arthur had risen to power that the damage was undone. The man had made Sin look like a puppy by comparison, and the Planet had labored years to fix the continents.
"Yeah," said Tifa. "Sort of.
"See, the idea is that the idol calls in the malice and evil in your location. You light a candle in front of the idol, and that candle burns it away. The best results come when you put as many candles as heroes who fought him."
"How many was that again?" asked Cloud.
Tifa paused and thought about it. "I uh, I don't know.
"The stories disagree on it."
"Anyone try praying to him?" asked Cloud.
"That would be a terrible idea," said Tifa. "The guy was madness incarnate. He did nothing but cause carnage and destruction.
"Just getting his attention would be a bad idea. I mean, you'd be a magnet for tragedy and horror."
"That sounds like the sort of story that would get you into the history books," noted Cloud. "And aren't we kind of on the same wavelength as him?"
Tifa halted in place, opened her mouth to deny it, and then realized Cloud was right.
What was lighting Figaro Castle on fire to blow up that Mako Reactor? Poisoning Doma's water supply was awful. But the Mako that was thrown up into the air might very well kill everyone it touched. She didn't know.
And Shinra had done worse.
Was it really possible that he would be the hero if Kefka had lived today?
Then again, Barret had never started taking continents apart because he was bored.
"Let's just move on," said Tifa, shuddering.
They cashed in their bounties and entered the 7th Heaven. Tifa immediately began to get to work setting it up, noticing only Wedge present. She quickly put the money they'd gotten into the box she was keeping it in.
"Okay, the bounty is cashed in," said Tifa, smiling.
"So uh, Tifa, what are you going to use all this money for anyway?" asked Wedge, scribbling on a notepad.
"It's not all my money," said Tifa quickly. "Half of it is Cloud's, Wedge."
"Right, sure," said Wedge. "What are you guys planning to use the money for?"
"I dunno," said Tifa, setting things up. Stretching, she winked at Cloud while sticking her chest out. "We already have the stuff we need, it's all stockpiled. I'm going to keep my half in reserve.
"Where do you want me to store this again, Cloud?"
"Wherever you want," said Cloud, leaning by the door. "I don't have anywhere to store it."
"Right, don't worry, I'll keep it safe," said Tifa, though it really seemed like a formality. Cloud was living in her house rent-free. He was effectively part of the household.
"Who is this Zack person?" asked Cloud suddenly.
"Oh, um..." Why couldn't he have forgotten about that too. "Zack's from SOLDIER. Or so it says in the personnel book."
"Why do you have a personnel?" asked Cloud.
Tifa had been researching the subject to see if he became part of it. "Oh, um, I kind of...
"Enjoy reading upon them. The thing is... I was weirded out when I didn't see you in these."
"I wasn't in them?" asked Cloud. "Let me see them."
Okay, play along and come up with a lie. Tifa brought the rankings up and gave it to Cloud. "This can't be right. I have to be in these lists somewhere."
"Maybe that's where Zack Fair came from," said Tifa quickly.
"What?" asked Cloud, looking up.
"Maybe this Zack Fair guy has taken your place," said Tifa. "Like, they didn't want anyone reading about you in the records for some reason. So they made up some new guy and gave him credit for your actions."
"Oh, come on-" said Wedge.
"Shut up, Wedge," said Tifa, shooting him a glance. "Cloud is one of our best fighters, even after what happened to him. So it stands to reason that he must have done some serious fighting.
"Shinra covers stuff up all the time."
"Yeah, of course," said Wedge, looking at Cloud. "You just want friends, don't you Cloud?"
"I really don't care what you think, Wedge," said Cloud. "In case you hadn't noticed, I did most of the fighting in that Mako Reactor. Maybe next time, you can kill off the guards while I sit and eat myself into an early grave."
"Cloud, you're terrible," said Wedge. "By SOLDIER standards anyway.
"That little slaughter you did upon the plate could expose us. And you did it just to feel like a badass. And now you're going out hunting monsters in public when we should be laying low."
"Monsters eat people wedge," said Cloud, narrowing his eyes. "If you and your band spent more time hunting them instead of reactors, the slums might be livable."
"Shinra would have ruined it even if we did," said Wedge.
