"Mister Reeve, sir, wake up! Mister Wallace requests your presence in your office!" cried Danielle's voice from the intercom next to Reeve's bed. With a loud, most likely obscene, grumble, Reeve rolled over in his bed and hit the button on his com.
"Tell him I'll be there in a few minutes," Reeve moaned weakly, rubbing sleep from his eyes. Switching off the machine, which Reeve regretting ever having placed in his chambers, the man sat up in his bed, wondering why Barret needed to see him so urgently.
"Shit! The parade! I forgot!" cried Reeve, shooting out of his bed, flailing about as the sheets caught his foot. After a rather painful landing on the floor, he pushed himself up, uttered a few more not-so-nice words for his sheets, and then grabbed his suit.
It was only years of practice that saved him. Within a few minutes, he had his suit on, immaculately in order as always, and was out his door. Dashing down the halls, only slowing whenever some came within sight, he was at his office ten minutes after he received the call. Stepping past a smiling Danielle with a nod, he entered the room that was his home most of the week, closing the door behind him. Before him were a snoozing Red, a yawning Yuffie, a puffing Cid, and an irate Barret.
Before Barret could start, Reeve held up his hand. "I know what you're going to say, and-"
He might have known what Barret was going to say, but that didn't stop Barret from saying it. "Where the hell have you been? The parade starts in a few hours, and you gotta be there! You know how hard we've worked on getting this ready! Man, I've been busting my-"
"Where's Cloud and Tifa?" Reeve interrupted.
"How the hell should I know?' Barret yelled, his eyes bulging. It was very obvious he was worried about how well the men he had trained would perform in the parade. He had indeed worked hard to train the men, but Reeve feared for the man who screwed up today. Barret wouldn't let him live it down…or just not let him live, period.
Yuffie smirked. "I knocked on Tifa's door this morning, and yelled at her a few times, but no one answered. I guess she wasn't in there."
Everyone chuckled. They all had suspicions as to where Tifa slept the previous night. Only Red had other ideas. There was something amiss between the two…something that had changed, and not for the better. They all knew what had occurred at the Northern Crater, before their final battle with Sephiroth…yet, the two were much more distant. That wasn't right. And, it was obvious Tifa still loved Cloud very much…yet…
"I'll go get them," Cid volunteered. Red's eyebrow rose at the smirk on Cid's face, but he said nothing. The group watched the blonde man go, flicking a cigarette into the garbage can as he left, another lit before the previous one had landed. With their minds full of amusing ideas about exactly what Cid would do to get the pair, they looked to each other, laughed, and then went back to what they had been doing: talking about the parade.
"So, Barret, has everything been prepared for the parade? Have all the uniforms been cleaned, all the men know what they are going to be doing?" Reeve inquired, leaning on his desk.
"It better be ready," Barret growled. "The uniforms have all been cleaned, yeah, and the men…well, after all that drillin' I've been making them do, they'd sure as hell better know what they'll be doing!"
Reeve chuckled. "Don't worry, I'm sure it'll all turn out fine. I'm actually pretty anxious to see your work. Any surprises?"
This cooled the other's temper. "Heh heh…yeah, I got a surprise. 'Course, Cloud'll throw a fit, but it'll be fun!" He guffawed. "That is, if he and Tifa get outta his bed."
Meanwhile, the pair he was speaking of were both peacefully snoring, Tifa snuggling her pillow on the bed, Cloud sprawled out in the chair. For once in a long time, Cloud was no longer troubled with nightmares. His sleep was sound and dreamless, and he was getting some much-needed rest.
Not for long. Without warning, a loud banging erupted from the door, followed by shouts. "Cloud! Get out of your damn bed! Tifa! I know you're in there!"
Cloud groaned, pushing himself out of the chair, fighting to stay standing. Tifa moaned, moving the pillow to cover her ears. Cloud weakly stumbled toward the door, resolving to rip out Cid's vocal cords at his first possible opportunity. Cid, however, was busy giving him more reason to do so.
