Chapter Four
A Terrible Discovery

"Watch it!"
Tifa just ducked under a beam that had fallen across the path. In the dim light, it was hard to tell between what's a shadow and what's real.
"Thanks," breathed Tifa, "I wish we had a lamp. All the light we have is what's coming through the old blast holes. I guess the surface wasn't left entirely unscaved. What a dump this place is, huh?"
Cloud was tapping around in front of him with his sword to see if there was anything there.
"Yeah, but I think that's from more recent explosions. Remember, Weapon fired on Midgar, and blew the whole top floor of the Shinra building off!"
Tifa sighed.
"That house was the ulimate fixer uper."
For the first time that long and stressful night, Cloud laughed. However, his giggles were cut short when his forehead struck some alien object in the dark.
"Oww!"
"Watch your head, dear."
They continued to travel deeper, moving only several feet every minute. It took them nearly a half an hour to finally reach what appeared to be elevator.
"This is it," stated Cloud, "this is what goes down to the reactor itself. You think they actually went down there after all the stories we told them about it and all the warnings never to go in there?"
"I dunno," whimpered Tifa, "but I think we should see. I still have to bad feeling, though. Somethings not right here.'
"I'm starting to feel it too," said Cloud as he eyed the elevator control panel, "and it's giving me the creeps. It sorta' feels like a presence. Like there's something all around us here, just watching, waiting, listening. Damn, it just feels so errie!"
Cloud hit the large red button he had only pressed once before. Nothing.
"What do you think is down there? I mean, how much do you think is still intact?"
Cloud pressed the buttom several more times.
"Well, as I remember it, this goes down to a long platform the forms a T-shape. One end is this elevator, the other is the entrace to the reactor, and the third was a seperate way out. We got out that way when we blew this place."
Still nothing was going on with the controls. Cloud stepped back.
"Well, we know they didn't go down this way at least," said Tifa, mildly relaxed.
"Not to be pesimistic, but the elevator could have just gone down once, then not have enough power to come back up. There's probably still some back up electricity in the genorators, but maybe only enough for one trip down and not enough for the return asenstion. They could still be down there, you know. I hope they aren't, but we can't be sure."
Tifa took a deep breath and looked at the shaft with utter disguist.
"God, I hope not."
Cloud sheathed his Buster Sword and put his hands on the old doors. They came apart easilly, but Cloud could feel the springs wanting to close the doors if he removed his hands. The compartment wasn't there. Holding on to the doors, Cloud peered down into the shaft. At the very bottom, he could see the box. The cabels were still connected, so the car could have traveled by power. Cloud took a look around at the rest of the shaft. It was barren, save a few pipe and wires running up and down its sides. There was only one thing to do.
"Sorry Tifa, but I've got to do this. Stay here. I'll be be back, and hopefully, I'll have Aeris and Zack with me!"
Before she could say another word, he lept into the open shaft, letting to doors close behind him. He grabbed unto the center cable, hoping he come shimmy down the length of it till he got to the bottom. There was a muffled scream of surprise from Tifa, but Cloud had to ignore it for now. He started to put one hand in below the other as he descened down the wire, all the while keeping his feet firmly wrapped around the wire like a snake coiling in on its prey.

