Day Four
3:11 a.m. Highwind.
Cloud couldn't sleep. He kept thinking about the fight with Vincent.
*"What do you mean 'it's for a good cause'?" Barret shouted. He violently waved his arms at Cid. "How can anything the ShinRa is doing be for a good cause?"
The pilot crossed his arms and stood his ground. "Rufus wants me to help the science department come up with a new reactor, one that won't drain the planet of its life energy. Seems like a good cause to me."
"Do you know if those are his real motives?" Cloud asked, trying his best to be calmer than Barret.
"Doubt it, but I didn't see any reason for him to lie." He threw Vincent a quick glance. "Trust me. The moment I think something's up, I'm outta there."
Cloud turned to Vincent. "What about you? What are you doing back with the ShinRa?"
The vampire's face was stoic, his voice cold. "Various reasons."
"Dammit!" Barret exploded. "This isn't the time to be secretive."
"Barret, please." Tifa walked over to Vincent. "You're not going to tell us what the reasons are?"
He glanced from face to face, starting with Yuffie and ending with Cid. "I don't think you're ready to hear them. It's best I keep them to myself for now."
"You don't trust us?"
"It's not that."
"Then what?"
"Any explanation I could give you now would only upset you more."
"Vincent," Cloud snapped, "you may have played this game with Yuffie and Barret, but I'm not going to put up with it. I want an explanation. We all do."
"What do you want to hear?" he hissed; if his tone were any sharper, he could have sliced the young man in two. "That I'm there so I can undermine it from the inside? So I can get in close to Rufus so I can kill him, and rid the world of his taint? Infiltrate the headquarters and reveal ShinRa's secrets to you? Well, that's not it."
Cloud shook his head sadly, even as fury painted his face. "I'm really disappointed, Vincent. I would have expected better from you."
"So sorry to have let you down," he came back. "I suppose I'm just not Avalanche material."
Before another word could be said, the Turk left the room. Red XIII followed him out, but everyone else was too frozen with astonishment to move. Vincent had never spoken to anyone like that before - not even Hojo. It was so unlike the Vincent they knew, none of them could fully believe that they had actually heard it. Cid was the one to finally break the silence that had fallen over the room. "What the hell was that about?"*
Elsewhere on the Highwind.
Red XIII couldn't sleep. He couldn't stop thinking about what Vincent had told him after the fight.
*"Vincent, wait!" Red XIII cried out. He ran as fast as his paws could carry him in a desperate attempt to catch up with his friend. The vampire stopped in response to the warrior dog's voice; he appeared tense, as though he was ready to snap the instant any pressure was placed on his fragile frame. "Vincent, my friend, what is wrong?"
No response.
"Please, tell us. Whatever it is, we will understand."
"You, perhaps, and maybe even Cid, but the others couldn't possibly."
"Then tell me."
Vincent seemed on the verge to speak, but bit back whatever comment he had prepared.
"I swear I will not speak a word to the others unless you ask me to."
"Not here." He walked up the stairs to the deck of the Highwind; Red XIII followed. Outside, the stars twinkled with splendor, and fireflies danced about the airship and across the plains. "As I said, I have various reasons for being with the ShinRa, but Cloud and the others would never understand them."
"What?"
"At first, it was because I missed my old job. Being a Turk is part of my nature. It's in my blood. It's who I am. To deny myself that truth would be to give in to delusion as Cloud had done. I don't want that. But since I was reinstated, things have happened to only reinforce my decision to go back. You've no doubt been informed of Sephiroth's return?" It was more a statement than a question.
Red XIII nodded.
"He's my son."
The revelation was so unexpected Red XIII completely lost his composure and went into a state of stupor. He hadn't recovered before Vincent continued.
"They" - he referred to Avalanche - "will want to kill him as surely as they want to destroy ShinRa. I can't allow that. You understand that, don't you?"
The canine barely managed a nod.
"There's also something else. Something I'm, as yet, unsure about. There's someone I. I don't know what to do about it. I'm not even sure what to think about it." He shook his head, frustrated with himself. "This person may be the answer to my pain."
Red XIII wasn't clear on what he meant by "pain." His emotional pain? The pain of his transformation? Some other medical problem he hadn't divulged to the group? But it was clear Vincent wasn't going to elaborate on the subject, as confused as he himself was on the subject. "Is that all?"
"The main part of it, yes. You've sworn not tell the others. I'm holding you to that promise, Red XIII. Please, if you truly are my friend, you will keep your word, even if you think it's not what's best."
"I will."*
11:03 a.m. Junon Developmental Department.
Cid gawked at the pile of schematics, notebooks, and paperwork on his desk. At least he hoped that was his desk under there. *Where did Henry find all this? And how did he find it so damned quickly?* The pilot attempted to find his chair, but resolved to stand. He picked a random schematic from the top of the pile - and griped to himself as the rest of it tumbled down to scatter itself around his office floor. "Ah, perfect. This is exactly how I wanted to start my day."
He cleared a space on his desk and sat down. He studied the schematic in his hand, then threw it aside and reached into the remaining mess. He pulled out a white paperback; on the cover was the picture of a woman in some kind of mechanical armor. He read, "'Official Final Fantasy Anthologies Strategy Guide: Final Fantasies V and VI.' Huh? What the #^@& is this?" He tossed it to a random corner of the room and continued his rummaging.
Next, he pulled a portfolio. Inside was the profile of the scientist who had created the mako reactors. Cid skimmed it, and then placed it aside for future reference. The rummaging continued.
