Clashes
by ^death^ Himura
Disclaimer: Refer to prologue.
Chapter 3: A Truth is Revealed...
"A meeting?!?!? What the *&%@#&%@#&^!" Barrett's yells echoed down the hallway, waking up Tifa and Marlene.
"Aunt Tifa... why does daddy curse so much?" The innocent child asked her wearily, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Tifa blushed a little at Barrett's outburst and then knelt in front of the girl.
"He's trying to relieve some stress. Come now, it's morning already. Let's get something to eat." Marlene perked up instantly and then paused before the door.
"Will... will Kez be there?" Kez?
"I think so... why?" Tifa narrowed her eyes as the girl looked down at the ground and toyed with the ribbon on her dress.
"Nothing, nothing." And then she looked up and smiled at the AVALANCHE member. She skipped past Tifa and made her way down to the diner, where Tifa guessed, most of the Ghosts would be there as well.
"Kez?" She mumbled to herself and then shook her head. She'll think about this later, Now she needed to find Barrett and asked him why he was going against censoring his colourful language. Following that, she would find Cloud and ask him about the elusive Raven.
"We're planning the attack tomorrow." Wraith said simply. He was a tall male with premature white hair that was held back by a black bandanna on his forehead. The alpha-male who was in charge of the Hexes. Raven was next in line, but since the latter was rarely seen, he took on more of the administrative work.
His expression was grim and serious, a true sign one ought to look for in a leader. Alaric, the leader of Anglecynn - the terrorist faction that the Hexes had joined so that they formed the Ghosts, nodded his head in agreement.
"What has Raven got to say about this?"
"Not much. Tells us to go ahead." Ali spoke over her mug of coffee from the Nutromac. Alison Greenwood, a Hex and one of the most abled bodies in Ghosts. Saved by Raven, Wraith and Kez from GF's Civil Protector Service and was now a part of the group.
"Has anyone seen Raven by the way?" Wraith continued. While he was perhaps Raven's only living relative, he had never seen the Hex either. Ali shook her head.
"Not since then first meeting." Kez piped up from his corner in the room.
"Who is this Raven kid anyway?" Barrett growled from where he was. His face was dark and furious, being informed last minute that there was a meeting with the leaders in the two terrorist factions. Beside him, Tifa was silent. Cloud, being Cloud, was silent as well.
Ali raised an eyebrow.
"Raven the Hex." She replied simply.
"Yeah duh I know what he is. Haven't seen him around." Barrett retorted. He saw Ali's eyes widened and then she covered her mouth. Her body convulsed a little, she was laughing.
"What's the matter now? What's so funny?" And then Barrett realised that Alaric, Kez and Luciel - another Hex, was laughing as well.
"Wait wait..." Ali stopped laughing and managed a serious look. "Raven is a he?" And then she laughed again.
"WHAT IS IT?!?!" Barrett, clearly not liking being laughed at, bellowed.
"Maybe they are trying to imply that Raven... is not a male." Red XIII entered the room, his fiery red coat gleaming under the artificial light.
"Raven's a she?!?!" Barrett's jaw dropped.
"A female in all aspects of nature." Came another voice with a tone that was unlike the rest. Wraith looked up immediately and the room suddenly silenced. A figure clad in a black over-sized trench coat walked in. A human, estimated to be in her late teens. Long, thick black hair was pulled into a loose braid that hung to her waist. The stray tendrils framed the sharp features on her face, contrasting wildly to her deathly pale skin. Her eyes were wide obsidian orbs that held no warmth, no emotion.
Wraith stood up as his sister came in and then sat back down as she was seated. His eyes never left hers. He was amazed at the drastic change in his sister. The free-spirited risk-taker he had once known was now being replaced by this stoic and grim individual who had a detached and aloof persona about her.
Where had his sister gone?
He knew the answer. A girl whose life was based entirely on the net with her body and physical being left on earth to mark time. He cringed inwardly, blaming himself for what his sister was. What she had become inadvertently.
"Well now... I assume the meeting is going on. I wish to know if the plans have been finalised and then we can get this over and done with." Her voice was a melancholic tune to their ears. A sound so aged and wise that it seemed unnatural to come out from a girl who appeared eighteen years old. Or maybe much younger.
Raven raised an eyebrow.