"Lazy asses! I know you all didn't get much sleep, but that's your problem! Next time, go to bed earlier if you're going to-"
Cloud ripped the door open. Cid found himself looking down the lethal blade of the Ultima Weapon, which was resting at his throat. Cloud's shadowed eyes met his, and he heard Cloud growl. "Another word, and you'll have a new place to smoke out of."
Cid chuckled weakly. "Heh…they need you up at Reeve's office."
"Who is it, Cloud?' came Tifa's sleep-ridden voice from further inside the room. Cid's eyebrows rose, and a smirk appeared, but the Ultima weapon pressed harder against his throat.
"Why?" Cloud demanded.
Cid smirked again. "You'll see. I had, eh, better be getting back to them. See you later!" And before Cloud could object, even if he had wish to, Cid was gone.
Shaking his head, Cloud stepped back into his room. He could just imagine what was going to be said. His only consolation was, there were worse situations he could be in.
******
Vincent was in one of those situations. The dark man looked down the hill he was expected to ski down. He could see it winded and twisted, impossibly steep, until it reached the bottom far, far, far below. Trying to ski that hill was the closest thing to suicide Vincent had ever encountered.
Reno glared at Elena. "You're crazy."
She smiled at him, mock innocently. "Maybe."
"Shall we?" Vincent inquired.
Reno grinned, a tad too evil for any of the other's tastes. "Ladies first." He motioned toward the hill with a gentlemanly sweep of his arm.
Elena, however, smiled even more broadly. "Why, thank you, Reno." With a quick thrust, she was jetting down the hill, almost flying. The three watched her round a curve and disappear from view.
"Damn rookie." Reno was gone almost as fast, racing to catch up to her.
Rude stepped up to the edge, his facing betraying no fear, or anything for that matter. "He always has to show off. He hadn't been like that since he was the rookie. Now, though…since Elena joined and Tseng died, he has to be the best." Rude looked to Vincent. "He needs to lighten up."
Vincent watched the man zoom down the hill on his snowboard after the other two. He noted that what Rude had just said was more than he had ever heard the near-mute say put together, then dismissed it from his mind. Within a second, he was soaring down the hill, the air on his face and the feeling of flight within him. It wasn't long until they had all reached the bottom.
One after the other, each Turk reached the bottom. However, before the icy plains was a massive drop off. Each flew over it, soaring through the air as if they were birds, hanging in nothingness before plummeting to the ground. Vincent watched as the other three hit, landing harder than they had probably intended, before he too was launched into the sky. He watched the ground rush up to meet him, and the pure white world turned black.
******
Cloud sighed as he leaned his chair back on its hind legs. The parade had been interesting at first, but now it was beginning to drag. He could only stand so much of watching men in old ShinRa uniforms with big Avalanche badges marching around and holding their rifles. Parades were not his type of entertainment.
He chuckled as he remembered the parade he had taken part in over a year before. It had been during his pursuit of Sephiroth, before Meteor. He had been forced to sneak into Upper Junon, unfortunately at the same time as a parade for the ShinRa president, Rufus. Before he had known what was going on, a ShinRa commander and his two rather simple-minded soldiers had whisked him away, slapped a uniform on him, and got him ready for the parade. Not really knowing what was happening, he had just followed along, and had ended up on the cargo ship that Sephiroth had also infiltrated.
Cloud chuckled as he remembered the three ShinRa troops that had helped him. 'I wonder what ever happened to those goofballs?' he thought. He had met them again on a ShinRa submarine, and he and his friends had taken them prisoner, hijacking the sub. He could remember when he had shown them his signature finishing move, twirling his sword, or rifle at the time, three times before sheathing it. The trio had loved it, even though they had never won a battle to use it.
"Yo, Cloud, you might want to watch this. The end is coming up," Barret boomed, a broad grin on his face. Several of his other friends were also smiling evilly.