Next, he pulled another schematic. It was of a hydroelectric generator. He studied it, made notes of parts that could have been improved, and then put it aside in its own little pile for future reference. The rummaging continued.
Next, he pulled a small book, entitled Unforgiven, by some author named Miotis Kain. Cid flipped the book over and read the back.
*Rufus is back, and with him ShinRa begins its return to power. Avalanche has resolved to kill Rufus in the hopes of finishing off the ShinRa once and for all. But circumstances have changed; the stakes are higher and the danger's greater. When the time comes, will Avalanche be willing to pay the price for victory, or will they lose it all?*
Cid opened up to the first page. *Rufus rolled up the Sunday paper and used it to smack Heideger on the head.* He flipped to the end of the book. Blank! The pages were blank! "What the hell?! Where's the ending?"
*There isn't one.*
"Huh? Who said that?"
*I did.*
"Who're you?"
*I'm the author.*
"The author?"
*Of the story.*
"Oh. So, where's the ending?"
*I told you. There isn't one.*
"Why not?"
*Because I haven't finished the story yet.*
"So where'd you leave off?"
*Here.*
"Huh?"
*Flip to page 80.*
He shuffled back through until he found the specified page. *He shuffled back through until he found the specified page.* "Wait a minute. So you're writing this even as we speak?"
*Yup.
"So, what am I going to do next?"
*Nothing.*
"Nothing?"
*Yeah. Nothing.*
"So, what's the point of this section?"
*Filler.*
"Filler?"
*Yeah. I needed something to take up space between the last section and the next one. It seemed inappropriate to have such a large gap in the time sequence.*
"So, I'm not really serving any purpose by being here?"
*Sure you are. Just not a very important one.*
"Gee, thanks." He shut the book and tossed it in the trash. It promptly flew out of the trash to hit him in the head. "Hey! You did that on purpose!" he accused.
*Of course. You think I wrote that by accident?*
4:49 p.m. ShinRa building in Junon.
Vincent stopped to watch Scarlet walk up to Heideger and slap him upside the head. Though he couldn't hear what was being said, he knew what the argument was over: the Turks assigned to the headquarters security weren't doing their jobs, and it was Heideger's fault. Vincent laughed inwardly as he watched Heideger cowering before the slimmer, trimmer Scarlet. He allowed himself a brief smile, and then returned himself to his duties.
"Hey, the Turks are your department. If they're not doing their job, it's because you aren't doing yours," Scarlet scolded.
"Why are you so worked up over this?" the fat executive countered. "It doesn't have anything to do with you."
She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Oooooh, it does. Especially when unauthorized personnel interfere with my work. I was discussing weapons efficiency with one of the employees when some little bitch came in and started harassing him. Obviously, we never finished our discussion. I'm surprised the man was even able to go back to work. Those kinds of occurrences interfere with worker efficiency. Besides, what if it was one of those Avalanche geeks who'd gotten in? The president and ourselves could have been killed. You screwed up, Heideger, and if it happens again I'm going to President Rufus." She turned and walked away before any argument could be made.
She proceeded to her office, the memory of Vincent fresh in her mind. She'd purposefully left out Vincent's name; Heideger would have used the incident as an excuse to demean the Turk. She wondered why it mattered. It frustrated her that she cared so much. Why was this one man so different from any of the others she'd stepped on to get to where she was?
She got to her office, but didn't enter. She wanted answers, and there was only one way she could get them. She checked the time; the day was almost over. She turned away from her office door and went off in search of Vincent.
About fifteen minutes later.
Vincent watched Scarlet approach him. He maintained his professional façade, but inside he was a mess. He was hurting and alone and, above all, confused. The pain of the entire ordeal with Lucrecia had proven to be too much for him, but when he was just on the verge of an utter breakdown, Scarlet saved him with the simple gesture of offering him a handkerchief. After that, he couldn't stop thinking of her. All thoughts of her burned away the pain Lucrecia had caused him. He wondered if he was falling in love with her. With all of that going on inside him, he found it a wonder he was able to do his work at all, nevertheless effectively. "Ms. Scarlet," he greeted.
"What is it?" she demanded.
Vincent raised a superior eyebrow. *What do you mean?* his expression seemed to say.
She set her hands on her hips - as she was prone to do - and focused on his face. "Never before has it mattered to me. I've never cared about what happened to other people or their feelings. True, I may have acted like I cared if it benefited me in the long run, but all-in-all it didn't matter to me who got crushed so long as I got what I wanted." She paused and shook a finger at him. "Then *you* come along and toss a wrench in my engine."
Vincent brushed a stray lock of hair from his face, but didn't say anything.
She continued. "I went to Heideger to complain about the lax in building security." - she shook her head - "and I couldn't bring myself to mention your name in what happened because I knew he would make your life hell. Anyone else, it wouldn't have mattered, but you just had to be different. So, what is it?"
"What is what?"
"What is it about you that makes me care about what happens to you? Why do you matter so much? I'd like to know."
The previous lock fell back in front of his eyes. He made to brush it away again, but Scarlet grabbed his hand and stopped him. "Don't. Just leave it where it is."
He gave her a questioning look.
"It's suggestive."
"How so?"
"You don't even know you do it, do you? Your every move is like some silent sexual innuendo, and you don't even notice." She let out an exasperated laugh. "Now I know what it is. You don't try. Other guys work so hard to be attractive, or charming, or courteous, but it's all just natural for you. You're naturally sexy, and you don't even know it."