***

After what seemed like an eternity of hanging in mid air, Cloud let himself drop the last few feet unto the roof of the waiting elevator car. Not even pausing for a moment, Cloud bent down and lifted to small trapdoor. Grabbing unto the top, he dropped himself intot he small room, paratrooper style. Sure enough, it was just as he remembered it; a small, dark, dank, and dirty room with many swiches and dials on one side.
Also, save for himself, it was empty.
Cloud sighed, wondering when he'd finally find his children. He stood up and opened the door like he had the other one. Again, he felt the pressure of the springs on eithier side of the door. He pulled them apart to an appropriate distance then hopped out unto the ground beyond. However, the doors snapped him in the rear, and he was forced to leap foward in surprise and alarm, grabbing his hiendquarters in pain.
Now, after the pain had subsided, he began to take in his surroundings. Sure enough, here was the T-Shaped bridge. He couldn't see how the reactor was, since a large fallen object was blocking it's way. The escape route seemed to have been been long since demolished by the blast, and he supposed the elevator was just lucky to have survived. Cloud started to walk down the bridge to get a look at what was left of Reactor No. 7. After a while, it's remnants came into view.
"Whoa!" exclaimed Cloud. The bridge itself had been broken off after just a few feet of the center line of the T. As for the reactor istelf, the whole thing had been demolished. It lay in a heaping pile below, covered by tons and tons of debries. That part of the slums was gone for good. Not a trace of it was left to see. However, what had caught Clouds eye and made his heart rush, was at the center of it all, in the middle of the destroyed reactor, was a lake of Mako!
"What the hell?" shouted Cloud, "that was all supposed to flow back into the planet after the reactor was destroyed! What's it still doin' on the surface?"
Cloud rage session was cut in half when he heard a half muffled cry.
"Daddy! Daddy!"
Cloud stood up straight and tall, and started to glance around.
"Aeris? Is that you?"
"Daddy! Help! We're trapped! Help! Please!"
He was begining to pinpoint the sound. It seemed to be coming from the third door of the bridge. Cloud ran over to it and began to inspect it. It was totally demolished, as was the hall behind it, but there seemed to be enough small for someone to crawl through.
"Aeris! Are you in there? Where's Zack?"
"I'm here, daddy," shouted the familar voice of his five year old son.
Thank God, thought Cloud as he got on his hands and knees. After sizing up the hole, he took off his Buster Sword and laid it down beside the opening and began to crawl into it. The path was just a twisted mass of beams and metal all woven together by that great explosion. It was a very tight squeeze, and Cloud imagined just how easy it must have been for Aeris and Zack to come through here. Cloud could just barely fit and he was moving along slowly. He didn't have enough room to lift his head up, so he couldn't see where Aeris and Zack where.
"Daddy!"
"Where are you?"
"We see you Daddy, we're coming."
Finally, he felt a small hand on his shoulder. He had foud them at last.
"C'mon kids, let's get outta' here!"
"No Daddy, the monsters are out there!"
"Monsters?"
Cloud froze suddenly.
"Yeah," started Zack, "those yucky green monsters! They chased us in here! They'll kill us!"
"Oh, for cryin' out loud," said Cloud quite annoyed, "there aren't any monsters in here. I was just out there. Now c'mon, we're goin' now!"
Cloud began to back up out of the hole with Aeris and Zack following close behind. It was even harder getting out than it was getting in, and he assumed it would be the same way with getting back up the elevator shaft with no elevator. Soon, he felt more space around his legs, and soon he was squating outside the door. Aeris came hopping out, followed by little Zack. Zack had is stuffed teady bear that he carried everywhere cluched tightly to his chest.
"Now Aeris, you see any monsters out here?" asked Cloud sternly. Aeris whimpered and stared at her shoes.
"No, Daddy."
"Do you any monsters, Zack?"
"No, Daddy."
Cloud sighed deeply.
When would they learn? he thought as he made his way back to the elevator shaft. He supposed it was just another aspect of parenthood. A whole string of rebelious activity would follow, and though that was natural for kids to rebel against their parents, it was particuarly dangerous when you lived in such a dangerous world. Could didn't like to disipline them, but he had to this time, otherwise he'd be down here tommarow night looking for them.
The elevator doors parted before Clouds muscular arms he stepped between them to ensure that they did not close.
"C'mon, I can't stand here all day!"moaned Cloud, "Get into the compartment, your mother is waiting at the top."
Still, niether Aeris nor Zack budged an inch. They stood motionless, backs toward him, staring down the long catwalk they had just come across. Cloud was getting annoyed. Twice his children had disobeyed him today!
"Aeris, Zack, get in here! We're gonna' go up now and go home!"
"But... the monsters..."
"Didn't we just say there weren't any monsters? Huh?"
"But... Daddy... they're right there..."
Cloud turned so he had his back pushed up against one side of the door and pushed the other back with his leg.
"Look, get into the..."
Clouds command was cut short by what he saw standing about halfway down the long catwalk. There were three of them, and though he couldn't make them out very well, it looked like there were two humans and a large feroious cat! Though what really caught Clouds frightened eye was not what there were or what kind of a threat they posed, but the fact that they were transparent, and the ghostly image that Cloud saw was green!
They were made of Mako!