Cloud nodded, watching the lines of blue uniforms. Suddenly, three men stepped to the front. With a loud cry, they raised their rifles, or saber in the case of the red suited commander, and began to twirl it three times, before sheathing it. All down the line, each of the hundreds of men did the exact same finishing maneuver. Cloud's maneuver.
The entire group burst out in laughter, save Cloud, whose jaw was hanging open and eyes opened wide in disbelief. The commander must have heard the laughter, because his face fell, pride replaced by hurt. With a sigh, he gave the order for the men to 'about-face' and march away, in essence beating a hasty retreat.
It was Reeve who saved the poor man's self-esteem. Quickly standing, forcing the amusement from his face, he began clapping and cheering. Soon, all followed his example, even Cloud, who had a rather chagrined expression. The commander turned, a look of surprise and pride on his face. With a cheer, the men began to repeat the finishing move, and then marched away.
"Interesting parade, eh, Cloud?" Reeve commented wryly, watching the troops disappear into the barracks at the end of the parade grounds.
"Yeah, a riot," Cloud grumbled.
"Well, look at it this way," Cid commented. "At least they can't copy your hairstyle too. That is, unless they all buy a hairspray company."
Cloud sighed. It was going to be a long, long day.
******
"Ugh…"
The world was a glaringly bright ball of sheer pain. Reno rubbed his temples clumsily with numb hands. He felt like he had just woken up from a weekend-long beer binge, and had somehow managed to slam the toilet seat on his head again while puking before bed. It was a feeling he was more and more becoming used to, but that didn't mean he had to like it.
He gave his head one last shake to try to clear it, and looked around. Since he had somehow managed to end up on his back, all he could see was the cursedly bright light above. His senses finally kicked it, and he regretted it immediately thereafter. The first thing that came to him was the biting cold. However, he was numb enough that it had less effect than it should; that wasn't probably a good thing, but he could care less at the moment. He had probably left the air conditioning on too high in his apartment. Second, he noticed the pressure on his chest. He looked toward his feet, and all he could see was the top of someone's head. A blonde. He smiled to himself. He had always liked blondes. Once again, he thanked his best friend, alcohol, for one more chance to wake up sleeping with a girl he did not recognize.
"Oh, my aching head…" groaned the girl, coming to.
Reno's eyes widened. Her. He groaned as well. He would never have believed that there was enough alcohol in the world to get him drunk enough for him to…with…
Elena opened her eyes weakly, and looked up. Her eyes grew. "Oh, shit."
"Get off!" Reno shouted, and the two quickly stood. They looked at themselves, noticing with relief they were both still clothed.
Elena looked around. "Reno?"
"Yeah?"
"Have you noticed we're outside?"
He glanced to both sides. "Yeah…"
"And there's snow everywhere?"
"Yeah…"
"Why?"
Reno urged his mind to work faster. Thinking and headaches do not mix, he concluded. He gasped. "The mission!"
Elena nodded as everything came flooding back to her. "Rude? The vamp?"
Reno searched the ground near them. Rude was close by, his bald head planted deeply in a snow bank. And the vampire…?
"You are awake."
Reno jumped a foot into the air at the sound of the quiet voice coming from directly behind him. "Dammit! What the hell are you doing, you crazy son of a-"
Vincent smiled slightly. "I apologize if I startled you."
"…just because you look like a friggen' vampire doesn't mean you have to act like one, you-"
Elena nodded to the taller man, her eyes glittering as she ignored Reno's tirade. "No problem. Stealth is always a good trait to have." She grinned mockingly at the fuming Reno. "Of course, it really doesn't help with Mr. Pleasant over there cussing what little brains he has out."
"Ha! I'll show you stealth when I shove this ski pole straight up your-"
Vincent gave a slight nod to Rude. "We should wake him up soon. Night will fall soon, and the cold will be unbearable then."