Vincent studied her intently. The sound of her voice, the very feminine curves of her body, the ethereal beauty of her face, all inspired feelings in him; feelings similar to what he had felt for Lucrecia, and yet vastly different. These were less defined, but far more potent. He used the hand she was holding to pull her closer to him. Placing his other hand around her waist, he leaned his face toward hers.
"What are you doing?" she asked, a little panicked.
He gave her a crafty smile. "Something I probably shouldn't." He kissed her.
Scarlet felt him pull her even closer, so that their bodies were pressed together. She was suddenly very glad he was holding her, because if he hadn't been she probably wouldn't be able to support herself. Damn, he was a great kisser!
After what seemed an eternity - and yet it wasn't nearly long enough - he broke off contact, pulling away enough to see all her face. He ran his hand down her cheek, his fingers leaving streaks of fire in their wake. She felt short of breath, and her lips tingled from his touch. "Why shouldn't you do that?" she managed.
"Because I'm supposed to be recovering from a broken heart."
"Best way to get over the last girlfriend is to get a new one." She returned his kiss, not soft or deep, as his had been, but hard and passionate. She'd never experienced anything like it, his touch or the feelings he inspired with it. Was this what love felt like? The word was so foreign to her, and yet it seemed so right. Could this one man make up for all the disappointments of her life? She surprised herself with the hope that he could. The kiss ended.
"And it doesn't bother you?"
"What?"
"That I'm old enough to be your father."
"So long as you don't *act* like my father," she laughed.
5:15 p.m. ShinRa building in Junon.
Yuffie eased her way out of the ventilation shaft. She landed without a sound, and took in her surroundings; she was in a cubicle, probably on one of the office levels. That would mean she was close to Rufus's office. She peered over the edge. There were about twenty other cubicles, but she was the only person in the room.
The ninja crept out of the cubicle, making her way toward the stairs. Upstairs. The president's office would be upstairs. How would she recognize him when she saw him? She'd never actually seen his face before. Oh well. She'd deal with that when the time came.
She climbed slowly, cautiously. *Be prepared for anything,* she told herself. If only that was enough.
Before she reached the top of the stairs, Yuffie found herself surrounded by soldiers. Five, six, seven. too many! Her mind shrank back as fear took hold of her. *It's over,* she panicked. *I can't take on this many soldiers on my own.* Of course, she never let it show. No amount of fear could overcome her bravado. She set her feet and raised her weapon. Defeat was acceptable. Surrender wasn't.
"Hey," one of the soldiers chimed. "The president was right. One of those Avalanche punks got in through the ventilation."
"Yeah. He even knew which floor they'd come out on," another added.
Another. "That's freaky. How did he know?"
"Man, I don't know, but that's why he's the president and we're not."
"So what do we do with her?"
"Take her in for interrogation, what else?"
They moved in on her, but even as she prepared to strike, someone else acted first. From one of the upper flights of stairs, a masked figure clad in black dropped, planting its feet into the back of a soldier and driving him down. Before the remaining soldiers could recover from shock, the figure struck out with its left leg and swiped three soldiers, sending them down the stairs to plummet into their other two comrades. The remaining soldier managed to gather enough of his wits to point his gun at the new intruder, but not enough to pull the trigger before the firearm was knocked from his hands. The soldier then found himself being tattooed with a number of well-placed kicks to the face.
It was now quite apparent to Yuffie that her savior was a man, as his stature and figure gave away his gender. The stranger grabbed her arm and hissed, "C'mon!" He then proceeded to pull her along with him as he made his way down the stairs.
They came out of the stairwell on the ground floor. He glanced quickly to either side of the door, and then practically dragged her into the street and down an alley. They hopped a fence. On the other side was a manhole, which he deftly uncovered.
"You can't be serious." Yuffie took a step away from the opening. "No way."
The sounds of hurried footsteps drifted from over the fence. The stranger jabbed a finger at the hole.
Again, Yuffie refused.
"Listen. I'm trying to help. If you don't want the ShinRa to get you, just be quiet and follow my lead. Now, get down there."
Yuffie was hesitant, but eventually complied. She let out a quiet "ewwwww" as she lowered herself into the sewer. The stranger followed her down, pausing only to replace the manhole cover. "This way." He motioned for her to follow.
They sprinted down the length of the sewer, and soon came to a fork. He chose the one on the left and continued running.
Yuffie did her best to keep up, but she was finding that the man had more stamina than she. It wasn't long before she had to call for him to stop. "Need. to rest," she panted. To her surprise, he waited patiently as she caught her breath. She nodded when she was ready.
He took five steps, and pushed against a section of wall. There was the light scraping of stone against stone as part of the wall shifted and moved inward. He stepped through the opening. Yuffie followed.
On the other side of the door, which closed itself after they were through, was a large room. It was apparently a gathering place for individuals of a more disreputable nature. The twenty-something people in the room looked toward them, and greeted her savior with hearty enthusiasm and questions galore. "JT!" "You're back!" "How'd it go?" "What happened?" "Did you find it?" "Who's that?"
The man called JT waved his hands in a motion of silence, which was immediately followed by a hush. "Easy. Easy. I didn't find it. It wasn't where I thought it would be. We'll have to start checking the executives' offices. Those are the only other places it might be. However, while I didn't find the disk, I did find this." He motioned toward Yuffie.
"Who is she?" a number of people shouted.
"A member of Avalanche." He paused and turned to her. "Or, at least, that's what the soldiers were saying."