"You didn't bother finding out, did you?" asked Cloud. "Everybody else has been hunting monsters to make this place safer, which helps with our reputation and gets us combat experience. All you've been doing is sitting back here and looking at charts."
"These charts are important," said Wedge. "I have to draw up a plan for every possible situation in every possible mission. That means multiple exits and entrance strategies. And I also have to account for completely unforeseen events.
"Like, say, a supposedly all-power mercenary badass getting identified."
"What do you want from me?" asked Cloud. "I've been borderline comatose for the past few weeks; my memories are fragmented. For the first few days, I thought Tifa was my Mom. For the first few days, I watched announcements by President Shinra and thought I had really met him.
"I'd say I've done pretty well, given that most people in my situation never speak or walk again.
"And really?
"You think I identified you?
"Everybody in the slums knows you did it. It's obvious to anyone who was in that bar. And just because they hate Shinra doesn't mean they won't sell you out for a quick buck. Sooner or later, someone will come down here and murder all of you.
"Hunting monsters at least might make them give you a grace period. And it'll also ingratiate us to the people here, so they don't see us as one-dimensional psychos.
"Plus, that plan you together was ridiculous.
"Why were you there, Wedge? You didn't need to be on the operation, and someone with your physical abilities would be no help at all. Jessie was needed for the bomb, but I don't see why we needed Barret and Biggs. We could have gotten away with one of them.
"And frankly, if you decide to add a malnourished coma patient to your attack squad, you deserve what you get."
Huh?
That had actually been a pretty stupid idea, come to think of it. Thank goodness Cloud was just that powerful. "... He's got a point."
"Look, I get that you're enjoying your little whirlwind romance with Tifa," said Wedge, sitting up. "But this is important.
"Biggs, Jessie, and Barret haven't been identified at a crime scene. If you go out anymore, cover your face up. Or hell, wear a disguise, something."
"Fine," said Cloud. "I'll wear a scarf or something, happy?"
"Very," said Wedge, before looking back to his notes.
Tifa pulled a bottle off the shelf at the back, moving her hips so Cloud could see as she turned. Placing the bottle down, she gave him a view of her cleavage and raised a cup. "Want a drink?"
"Give me something hard," said Cloud.
"Right," said Tifa, pouring the alcohol.
"You and Daddy are monster hunting?" asked Marlene coming up.
"Yes," said Cloud. "We're hoping to make things a little safer for people."
"I wish Daddy were here more often," said Marlene. "He always tells me stories. Tifa, do you have any?"
Tifa thought up some history.
"Alright," said Tifa. "have you ever heard the story of Saint Yuna of Spira?"
Marlene nodded. "She's the one who killed Sin."
"She didn't exactly kill Sin," said Tifa. "You see, it all started with her Father, Braska."
The story was long, and Tifa had to work as she did it. The time passed, and Marlene listened intently to every word. At last, however, Tifa finished.
"And so it was that, with his task done," said Tifa. "Tidus vanished into the faith."
"Wait, so the hero dies?" asked Marlene. "That's not fair."
"Get used to it," said Cloud. "A lot of people that deserve to live die. And most people who deserve to die live."
"Cloud," said Tifa, incredulously.
"It's true," said Cloud. "Everybody has to learn this. Unfortunately, sometimes the heroes don't win."
"But why?" asked Marlene.
Cloud sighed. "Because people don't do the right thing. And they don't like people who do. Seeing others do the right thing makes people don't feel weak.
"If everybody did the right thing of their own free will, we'd live in a perfect world in no time.
"But they don't, so we just have to deal with it."
"...When I grow up," said Marlene. "I'm going to do the right thing."
"You're going to have to be strong then," said Cloud. "When you try to be good, the world tries to tear you down. It's easy to just take your paycheck and walk out and even easier to lie and steal. So long as you know how to hide it.
"Being good is hard, and it doesn't always pay.
"Do you think you can do that?"
"Mmmhmm," said Marlene.
"Good," said Cloud. "When you get older, you should help your Dad around the house and however else you can. My Mom was alone too, though she wasn't in as much danger as Barret is from bad people."
"Where did your Daddy go?" asked Marlene.