Elena nodded, falling to one knee, shaking Rude to wake him. She looked up at Vincent to say something, but hesitated. The dark man had frozen in place, his eyes alert and his hand slowly trailing down to his pistol. Elena started to ask what was wrong when disaster struck.
"Freeze!" came a stern voice from behind Vincent. Squatting on a snow-covered cliff near them was a man dressed in a blue Shin-Ra soldier's uniform, with rifle aimed at Vincent's head. None of the Turks budged, and the soldier moved toward them, his aim never wavering.
"Alright, throw down your weapons and follow me, or I'll shoot you where you stand. Do you hear me? I said, move, and I mean-"
In one swift motion, Vincent drew his weapon and spun to face the guard. If the man hadn't been wearing the full Shin-Ra helmet complete with goggles, they might have seen his eyes widen with shock, but they never got the chance. With a loud 'crack' that seemed to echo everywhere, the man slumped to the ground, a bullet piercing the helmet.
"Come on! We have to move! Reinforcements will be here any minute!" Vincent ordered, motioning towards the cliffs that seemed so far away.
Without more prompting, the four Turks ran, arming themselves as they went. They could hear the sounds of their pursuit close behind. It seemed they ran for hours, never stopping, never slowing, never losing their followers. To stand and fight might have been the easier way out, but there was a chance it would be suicide.
As the sun finally began to set, they stopped, suspecting they had lost their pursuit. As the others squatted, panting for breath, Vincent looked around. They were in the midst of a sparse grove of trees that had managed to combat the cold enough to survive, but barely. The trees here were smaller and more thinned out then the ones they had seen closer to Icicle Village. Vincent took that as a sign that they were nearing Gaea's Cliffs, where the weather was even more extreme than it had been thus far.
"Did we…lose them?" Reno gasped.
"We had to have! There is no way they could have kept up! I mean, we had a head start, and-" Reno clapped a hand over Elena's mouth as Vincent's head whipped around. The female Turk glared murderously at the red-head, but he put his other hand on her head and forced her to crouch, refusing to release her mouth. He fell lower to the ground, as did the other two. Elena looked down to Reno's hand, considering biting. However, she stopped as she saw the ShinRa troops racing through the trees not too far away, narrowly missing their prey in their haste.
When the four were finally certain they were safe, Reno released Elena. The woman turned on him vehemently, the fire in her blue eyes ready to burn Reno to a crisp. The red-headed Turk gave her a smirk and a shrug. She gave him a slap to the back of the head, and turned away in a huff. Reno opened his mouth, undoubtedly to make some witty comment, but Vincent interrupted. "Night falls soon. Come on."
The feuding pair glowered at him, but followed mutely as he began walking towards the cliffs towering above them. The walk was not easy; more often than not some craggy hills or impassable brush would force them to change their course. Finally, Rude found a trail that led into a narrow ravine, and was clear of impediments.
With their path now clear, they made good time towards their destination. Each kept their eyes wide open, ready for any sign of ambush. It wasn't long, however, before boredom took its toll.
"Y'know, Reno, you could've just asked me to be quiet back there."
The Turk gave her a cynical look, one eyebrow arched high. "Riiight."
"I'm serious! You all always say I talk too much! I don't! I can be just as quiet as you can. I mean, you and Rude are the ones who are always chattering about who likes who!" That comment elicited a blush from Reno, and Rude turned away, lowering his head. "And you always treat me like I'm a kid! For goodness sake, I'm only a couple of years younger than you, Reno! And-"
"Elena?"
"Yes, Vincent?"
"You talk too much."
Elena stopped in her tracks. Vincent didn't look back, trying to hide a smile small. Rude hid what might have been a chuckle with a cough, and Reno guffawed. Elena dropped his fists to her hips, and screamed in frustration. Vincent turned, shocked. Reno looked around frantically, searching for somewhere to hide.
Before Elena could begin what probably would have resulted in unconsciousness for several of the Turks, and likely many black eyes, she froze, as did the other three. Without words, Elena and Vincent dashed forward, past Rude and Reno, who were moving in the opposite direction.