Yuffie puffed up with pride. "My name is Yuffie, and I am a member of Avalanche."
"Hey, that's great!" someone voiced.
Another asked, "JT, do you think Avalanche will help us?"
He waved his hand again, demanding silence.
"What is it you're doing? Who are you people?" Yuffie asked.
He motioned to a wooden door on the far side of the room. She went to it and walked through to enter a small room. There was a table covered with schematics and other such papers, but other than that there were no adornments.
JT closed the door behind them. His cobalt blue eyes, the only part of his face not hidden by his cloak-and-dagger ensemble, met hers and held them. "We call ourselves the Reckoning. We're a group devoted to the complete downfall of the ShinRa Corporation. We're rather covert, so there are very few people who know of our existence."
"Why are you fighting ShinRa?"
JT shrugged. "Personal grudges, mostly. Our ranks are filled with people from various walks of life, but we've all lost something because of the ShinRa. Some are ex-cons who were put away by ShinRa. Some are people who have lost their homes or businesses. Some lost loved ones. The reasons vary."
"What are *your* reasons?"
He hesitated a moment. There was a nervous edge to his voice when he replied. "I was in the ShinRa army during the war with Wutai. My regiment was attacked and destroyed. Those of us left alive were severely wounded. No one came to find us. We were left for dead. In the end, I was the only one to survive. My entire regiment - my friends - all died, and no respects were paid." He turned away from her, hiding his face behind his hand. His voice cracked as he spoke, "They weren't even given a proper burial." He wiped his eyes with his sleeve before he turned back to face her. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I -"
Yuffie was quick to comfort him, having heard his story. "No, it's all right. I understand how you feel. My hometown is Wutai. After the war, it became a tourist resort. There's no pride left in it. It's ShinRa's fault. I hate them for it."
"Then you understand our desire to make ShinRa pay for its crimes against the people."
Yuffie nodded. "Yeah. And I want to help you."
"I was hoping you'd say that." His voice was filled with warmth and gratitude.
"I bet Cloud and the others will want to help, too. They hate ShinRa just as much as anyone here. I could go get them."
JT moved in front of the door, blocking the way out. "No! The more people who know where this hideout is, the more likely the ShinRa is to find out about it. Then we're screwed. You can tell your friends about our group if you wish, but don't bring them here or tell them where this place is. Don't tell anyone. Please, for everyone's safety."
She remained quiet, but nodded. After a moment of awkward silence, she asked, "So, exactly what is it you were looking for in the ShinRa building?"
"A disk. It contains the access codes to all of ShinRa's facilities and systems. It would make our work substantially easier. With the access codes to the main computer, we could crash the entire system. Not to mention that it would make infiltrating their buildings that much easier. It would be a great asset to our cause."
"I'll talk to Cloud about it and see what we can do."
"Great." He turned to the door and called, "Pax!" A few seconds later, a short man with a scruffy beard and disheveled hair entered the room. JT looked at Yuffie. "This is Pax. He'll show you the way out, and he'll tell you how you can contact us."
Yuffie made her way to the door, but before she walked through it JT stopped her. "Thank you. This means a lot."
She beamed. "Not a problem. I'd do anything to bring down the ShinRa."
He watched as Pax led Yuffie out of the room. Once the door was closed behind them, he removed his mask and ran his hand through his golden blond hair, straightening it out. He leaned against the table. *Heh,* he thought. *Never imagined I'd be using my old army alias again, but it does come in handy. This is going to be easier than I thought.* Alone in the chamber, Rufus laughed.
10:17 p.m. Highwind.
Yuffie rushed in to the conference room, and kicked Cloud out of the chair he'd fallen asleep in. He hit the floor with a crumpled thud, but it still didn't completely wake him up. "Huh? Wuz going' on?" he yawned.
"Cloud, wake up!" With surprising strength, the young ninja yanked Cloud off the floor and jostled him. She dropped him back into his chair and slapped him. By that time he was fully awake.
"Yuffie? What is it? Quit slapping me!"
Yuffie froze, her hand poised to strike again. "Oh, you're awake."
"Yeah, I'm awake! And I'd like to know why."
"You gotta help."
"Huh? Help with what?"
She relayed to him what happened at the ShinRa building; she told him about the Reckoning, and about JT. Cloud's head, which had been sagging on his chest in contemplation, immediately shot up. "Did you say 'JT'?"
Yuffie nodded, a little confused. "You know him?"
"No, but Zack did. at least, he knew *of* him. JT was a soldier in the army during the war. He was second only to Sephiroth, and had earned the rank of Major General by sixteen. Shortly before the end of the war, his entire regiment was wiped out; some of the bodies were never recovered, but everyone was believed to be dead. Apparently, he was one of the ones who were never found." There was a long moment of silence. "So the Reckoning wants revenge. All right. We can help, but I want to meet this JT character. You can take me to him in the morning."
"No!" Yuffie cried. "I can't."
"Why not?"
"I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone where their hideout was. He says it'll increase the danger to everyone."
"Well, I need to meet with him so I know we can trust him."
"I think we can."
"How can you be sure? What do you *really* know about him?"
"You weren't there when I met him!" she snapped. "You weren't there when he told me about what happened to him!"
Cloud gave her a weird look. "What's wrong with you? You're acting really strange."
"I am not!"
"Yeah, you are." He sighed, and scratched his head. "Okay, Yuffie. If it means that much to you, I'll believe you when you say he's trustworthy. So what does he need us to do?"
