Glossary.
Running
Shinra Specimen Database:
...
Specimen
ID: 5467-RED-XIII-I496
Comments:
Captured by a Shinra squad this specimen has a high life expectancy and is very
strong. A suspected male, he is currently in the research labs in Shinra HQ.
---
Weapon
Stats and Modifications:
---
Key:
0
- Materia Slot
=
- Materia Slot Link
---
Name:
Light Vulcan
Type:
Gun-Arm
Attack:
25
Attack
percentage: 100
Materia
Growth: Single
Materia
Slots: 0=0_0
---
...
Logging
Off.
1. Claiming A Favour
He looked over at Barret seeing him
playing around with the gun-arm that Tifa had ripped off of the Mighty Grunt,
replacing it for his Assault Gun.
"You can use that?" He
asked seeing the leader of AVALANCHE cock the Light Vulcan and checking
his sights.
"Think so." Cloud could
only raise his eyes before the door opened.
Cloud left the elevator, Tifa and
Barret following the mercenary as he moved toward the main office on what
looked like to be the Library level. He took no notice of the frantic assistant
as she walked straight through the door. He looked at the man who so many years
ago he had saved at the end of the Wutai War. He had gained weight, obviously
from the fact that for the past 7 years he had been here taking the position of
mayor, a position that in Midgar meant nothing. "So you must be
AVALANCHE... Strife?"
"You've gained weight
'General'." He replied, however no one expected what was to happen next.
The Mayor of Midgar took a member of
the rebel movement called AVALANCHE in a healthy bear hug. "It's good to
see you again. I take it that you haven't fought your way here just to say
hello."
"Your right. I need
authorisation to the labs." He replied.
Domino sighed obviously
disappointed. "That my friend is a problem that I can't help you with. I'm
unfortunately only have keycard access to floor 66th floor." Cloud
silently cursed. "But, I know that there is a board meeting set in a few
moments that I'm not invited to."
"How can that help us?"
Tifa asked as Barret was messing with a Materia orb he had found.
"Hojo is going to be there.
He's a recluse and will head back to the labs afterwards." Domino stated.
"So." Barret asked.
"He may be a genius at his
field but he's very sloppy, leaving passwords written on pieces of paper by a
console, forgetting meetings that he should have been at and he never closes
the doors of the stairwell after him."
The next one to speak was Cloud.
"So when he takes the stairs we can sneak in behind him."
"Exactly." The mayor
passed cloud his keycard. "Good luck."
"Thanks." They left the
office heading back into the lift. This time with more hope of getting to
Aeris.
2. A Meeting Of Sick Minds
"The loss from cutting off number
Seven Reactor is in total 17 million gil, the price of repairing sector six
reactor and plate. The President looked out the window of the boardroom. He
turned to the others in the room looking at the speaker.
"We're discontinuing repairs on
no. six reactor and the plate." He stated.
"What?" Reeve replied.
"We are continuing the
Neo-Midgar project."
"Then the Ancient?" The
Head of Urban Development asked.
"She is in our hands." It
was then Hojo entered the room. Shinra looked at the scientist before saying.
"Hojo, how's the girl."
"As a specimen she is inferior
to her mother. I calculated there is about a 8% difference between them."
"How long is this going to
take." Shinra asked thinking of the money Neo-Midgar would bring into his
pocket.
"A long time, maybe even past
our lifetimes, that's why we're thinking of breading her. Making one that can
withstand our research for a longer period."
"Very well." He turned
back to the window. "I want Mako taxes raised by 5%."
Palmer jumped up from his chair.
"Price hike! Please give the space department a raise, sir!"
"The extra profits are to be
split between Peace Preservation and Weapons Research."
Palmer sank back into his chair.
"Oh man."
It this point Reeve stood up.
"Sir if we raise taxes, won't the public begin to lose confidence in
us."
"Oh just the opposite dear
Reeve, they will trust us more." Shinra replied to that before Heidegger
started laughing.
"After all we are the ones who
saved Sector Seven from AVALANCHE."
---
"Those filthy
b~#%&^ds." Barret whispered as he looked down through the grating. He
noticed cloud starting to push himself back out of the air conditioning system
they had sneaked into when they got onto this level. He followed the Ex-SOLDIER
as they emerged in the toilet they had came into to avoid Tseng as he came up
and started to check the floor. It was obvious that the Shinra knew they where
here and escaping would be a lot harder than getting in had.
"What now?" Tifa asked
Cloud as he looked out of the toilet into the corridor.
"It looks clear." They
left the toilet and started to rush back towards the lift. That was when he saw
him leaving the boardroom.
Hojo.
He could hardly keep his anger for
this man hidden as he watched the sadistic turn towards the steps that lead to
the lab, as Domino had said, he had left the stairwell door open. They where
into level 67 now hopefully Hojo would lead them to Aeris.
---
Shinra looked up from his desk as
Tseng came up to it. "Yes Tseng."
"Strife is in the
building." He stated.
The president looked up finally at
the Turk. "How far is he up?"
"We're not sure." Tseng
admitted. "He came in through the side stairwell. They had a confrontation
with Security on Floor 59 and killed most of them. Strife took a keycard from the
security room and we lost them."
"Set guards on the first floor
and by all the entrances to the lifts. They are the only way off of floor 60
and I don't want them to go down any further."
"Got it." Tseng turned to
leave.
"Tseng."
He turned back to the president.
"Yes, sir."
"I want them alive." He
stated. "And I want Strife brought to me."
