The sun was dipping slowly into the sea and the Cosmo Candle was taking over the job of brightening Cosmo Canyon when Tifa and her companions arrived. The canyon walls seemed to glow deep crimson and orange, with help from the Candle, giving the impression that Cosmo Canyon was awash in flames. Beautiful as it was, it still managed to come across as highly disconcerting to the young woman. Despite the fact that Time had worn down the harsh edges of the memory, the sight of the canyon walls aglow tended to remind her of Nibelheim, when Sephiroth -
Tifa shuddered involuntarily at the thought and returned her attention to cautiously climbing the stone steps ascending the wall to Bugenhagen's observatory. Her thoughts turned to their destination. She wondered momentarily just how the elders had managed to build such a structure at the precarious heights at which it now stood.
"Welcome, friends!" She heard Nanaki call out from the topmost mesa, where the true entrance to the observatory was located. "It is a pleasant surprise to see you!" He disappeared briefly and quite suddenly came out of the cave mouth before them.
"He... talks?" Megan whispered to Tifa, obviously surprised at the enigma commonly called Nanaki.
"Of course I speak, miss. As did all of my people before me, and as you do now," Nanaki replied, flattening his ears and flicking his flame-tipped tail slightly.
"I'm sorry, uh, sir. Megan has a debilitating case of foot-in-mouth-before-brain-in-gear disease. You surprised the poor, simple child." Lindsay explained cooly, ignoring the virulent glare she received from Megan.
He laughed at this and apologized. "Do not worry. This Planet has given birth to many strange beings. Many stranger than I, mind you. But tell me, "he said. "What brings you four here? Something tells me this isn't merely a social call."
On cue, Tifa reached into her bag and withdrew the mysterious materia. "Unfortunately, no, it isn't. Reeve's found something I'm sure you'll find interesting."
Nanaki examined the orb for a moment, then nodded grimly. "I feel a great power from this materia, such as I've never felt before. Come, let us go to the observatory."
—
"So, you are unsure of the materia's purpose?"
Reeve, nodded. "We sort of nicknamed it 'Cetra'." He and Nanaki were seated at a large, round, wooden table, with the materia orb resting at the center. After an as detailed as possible explanation, Nanaki agreed that having Megan and Lindsay in Cosmo Canyon to research.
"I admit, I do find your vision interesting. Perhaps a spirit from the Lifestream was attempting communication?" Nanaki commented thoughtfully. "I have heard of such things before, and a few resources in the Hall of Records also recount a few such incidents. You said the voice sounded like Aeris?"
Reeve cleared his throat and replied, "Yes, it was most definitely her voice."
Silence descended upon the two as they both sat there in deep contemplation.
"Any ideas yet?" Reeve asked hopefully.
"No. You?"
"Not a thing... You know, once Yuffie catches wind of this, I'm sure she'll be more than eager to 'help'."
Nanaki laughed. "I'm sure. We might have a hard time keeping the thing in our possession. But really," he said, sobering slightly. "She might be of some help, being the materia expert she is. This group often underestimates our young friend."
"That's what I told Tifa back in Midgar. I think she was planning on asking Cid to pick her up in Wutai in the Highwind," Reeve replied, leaning back in his chair and stretching.
"You are tired, my friend. You must get some rest." He stood, stretching himself, and came up beside Reeve. "But first, I'd like to place the materia elsewhere for safekeeping - "
Tifa suddenly burst into the room, white as a sheet, clutching her PHS in her right hand. "Reeve, we need to get to Nibelheim immediately! My neighbor just called, absolutely frantic, saying that something's wrong in the mountains and - "
"Tifa, calm down! Tell us what she said." Reeve guided her to the table and made her sit.
She took a deep breath. "I think she said something about lava coming down the mountain, right for Nibelheim and they're evacuating the town..."
Reeve went to the window and pulled the curtain aside. Glancing out, he saw twilight settling in on the horizon, outlining the peaceful Nibel mountain range. He frowned and slowly shook his head, not feeling quite right about the view. "It will take us a few hours to reach Nibelheim by chocobo, and that's if they're well rested, which ours aren't. Nanaki, does anyone in the village have a buggy?"
Nanaki shook his head regretfully. "Perhaps you could contact Cid. It will only take about 45 minutes from Rocket Town in the Highwind.