3:11 a.m. Highwind.
Cloud couldn't sleep. He kept thinking about the fight with Vincent.
*"What do you mean 'it's for a good cause'?" Barret shouted. He violently waved his arms at Cid. "How can anything the ShinRa is doing be for a good cause?"
The pilot crossed his arms and stood his ground. "Rufus wants me to help the science department come up with a new reactor, one that won't drain the planet of its life energy. Seems like a good cause to me."
"Do you know if those are his real motives?" Cloud asked, trying his best to be calmer than Barret.
"Doubt it, but I didn't see any reason for him to lie." He threw Vincent a quick glance. "Trust me. The moment I think something's up, I'm outta there."
Cloud turned to Vincent. "What about you? What are you doing back with the ShinRa?"
The vampire's face was stoic, his voice cold. "Various reasons."
"Dammit!" Barret exploded. "This isn't the time to be secretive."
"Barret, please." Tifa walked over to Vincent. "You're not going to tell us what the reasons are?"
He glanced from face to face, starting with Yuffie and ending with Cid. "I don't think you're ready to hear them. It's best I keep them to myself for now."
"You don't trust us?"
"It's not that."
"Then what?"
"Any explanation I could give you now would only upset you more."
"Vincent," Cloud snapped, "you may have played this game with Yuffie and Barret, but I'm not going to put up with it. I want an explanation. We all do."
"What do you want to hear?" he hissed; if his tone were any sharper, he could have sliced the young man in two. "That I'm there so I can undermine it from the inside? So I can get in close to Rufus so I can kill him, and rid the world of his taint? Infiltrate the headquarters and reveal ShinRa's secrets to you? Well, that's not it."
Cloud shook his head sadly, even as fury painted his face. "I'm really disappointed, Vincent. I would have expected better from you."
"So sorry to have let you down," he came back. "I suppose I'm just not Avalanche material."
Before another word could be said, the Turk left the room. Red XIII followed him out, but everyone else was too frozen with astonishment to move. Vincent had never spoken to anyone like that before - not even Hojo. It was so unlike the Vincent they knew, none of them could fully believe that they had actually heard it. Cid was the one to finally break the silence that had fallen over the room. "What the hell was that about?"*
Elsewhere on the Highwind.
Red XIII couldn't sleep. He couldn't stop thinking about what Vincent had told him after the fight.
*"Vincent, wait!" Red XIII cried out. He ran as fast as his paws could carry him in a desperate attempt to catch up with his friend. The vampire stopped in response to the warrior dog's voice; he appeared tense, as though he was ready to snap the instant any pressure was placed on his fragile frame. "Vincent, my friend, what is wrong?"
No response.
"Please, tell us. Whatever it is, we will understand."
"You, perhaps, and maybe even Cid, but the others couldn't possibly."
"Then tell me."
Vincent seemed on the verge to speak, but bit back whatever comment he had prepared.
"I swear I will not speak a word to the others unless you ask me to."
"Not here." He walked up the stairs to the deck of the Highwind; Red XIII followed. Outside, the stars twinkled with splendor, and fireflies danced about the airship and across the plains. "As I said, I have various reasons for being with the ShinRa, but Cloud and the others would never understand them."
"What?"
"At first, it was because I missed my old job. Being a Turk is part of my nature. It's in my blood. It's who I am. To deny myself that truth would be to give in to delusion as Cloud had done. I don't want that. But since I was reinstated, things have happened to only reinforce my decision to go back. You've no doubt been informed of Sephiroth's return?" It was more a statement than a question.
Red XIII nodded.
"He's my son."
The revelation was so unexpected Red XIII completely lost his composure and went into a state of stupor. He hadn't recovered before Vincent continued.
"They" - he referred to Avalanche - "will want to kill him as surely as they want to destroy ShinRa. I can't allow that. You understand that, don't you?"
The canine barely managed a nod.
"There's also something else. Something I'm, as yet, unsure about. There's someone I. I don't know what to do about it. I'm not even sure what to think about it." He shook his head, frustrated with himself. "This person may be the answer to my pain."
Red XIII wasn't clear on what he meant by "pain." His emotional pain? The pain of his transformation? Some other medical problem he hadn't divulged to the group? But it was clear Vincent wasn't going to elaborate on the subject, as confused as he himself was on the subject. "Is that all?"
"The main part of it, yes. You've sworn not tell the others. I'm holding you to that promise, Red XIII. Please, if you truly are my friend, you will keep your word, even if you think it's not what's best."
"I will."*
11:03 a.m. Junon Developmental Department.
Cid gawked at the pile of schematics, notebooks, and paperwork on his desk. At least he hoped that was his desk under there. *Where did Henry find all this? And how did he find it so damned quickly?* The pilot attempted to find his chair, but resolved to stand. He picked a random schematic from the top of the pile - and griped to himself as the rest of it tumbled down to scatter itself around his office floor. "Ah, perfect. This is exactly how I wanted to start my day."
He cleared a space on his desk and sat down. He studied the schematic in his hand, then threw it aside and reached into the remaining mess. He pulled out a white paperback; on the cover was the picture of a woman in some kind of mechanical armor. He read, "'Official Final Fantasy Anthologies Strategy Guide: Final Fantasies V and VI.' Huh? What the #^@& is this?" He tossed it to a random corner of the room and continued his rummaging.
Next, he pulled a portfolio. Inside was the profile of the scientist who had created the mako reactors. Cid skimmed it, and then placed it aside for future reference. The rummaging continued.