He nodded in reply as Tseng turned
and left the office.
---
"This is the specimen for the
test?" Hojo looked over the lion like creature inside the containment
tube.
"Yes professor." The
assistant replied.
"Very well lets get this
started." They moved right passed the crate that Cloud and Tifa had been
hiding behind, oblivious to their presence.
Tifa was the first to moved as she
walked up to the specimen in the tube, tapping the glass. "Hello." It
ignored her. She turned to Cloud. "They're going to use it in an
experiment, that's horrible!" However, Cloud wasn't paying her any
attention.
His eyes where on the containment
unit he was standing next to and the thing inside in.
"Jenova." He said
breathlessly as he backed away from the cell horrified.
"Cloud?" Tifa noticed him
finally.
"In there." He said,
pointing to the containment unit.
She looked in, it was then that she
fell to her knees.
'Mother, I have come to
see you.'
Cloud was instantly at her side
concern in his eyes. "Jenova. Sephiroth's..." She said finally
recovering.
"Be strong Tif'." Cloud
told her as he helped her to her feet.
"What the hell's going
on!" Barret asked.
"It's still alive in
there." Cloud said unable to rip his eyes from the unit.
Barret moved over to look through
the window his first reaction was. "J#~&s, where's its head! It can't
be alive."
'Some things can take more than
you give them credit for.'
The voice, what did it mean? He put
aside as Barret spoke up again. "This is stupid com' on!"
"How do we get upstairs?"
Tifa asked.
"Over there." He pointed
to the service elevator that ran on the back wall.
"Lets go." Barret said as
Cloud moved over to the lift to see a small piece of Materia by the lift. Poison.
Cloud had to laugh slightly at the irony of the orbs position. With a new piece
of Materia in his satchel he entered the lift.
3. Rescuing An Angel
They left the elevator Cloud for
once behind Tifa and Barret. "Aeris?" Tifa shouted, seeing the
Ancient, asleep, in a larger containment tube just above the one the lion like
creature was in.
"Huh?" Hojo said only
noticing the three new people in his lab. "Outsiders."
"You've got that right
you..." Tifa stopped Barret before he could finish.
"Life is a frivolous
thing." He murmured amused by these people.
It was then Cloud said something.
"We've come to free something that isn't yours."
Hojo's eyes lit up as he looked at
Cloud. "Ah, Mr. Strife. I'm glad to see that the president and the Turk
haven't gone mad."
The anger in Cloud's eyes couldn't
be mistaken. "They can't be anymore of a psycho than you Hojo."
Hojo smirked at the insult. "I
take it you saw Jenova down stairs. How nice to have a reunion."
Cloud's hand went straight to the
hilt of his blade as he looked like he would strike down the madman in front of
him. Barret quickly put a hand on the mercenary to calm him down. "Calm it
'Spike'."
Hojo just laughed, turning to his
assistant. "Let in the specimen."
It was then that Aeris woke up. To
see a platform rising.
With the lion creature on it.
It got up and started to growl at
the flower girl, her not knowing what to do ran to the glass wall and started
to hit it, crying. "Cloud!"
"What are you doing!"
Cloud shouted at Hojo as he quickly ran to the containment field, his hands
going to the position that Aeris' were the only thing keeping their hands apart
being the glass wall.
"These two are the lasts of
their species. I'm just giving them a hand to survive." Hojo replied.
That's so cruel!" Tifa
exclaimed. "Aeris is a human being."
Barret chose now to say something.
"You're gonna pay."
Cloud turned away from Aeris for a
second to ask. "Barret can't you do something?"
"Okay Spike, stand back!"
Barret aimed at the glass and began to fire into the containment field.
"What are you...?" Hojo
exclaimed as the field around the tube started to glow and Aeris fell to the
ground. "My specimens! My precious specimens!" He ran up to the tube
and put in his code. The door slid open to reveal the lion like creature, who
attacked Hojo.
Cloud ran inside, seeing his chance
and helped Aeris to her feet. "You okay?" Cloud asked her.
She shook her head, clearing it
before answering. "Yeah. My armour and staff are in that corner."
Cloud helped her over there before he saw the group of guards appear.
"Tifa get Aeris over to her
stuff." He ordered as he blocked a few shots before leaping forward and
taking down the closest trooper, she spun around gutting another before craving
another into pieces.
'Fire' 'All'
"What the?" Barret said.
As he noticed the Lion was helping them.
"Don't be too surprised
now." It replied as clawed down another troop, finally finishing them off.
"It talked!" Tifa shouted
as she and Aeris ran back to the group.
"Of course. Just because I am
not a humanoid doesn't mean that I cannot talk your language." He replied.
"What's your name?" Cloud
asked.
"My specimen name is Red XIII,
but that has no meaning. Call me what you wish." The lion turned to Cloud.
"Red it is then." Cloud replied,
smiling. Then he felt something in his back.
A gun.
His hand went straight to his hilt
but he didn't draw.
"Drop your weapons or Strife
gets it." That was Tseng, Cloud could tell that voice anywhere. He watched
as his friends dropped their weapon, including Red, who he had just met.
"That's better."
He felt the Executioner being
removed from his sheath as he was turned to see Rude pointing a gun at him. His
hands where put behind his back and were handcuffed before Tseng talked again.
"You have a meeting with the president Mr. Strife, you too Aeris."
With this the others were led away while Tseng and Rude led Aeris and Cloud up
towards the 70th floor.
End Of Chapter 9