"Tifa, you call Cid, and then call Yuffie and have her come to Cosmo Canyon ASAP. I'll try to contact the others."
Reeve looked grimly out the window again and silently cursed the placid facade the scene held.
—
"Yo, Red!"
He looked up, perturbed. That 'name' was just a painful reminder of Shinra, Hojo, and that past was better left in the shadows. But he let it go, forcing himself to lower his hackles in favor of a calm reprimand. His tail still twitched in annoyance.
"Greetings, Yuffie. And I do ask you to refrain from using that distasteful name, and call me by my true name."
"Oh, sorry Re - Nanaki." She grinned sheepishly and set her knapsack on the table. It was stuffed full, and no doubt weighty with the Ninja's extensive collection of materia inside. "So, where is it?"
Nanaki sighed and stood, nudging the book he'd been poring over closed with one paw. "I'm afraid there's no time for that right now. I'm assuming Tifa told you what was happening in Mt. Nibel?"
"Briefly. She sounded really upset... is she alright?"
"She's doing as good as expected, under the circumstances. No doubt it is reminding her of the last time." He walked into the adjoining room.
She almost asked what he meant, until she realized it on her own. Tifa had lost one Nibelheim to Shinra. Yuffie was sure she wouldn't want to lose another to whatever the hell was plaguing the mountain village this time.
The ninja started to ask Nanaki whether anything else weird was going on, but she was cut short.
"Shh! Listen."
She stepped into the room occupied by an incredible array of machinery and was almost deafened as a multi-toned shriek washed over them both. She looked over at her feline companion, almost nauseated by the force and intensity of the scream. He stood not far away, hackles raised, ears flattened, teeth bared, and battle-ready.
"That was by far the loudest I've hear. It's becoming worse than when Shinra was around."
"Becoming?! You mean this has been going on for a while?" Yuffie screeched incredulously.
"Let us leave this room first. Then I will explain."
—
Under normal circumstances, Yuffie Kisaragi of Wutai would have been thrilled at the discovery of a new kind of materia. "It's probably a specialized materia, like Holy and Meteor," she speculated silently, studying the orb from afar. It winked at her mockingly, the light from the lantern in the corner dancing in and around the sphere, almost like it was begging her to uncover its purpose.
She picked it up and gazed inquiringly at it. "What are you supposed to do?" She asked softly.
"At this point, it is useless."
Yuffie jumped, nearly dropping the precious sphere. She grimaced at the thought of a beautiful materia orb like that hitting the ground and shattering into a zillion pieces.
"Gawd, cat, you scared the pee outta me!" She shakily placed the sphere back on the table. "And hey, Aeris thought the White materia was useless too, and look how wrong she was! And she was an Ancient, too!"
"It is possible for materia to have no use. At least non that the human mind can comprehend," Lindsay stated cryptically as they all took seats around the table.
"I'm not human. I'm a ninja. And a materia expert. And I've never seen any useless materia in my life."
"It is possible, Yuffie," Nanaki interjected quietly, hoping not to anger the young woman, and knowing his gesture was futile.
"Yeah? Well, whatever. You're obviously going to take her side in this 'cuz she's smarter than me." She crossed her arms and turned away from him, staring out the window.
"Anyway," he said, glancing at the brunette, who deliberately had her back turned on him. "We need to figure out what could possibly be terrorizing Nibelheim. Mt. Nibel has never before been a volcano, much less an active one. It seems odd..."
Megan and Lindsay stated their agreement, when Yuffie suddenly stood up and went to the window she's previously been staring out of. "Hey, didn't Tifa's neighbor say that lava was coming down the mountain?"
"Yes." He sounded annoyed. "Why?"
"Well, then why isn't there any smoke, or any fire for that matter. I may not be as smart as you all, but I'm bright enough to know that molten lava is hot, and hot plus wood equals fire, which in turn equals lots and lots of smoke. Am I right?" She gave them all a look that they dare not disagree.
"Uh, well, Nibelheim is far away, right?" Megan supplied uncertainly.
Nanaki sighed and went to the window himself. "Yes, but not far enough that we'd be blind to anything of this magnitude."
"Then, what is going on?" Megan asked, exasperation plainly evident in her voice.
"That seems to be unanswered question number one of a million," Yuffie mumbled under her breath.