Next, he pulled another schematic. It was of a hydroelectric generator. He studied it, made notes of parts that could have been improved, and then put it aside in its own little pile for future reference. The rummaging continued.
Next, he pulled a small book, entitled Unforgiven, by some author named Miotis Kain. Cid flipped the book over and read the back.
*Rufus is back, and with him ShinRa begins its return to power. Avalanche has resolved to kill Rufus in the hopes of finishing off the ShinRa once and for all. But circumstances have changed; the stakes are higher and the danger's greater. When the time comes, will Avalanche be willing to pay the price for victory, or will they lose it all?*
Cid opened up to the first page. *Rufus rolled up the Sunday paper and used it to smack Heideger on the head.* He flipped to the end of the book. Blank! The pages were blank! "What the hell?! Where's the ending?"
*There isn't one.*
"Huh? Who said that?"
*I did.*
"Who're you?"
*I'm the author.*
"The author?"
*Of the story.*
"Oh. So, where's the ending?"
*I told you. There isn't one.*
"Why not?"
*Because I haven't finished the story yet.*
"So where'd you leave off?"
*Here.*
"Huh?"
*Flip to page 80.*
He shuffled back through until he found the specified page. *He shuffled back through until he found the specified page.* "Wait a minute. So you're writing this even as we speak?"
*Yup.
"So, what am I going to do next?"
*Nothing.*
"Nothing?"
*Yeah. Nothing.*
"So, what's the point of this section?"
*Filler.*
"Filler?"
*Yeah. I needed something to take up space between the last section and the next one. It seemed inappropriate to have such a large gap in the time sequence.*
"So, I'm not really serving any purpose by being here?"
*Sure you are. Just not a very important one.*
"Gee, thanks." He shut the book and tossed it in the trash. It promptly flew out of the trash to hit him in the head. "Hey! You did that on purpose!" he accused.
*Of course. You think I wrote that by accident?*
4:49 p.m. ShinRa building in Junon.
Vincent stopped to watch Scarlet walk up to Heideger and slap him upside the head. Though he couldn't hear what was being said, he knew what the argument was over: the Turks assigned to the headquarters security weren't doing their jobs, and it was Heideger's fault. Vincent laughed inwardly as he watched Heideger cowering before the slimmer, trimmer Scarlet. He allowed himself a brief smile, and then returned himself to his duties.
"Hey, the Turks are your department. If they're not doing their job, it's because you aren't doing yours," Scarlet scolded.
"Why are you so worked up over this?" the fat executive countered. "It doesn't have anything to do with you."
She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Oooooh, it does. Especially when unauthorized personnel interfere with my work. I was discussing weapons efficiency with one of the employees when some little bitch came in and started harassing him. Obviously, we never finished our discussion. I'm surprised the man was even able to go back to work. Those kinds of occurrences interfere with worker efficiency. Besides, what if it was one of those Avalanche geeks who'd gotten in? The president and ourselves could have been killed. You screwed up, Heideger, and if it happens again I'm going to President Rufus." She turned and walked away before any argument could be made.
She proceeded to her office, the memory of Vincent fresh in her mind. She'd purposefully left out Vincent's name; Heideger would have used the incident as an excuse to demean the Turk. She wondered why it mattered. It frustrated her that she cared so much. Why was this one man so different from any of the others she'd stepped on to get to where she was?
She got to her office, but didn't enter. She wanted answers, and there was only one way she could get them. She checked the time; the day was almost over. She turned away from her office door and went off in search of Vincent.
About fifteen minutes later.
Vincent watched Scarlet approach him. He maintained his professional façade, but inside he was a mess. He was hurting and alone and, above all, confused. The pain of the entire ordeal with Lucrecia had proven to be too much for him, but when he was just on the verge of an utter breakdown, Scarlet saved him with the simple gesture of offering him a handkerchief. After that, he couldn't stop thinking of her. All thoughts of her burned away the pain Lucrecia had caused him. He wondered if he was falling in love with her. With all of that going on inside him, he found it a wonder he was able to do his work at all, nevertheless effectively. "Ms. Scarlet," he greeted.
"What is it?" she demanded.
Vincent raised a superior eyebrow. *What do you mean?* his expression seemed to say.
She set her hands on her hips - as she was prone to do - and focused on his face. "Never before has it mattered to me. I've never cared about what happened to other people or their feelings. True, I may have acted like I cared if it benefited me in the long run, but all-in-all it didn't matter to me who got crushed so long as I got what I wanted." She paused and shook a finger at him. "Then *you* come along and toss a wrench in my engine."
Vincent brushed a stray lock of hair from his face, but didn't say anything.
She continued. "I went to Heideger to complain about the lax in building security." - she shook her head - "and I couldn't bring myself to mention your name in what happened because I knew he would make your life hell. Anyone else, it wouldn't have mattered, but you just had to be different. So, what is it?"
"What is what?"
"What is it about you that makes me care about what happens to you? Why do you matter so much? I'd like to know."
The previous lock fell back in front of his eyes. He made to brush it away again, but Scarlet grabbed his hand and stopped him. "Don't. Just leave it where it is."
He gave her a questioning look.
"It's suggestive."
"How so?"
"You don't even know you do it, do you? Your every move is like some silent sexual innuendo, and you don't even notice." She let out an exasperated laugh. "Now I know what it is. You don't try. Other guys work so hard to be attractive, or charming, or courteous, but it's all just natural for you. You're naturally sexy, and you don't even know it."