"My Dad..." Cloud paused. "He died, I think. He vanished a long time ago.
"He was kind of like Barret, actually. Though, a bit cooler."
"Are you a lot like him?" asked Marlene.
Cloud smiled. "No, not at all."
There was a common story in Nibelheim.
Every so often, someone would wander off into Mt. Nibel and never be seen again. Tifa remembered the story, and she remembered that only two people had ever come back. Cloud's Father hadn't been one of them.
Cloud seemed like he would make a pretty good Father.
"Cloud..." said Wedge, still writing.
"Yes?" asked Cloud.
"What would you say the bare minimum number of people needed to blow up a reactor is?" asked Wedge.
Cloud halted. "Well, uh, based on what I saw? The best mission is one where you win without having to have a firefight.
"So, one guy to set the bomb. One guy to secure an exit, and one guy as a backup just in case something goes wrong."
"Why is backup, bare minimum?" asked Wedge.
"Because something always goes wrong," said Cloud. "Every single time.
"Maybe you trip and break your ankle and have to be carried out. Maybe there's a door you two people to open, or you need someone to run an errand and get something. But no matter what, every plan you set will go astray.
"The trick is finding your way back and getting your goal done without losing your people.
"If everything went perfectly, you could do a two-man group per reactor. But it would increase your chances of losing spectacularly.
"This plan is based around speed. You have to get in and out, finish the job, and be clear before you get cornered. So, if anything goes wrong and you are delayed, everyone dies.
"If you get caught, you're probably dead. Barret's plan was just to storm the place and start blasting. It worked, but it'll get harder each time. But, there's a limit to how much adding more people to a group can help.
"Why do you ask?"
"...What if we hit several Mako Reactors at once?" asked Wedge. "It'd take proper timing, but I think we could do it. It'll be you, Barret, Biggs, Jessie, me..."
"I'm going too," said Tifa suddenly. She decided she wanted to stay with Cloud.
"Why?" asked Wedge.
"I'm going to have to pack up and get out of this place goes up in flames," said Tifa. "If we hit two Mako Reactors, we'll never succeed at another one.
"At that point, we should get out immediately."
"Which means we have to secure an escape plan for getting out of the city in a hurry," said Wedge. "We can pack supplies and store them in a cache by the gates. If we get good enough explosives, we could blast our way out after meeting up."
"If you do, they'll lock the whole place down," noted Cloud.
"So we have to meet up before it happens," guessed Wedge. "If we can hit two Mako Reactors. They'll cause billions of gil worth of damage and wipe out any security forces inside. The stock has already dropped massive, a few more hits like that, and they'll have to cut costs.
"So long as we make a public display of our exit... nobody is gonna have any reason to hit the slums. Why do a crackdown if the people you're after are gone."
"It could work," admitted Tifa.
"You know we're still all going to die, right?" asked Cloud.
"That's your response to everything, isn't it, Cloud?" asked Wedge.
"It's true," said Cloud. "Even if we get out, Shinra has helicoptors, and the area beyond is a completely flat wasteland. The only thing to hide behind are the crags, which gets even better after that.
"A far green country and a swift sunrise.
"Which means all they to do is swerve over us with a helicopter and mow us down with machinegun fire. There's nothing to forage for in the wastes, so we can't stick around there. And without being able to take the roads, we're going to be slower.
"Taking a train long-distance is not possible. All they have to do is lock down the endpoints and guard the cars. Which they will if we do that much damage."
"You haven't said anything useful all day," said Tifa.
Why did he insist on reinforcing how doomed they were? They'd been doomed since Tifa was born. Everybody had known what was happening to the Planet, and nobody had done anything until now.
"No, Tifa, Cloud is right," said Wedge. "All that's true, so we have to pack extra stuff and figure out a way to stay hidden. I'll get some maps of that area, see what I can dig up.
"There might be a safe path we could take out of here.
"Thanks."
And he headed over to the pinball machine with his files and went down.
"...Any time," said Cloud. "So, what are you going to do with the money?"
"Keep it in storage until you need it, of course," said Tifa.
"Thank you," said Cloud, but his gaze turned to outside the window.
Tifa was afraid she'd wake up one day to find him gone. Just like had happened to her Mother.