"Fire!" shouted the ShinRa commander, who had jumped from the side of the ravine with his men. Two landed ahead of the group, while the commander and his other two subordinates came from behind. The blue-clad troops dropped to one knee, bringing rifles up and quickly taking aim. They weren't quick enough to beat the best.
Vincent dove to the side as the first guard locked on to him, drawing his gun in the same movement. In the same instant, two shots rang out. For a moment, neither moved. Finally, as the soldier slumped to the ground, a small bullet-hole decorating the center of his mask, Vincent stood, and nodded to himself in satisfaction.
A second soldier didn't get the chance to fire. Reno charged at the man, electro-pole held as if he intended to bash the man with it. The ShinRa allowed himself a small grin under the mask, but just as he squeezed the trigger, electricity leapt from the pole, striking the end of the gun. The soldier jerked as the bolt arced up his arm, and the rifle dropped from nerveless fingers.
Elena dove to the side suddenly, and the ShinRa facing her fired instinctively before he could readjust his aim. He took aim again, but Elena rolled, then dove back in the direction she had come, flinging an arm out. The soldier was about to order her to stay still when he looked down. His eyes widened as he saw the small dagger, framed in red, jutting out of his chest. He made one last feeble attempt to target Elena before succumbing to the wound and slumping to the ground.
Rude took no chances. Just as the ShinRa targeting him began to fire, he hurled a small sphere to the ground between them. The soldier cried out as a flash of flight blinded him. He covered his eyes, too late. The first , and last, thing he saw as his vision returned was the sunglasses-wearing Turk. Rude slugged the man in the face, and the goggles cracked loudly. The soldier started to fall backwards, but Rude caught him by his rifle, and drew him forward onto his knee. The ShinRa made hurling noises as he fell to his knees, but the sound ended as Rude brought a fist down onto the back of the hapless man's neck.
The commander drew his saber, ready to charge into the middle of the Turks. Reno beat him to it, his pole sweeping upwards from the left. The red-clad ShinRa parried the blow, then slashed at Reno's face. The Turk stepped back, spinning his electro-pole. Before the commander could bring his sword back into line, Reno brought his weapon up, into the man's stomach. With a gasp, the breath left the man's lungs. Reno smirked as he thumbed a switch on the pole, and after a muted sizzle the commander fell limply to the ground, saber dropping from his hand.
The Turks dusted themselves off, regrouping. Vincent looked at the commander, and then to Reno, appraisingly. The red-head gave him a small smile and a nod, which Vincent returned.
Suddenly, Vincent fell, his feet swept out from under him. The first soldier Reno had shocked wasn't completely out of commission, and quickly rose, his rifle slamming into Reno's chin. With a grunt, the Turk fell onto his back. The soldier rose completely, pointing his gun at Elena. He stopped, jerking, then fell forward. Rude stood behind him, holding the rifle of the soldier he had beaten. The butt of the gun had caved in the back of the man's helmet, and most likely his head.
The two fallen Turks stood, regarded the others sheepishly, and dusted themselves off. "Shall we?" Vincent asked, motioning toward the mountain. Seeing the others nod grimly, he started forward, leaving the devastation and the five dead soldiers behind. The cliffs waited.
******
In a dark room in the tower that was the center of the ShinRa complex built into the Northern crater, site of what had been the battle for the very existence of the planet a year earlier, a single man waited. The chair he was in was padded heavily, and made for comfort, but the man did not care for comfort, and sat erect in the chair. Behind him, one could see the busy activities of the ShinRa war machine, but the view was inconsequential. He sat alone, neither needing nor wanting the company of others. He was never really alone; he needed no one else.
A timid knock broke the icy silence of the room. The man turned in his chair, and called out, "Come in." The words were precise, the tone emotionless.
The person that entered the room was a large man, bulky and muscular, and wore a blue suit immaculately. He was one of the heads of what had been, and what would be again, the most powerful organization in the world. Neither political nor physical power mattered in this room, however.