Vincent studied her intently. The sound of her voice, the very feminine curves of her body, the ethereal beauty of her face, all inspired feelings in him; feelings similar to what he had felt for Lucrecia, and yet vastly different. These were less defined, but far more potent. He used the hand she was holding to pull her closer to him. Placing his other hand around her waist, he leaned his face toward hers.
"What are you doing?" she asked, a little panicked.
He gave her a crafty smile. "Something I probably shouldn't." He kissed her.
Scarlet felt him pull her even closer, so that their bodies were pressed together. She was suddenly very glad he was holding her, because if he hadn't been she probably wouldn't be able to support herself. Damn, he was a great kisser!
After what seemed an eternity - and yet it wasn't nearly long enough - he broke off contact, pulling away enough to see all her face. He ran his hand down her cheek, his fingers leaving streaks of fire in their wake. She felt short of breath, and her lips tingled from his touch. "Why shouldn't you do that?" she managed.
"Because I'm supposed to be recovering from a broken heart."
"Best way to get over the last girlfriend is to get a new one." She returned his kiss, not soft or deep, as his had been, but hard and passionate. She'd never experienced anything like it, his touch or the feelings he inspired with it. Was this what love felt like? The word was so foreign to her, and yet it seemed so right. Could this one man make up for all the disappointments of her life? She surprised herself with the hope that he could. The kiss ended.
"And it doesn't bother you?"
"What?"
"That I'm old enough to be your father."
"So long as you don't *act* like my father," she laughed.
5:15 p.m. ShinRa building in Junon.
Yuffie eased her way out of the ventilation shaft. She landed without a sound, and took in her surroundings; she was in a cubicle, probably on one of the office levels. That would mean she was close to Rufus's office. She peered over the edge. There were about twenty other cubicles, but she was the only person in the room.
The ninja crept out of the cubicle, making her way toward the stairs. Upstairs. The president's office would be upstairs. How would she recognize him when she saw him? She'd never actually seen his face before. Oh well. She'd deal with that when the time came.
She climbed slowly, cautiously. *Be prepared for anything,* she told herself. If only that was enough.
Before she reached the top of the stairs, Yuffie found herself surrounded by soldiers. Five, six, seven. too many! Her mind shrank back as fear took hold of her. *It's over,* she panicked. *I can't take on this many soldiers on my own.* Of course, she never let it show. No amount of fear could overcome her bravado. She set her feet and raised her weapon. Defeat was acceptable. Surrender wasn't.
"Hey," one of the soldiers chimed. "The president was right. One of those Avalanche punks got in through the ventilation."
"Yeah. He even knew which floor they'd come out on," another added.
Another. "That's freaky. How did he know?"
"Man, I don't know, but that's why he's the president and we're not."
"So what do we do with her?"
"Take her in for interrogation, what else?"
They moved in on her, but even as she prepared to strike, someone else acted first. From one of the upper flights of stairs, a masked figure clad in black dropped, planting its feet into the back of a soldier and driving him down. Before the remaining soldiers could recover from shock, the figure struck out with its left leg and swiped three soldiers, sending them down the stairs to plummet into their other two comrades. The remaining soldier managed to gather enough of his wits to point his gun at the new intruder, but not enough to pull the trigger before the firearm was knocked from his hands. The soldier then found himself being tattooed with a number of well-placed kicks to the face.
It was now quite apparent to Yuffie that her savior was a man, as his stature and figure gave away his gender. The stranger grabbed her arm and hissed, "C'mon!" He then proceeded to pull her along with him as he made his way down the stairs.
They came out of the stairwell on the ground floor. He glanced quickly to either side of the door, and then practically dragged her into the street and down an alley. They hopped a fence. On the other side was a manhole, which he deftly uncovered.
"You can't be serious." Yuffie took a step away from the opening. "No way."
The sounds of hurried footsteps drifted from over the fence. The stranger jabbed a finger at the hole.
Again, Yuffie refused.
"Listen. I'm trying to help. If you don't want the ShinRa to get you, just be quiet and follow my lead. Now, get down there."
Yuffie was hesitant, but eventually complied. She let out a quiet "ewwwww" as she lowered herself into the sewer. The stranger followed her down, pausing only to replace the manhole cover. "This way." He motioned for her to follow.
They sprinted down the length of the sewer, and soon came to a fork. He chose the one on the left and continued running.
Yuffie did her best to keep up, but she was finding that the man had more stamina than she. It wasn't long before she had to call for him to stop. "Need. to rest," she panted. To her surprise, he waited patiently as she caught her breath. She nodded when she was ready.
He took five steps, and pushed against a section of wall. There was the light scraping of stone against stone as part of the wall shifted and moved inward. He stepped through the opening. Yuffie followed.
On the other side of the door, which closed itself after they were through, was a large room. It was apparently a gathering place for individuals of a more disreputable nature. The twenty-something people in the room looked toward them, and greeted her savior with hearty enthusiasm and questions galore. "JT!" "You're back!" "How'd it go?" "What happened?" "Did you find it?" "Who's that?"
The man called JT waved his hands in a motion of silence, which was immediately followed by a hush. "Easy. Easy. I didn't find it. It wasn't where I thought it would be. We'll have to start checking the executives' offices. Those are the only other places it might be. However, while I didn't find the disk, I did find this." He motioned toward Yuffie.
"Who is she?" a number of people shouted.
"A member of Avalanche." He paused and turned to her. "Or, at least, that's what the soldiers were saying."