"Sir…I have the newest reports." The large man's voice was careful, and a bead of sweat worked its way down his jaw, even though the room's temperature was just a few degrees below what would have been comfortable.
"Go on."
The ShinRa head nodded. "First, reconstruction and modification of the areas damaged by Doctor Helt's…accident…are proceeding ahead of schedule." Seeing the shadowed man nod at this, he went on. "Second, the primary energy and production facilities are working at over two hundred percent of their predicted capability." The man nodded again, but the head paused before reporting the next information. "The weaponry and machinery factories, sir…are far behind schedule."
Several moments passed in schedule. The expression on the man's face did not change, but the papers held by the ShinRa head began to rustle softly as his hands began to shake. "Give them a message. Tell them I am displeased, and I expect better. They know what will happen if they do not perform."
The commander nodded, and swallowed loudly. If in the shoes of the men that were in charge of those facilities, he would be considering suicide. It would be less messy, and probably far more quick. "Ah, sir…we received a message from one of the special teams. They said they were…they are in position to 'clip the Condor's wings."
The man stood at that. "Excellent. And of the team they sent here? Have they been eliminated?"
The ShinRa head paled at that. "No sir. The troops outside have been ordered inside, and the Black Guard are posted at every possible entrance. They will get in, but no further."
The man regarded the other coldly, then nodded his approval. "Very good. If they are harmed more than necessary, you will be held responsible. If you receive word that any have died on capture, or were heavily wounded, don't come back to inform me. Your replacement shall do that. Just report to Doctor Helt. He shall know what to do."
At that, the bulky man froze, his eyes bulging and his throat too constricted to breathe. "Y…yes…yessir!"
The dark man sat back down. "Leave me."
Trying to keep himself from running, the man turned, and walked from the office. Once outside, after the door slid shut, he leaned against the wall, breathing a sigh of relief, before he walked down the hall. In the dark office he had just left, the dark man turned in his chair, looking outside. After he mumbled to himself in a voice just shy of silence, he turned back to the papers arranged neatly on his desk. His view went first to the letter opener that sat in a prominent position on his desk. He picked it up, staring at the symbol inscribed on the blade. A meteor shape was centered in a starburst with 13 rays. The rays were positioned so one more could fit, but it was absent. The man ran a finger over the symbol, and his expression was of ecstasy.
Lowering the letter opener, he slid open a drawer in his desk and pulled out a manila envelope. He opened it carefully, and pulled out two large photographs. The first he regarded carefully. It showed four blue-clad professionals. One was a red-head, with his signature smirk. The second was a bald man, eyes hidden behind sunglasses. The third was a young woman, blond and pretty. The last was a black-haired man, eyes staring out from the photo coldly and confidently.
The man returned that picture to the envelope. He had difficulty, as it was hard to fit the picture in, the way he hand was shaking.
The other picture had a far more dramatic effect on the man. He trembled violently as he looked at the crowd of people, and he dropped the photograph on the desk. The people in the photo certainly were a mixed crowd: A spikey-haired blond warrior, a brown-headed girl leaning on his arm, a man with a cigarette dangling from his mouth and pilot's goggles on his forehead, a red beast that stared impassively at the camera, a burly black man with a gun-arm, a teenage girl holding a large throwing star and wearing an obnoxious smile as she made bunny ears over the pilot's head, a cat riding a giant stuffed moogle, and a man clad in black, wearing a flowing cape. It was the blond man that wore the impressive sword on his back that had the most effect on the shadowed man. He glared at the photograph, and with a cry of rage slammed the letter opener into the photo, into the head of the warrior. He panted heavily as he griped the edge of his desk, then stood, turning away from the photo.
"You shall get yours, Cloud Strife. We will have out revenge."
The impaled Cloud in the picture seemed to stare up at the back of the man, who was laughing manically.
"Oh, yes! You will pay!"