Yuffie puffed up with pride. "My name is Yuffie, and I am a member of Avalanche."
"Hey, that's great!" someone voiced.
Another asked, "JT, do you think Avalanche will help us?"
He waved his hand again, demanding silence.
"What is it you're doing? Who are you people?" Yuffie asked.
He motioned to a wooden door on the far side of the room. She went to it and walked through to enter a small room. There was a table covered with schematics and other such papers, but other than that there were no adornments.
JT closed the door behind them. His cobalt blue eyes, the only part of his face not hidden by his cloak-and-dagger ensemble, met hers and held them. "We call ourselves the Reckoning. We're a group devoted to the complete downfall of the ShinRa Corporation. We're rather covert, so there are very few people who know of our existence."
"Why are you fighting ShinRa?"
JT shrugged. "Personal grudges, mostly. Our ranks are filled with people from various walks of life, but we've all lost something because of the ShinRa. Some are ex-cons who were put away by ShinRa. Some are people who have lost their homes or businesses. Some lost loved ones. The reasons vary."
"What are *your* reasons?"
He hesitated a moment. There was a nervous edge to his voice when he replied. "I was in the ShinRa army during the war with Wutai. My regiment was attacked and destroyed. Those of us left alive were severely wounded. No one came to find us. We were left for dead. In the end, I was the only one to survive. My entire regiment - my friends - all died, and no respects were paid." He turned away from her, hiding his face behind his hand. His voice cracked as he spoke, "They weren't even given a proper burial." He wiped his eyes with his sleeve before he turned back to face her. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I -"
Yuffie was quick to comfort him, having heard his story. "No, it's all right. I understand how you feel. My hometown is Wutai. After the war, it became a tourist resort. There's no pride left in it. It's ShinRa's fault. I hate them for it."
"Then you understand our desire to make ShinRa pay for its crimes against the people."
Yuffie nodded. "Yeah. And I want to help you."
"I was hoping you'd say that." His voice was filled with warmth and gratitude.
"I bet Cloud and the others will want to help, too. They hate ShinRa just as much as anyone here. I could go get them."
JT moved in front of the door, blocking the way out. "No! The more people who know where this hideout is, the more likely the ShinRa is to find out about it. Then we're screwed. You can tell your friends about our group if you wish, but don't bring them here or tell them where this place is. Don't tell anyone. Please, for everyone's safety."
She remained quiet, but nodded. After a moment of awkward silence, she asked, "So, exactly what is it you were looking for in the ShinRa building?"
"A disk. It contains the access codes to all of ShinRa's facilities and systems. It would make our work substantially easier. With the access codes to the main computer, we could crash the entire system. Not to mention that it would make infiltrating their buildings that much easier. It would be a great asset to our cause."
"I'll talk to Cloud about it and see what we can do."
"Great." He turned to the door and called, "Pax!" A few seconds later, a short man with a scruffy beard and disheveled hair entered the room. JT looked at Yuffie. "This is Pax. He'll show you the way out, and he'll tell you how you can contact us."
Yuffie made her way to the door, but before she walked through it JT stopped her. "Thank you. This means a lot."
She beamed. "Not a problem. I'd do anything to bring down the ShinRa."
He watched as Pax led Yuffie out of the room. Once the door was closed behind them, he removed his mask and ran his hand through his golden blond hair, straightening it out. He leaned against the table. *Heh,* he thought. *Never imagined I'd be using my old army alias again, but it does come in handy. This is going to be easier than I thought.* Alone in the chamber, Rufus laughed.
10:17 p.m. Highwind.
Yuffie rushed in to the conference room, and kicked Cloud out of the chair he'd fallen asleep in. He hit the floor with a crumpled thud, but it still didn't completely wake him up. "Huh? Wuz going' on?" he yawned.
"Cloud, wake up!" With surprising strength, the young ninja yanked Cloud off the floor and jostled him. She dropped him back into his chair and slapped him. By that time he was fully awake.
"Yuffie? What is it? Quit slapping me!"
Yuffie froze, her hand poised to strike again. "Oh, you're awake."
"Yeah, I'm awake! And I'd like to know why."
"You gotta help."
"Huh? Help with what?"
She relayed to him what happened at the ShinRa building; she told him about the Reckoning, and about JT. Cloud's head, which had been sagging on his chest in contemplation, immediately shot up. "Did you say 'JT'?"
Yuffie nodded, a little confused. "You know him?"
"No, but Zack did. at least, he knew *of* him. JT was a soldier in the army during the war. He was second only to Sephiroth, and had earned the rank of Major General by sixteen. Shortly before the end of the war, his entire regiment was wiped out; some of the bodies were never recovered, but everyone was believed to be dead. Apparently, he was one of the ones who were never found." There was a long moment of silence. "So the Reckoning wants revenge. All right. We can help, but I want to meet this JT character. You can take me to him in the morning."
"No!" Yuffie cried. "I can't."
"Why not?"
"I promised him I wouldn't tell anyone where their hideout was. He says it'll increase the danger to everyone."
"Well, I need to meet with him so I know we can trust him."
"I think we can."
"How can you be sure? What do you *really* know about him?"
"You weren't there when I met him!" she snapped. "You weren't there when he told me about what happened to him!"
Cloud gave her a weird look. "What's wrong with you? You're acting really strange."
"I am not!"
"Yeah, you are." He sighed, and scratched his head. "Okay, Yuffie. If it means that much to you, I'll believe you when you say he's trustworthy. So what does he need us to do?"
