Chapter 12
Sephiroth said nothing, just eyed them coldly, turning his uninterested gaze to Vincent, whom Tifa instantly shielded unconsciously, and he gave a slight smirk, turning his gaze back to Aeris.
"Sister?" He asked softly, as if the word was foreign to him, and Aeris blinked, slowly rising up, meeting his jaded green gaze with her own innocent one.
"Yes." Aeris said just as softly, her voice lifting and graceful, just as Sephiroth's was deep and secretive, and Tifa shivered lightly, glancing from sibling to sibling. Suddenly Sephiroth tore his gaze away, looking directly at Tifa, who wrapped her arms protectively around Vincent, though she had no idea why. It just seemed like his gaze was predatory, like he might hurt them both, and Vincent had already suffered so much.
'Lucercia, I'm sorry.' He had said, his voice full of anguish, his face contorted in pain. Seeing him like this either didn't help, and it squeezed something inside of her painfully.
"Come." Was all he said, his eyes lingering on Tifa for a moment, then turned to Aeris, his green eyes softening a moment. "My sister." He said softly, as if testing the words, and Aeris smiled slightly, giving his hand a tight squeeze, her eyes sparkling softly.
It was strange, to see a man so physically strong and seemingly emotionless look like he was about to burst into tears, but his mask slipped back into place, and with a slight nod, he turned his booted heel and turned and strode out the door.
"He's. helping us?" Reno asked, sliding one of Vincent's arms over his shoulders, helping Tifa drag him across the room, where Aeris clucked her tongue disapprovingly.
"Of course! My brother has a kind heart, he's just a bit jaded." Aeris said, while Reno snorted again, rolling his eyes as they continued to follow Sephiroth's low easy strides.
"A bit jaded? That's an understatement." Reno said, continuing to drag Vincent along. No matter how skinny Vincent looked, he probably weighed more than Reno did!
"I heard that." Sephiroth said coolly, and Reno almost jumped. He stuck out his tongue, and Sephiroth only rolled his eyes, already tired of the red head's childish actions. Oh well, he supposed it didn't matter, if it meant helping out his. sister. The concept was still strange to him, but why would Aeris lie to him? He knew her well enough to know she was too honest to lie, and wouldn't lie about something so trivial.
"We should get Vincent to a hospital, right?" Tifa piped up, never one for deafening silences, and Aeris nodded, Reno shrugged, and Sephiroth said nothing, continuing his stride down the long winding corridors. Suddenly the sirens went off, an ear piercing wail, the corridors instantly bathed red, as if by blood.
"Déjà vu." Reno muttered darkly, picking up his pace, Vincent's limp form more of a burden now that they were in danger.
"This way." Sephiroth said icily, his tone one of leadership, someone he knew what to do in these types of situations. Without another word, he turned and strode to a wall, punching in a few random buttons on a screen that had seemingly magically appeared. Without another word, the wall gave way, and with a metallic shriek, it was pulled upward, and with a glance over his shoulder, Sephiroth turned and strode in.
"Geez, seems like Shinra has been keeping more from us than we thought." Aeris said lightly, looking at Tifa, who looked a bit stricken, though she said nothing for a moment, then shaking her head as if to clear her thoughts. They needed to get Vincent to a hospital, and fast. Leave Cloud behind.
"Let's move it." Reno stated, being the first to step into the gaping abyss, and Tifa nodded, following him. After Aeris had reluctantly stepped in, the wall closed with a loud clash, and instantly the corridor lit up with bright lights that made everyone but Sephiroth groan in irritation. "Where's the coach in this place?" Reno complained, shifting Vincent a bit on his shoulders to loosen the load, though his complaint wasn't answered.
Sephiroth had stopped, and Aeris in the back piped up.
"What's wrong?" The distant sound of the alarm blaring could be heard, loud and low pitch a dull roar in the walls, the light gleaming on everyone and everything, almost as if it was trying to shield them from something. Aeris was getting a bad vibe from being in this place, but what could it be?
Suddenly the ground trembled, a loud roar echoing through the corridor, and Sephiroth looked up, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
"What the f***?" Reno snapped, legs quaking beneath the weight of Vincent and the thunderous movements the ground was making.
"A behemoth. I can't believe Shinra would go this far." Sephiroth muttered darkly, and Aeris's eyes widened with terror.
"Behemoth? Surely you don't mean the creature Hojo was creating?" Aeris cried, her eyes widening, while Sephiroth only nodded, turning back to Reno and Tifa, who still supported Vincent, who seemed to be regaining some semblance of consciousness.
"Aeris watch over Valentine. He and you would only be a burden in this fight." Sephiroth said coolly, and Aeris made a snorting noise, though gingerly tuck Vincent from Tifa and Reno and settled him down next to her. She knew better than to argue with Sephiroth or his logic, and now wasn't the time.
Suddenly, a snarling vicious head appeared around the corner, sniffling and snorting, foam dripping from it's bared fangs, glistening like Sephiroth's hair in the florescent light, it's purple skin furred, it's head shaped somewhere between a bear and a lion, a bristled mane trailing down it's back. Its huge spiked tail slid also into view as it flicked it against the wall, almost sending the team onto their knees, its beady black eyes suddenly focusing on Tifa, who readied herself, her jaw set in determination.
So this was one of Hojo's monsters. She shouldn't have expected any less, for he was known as the insane scientist around here, and this creature certainly did prove it, with its claws flexing, resembling that of a bear's.
With another thunderous roar that almost made Tifa's ears bleed, the monster charged, the ground rumbling beneath its tremendous weight, aiming straight for Reno, who was brandishing a wooden pole, smacking the creature on the left of the snout, then whirling around to deliver another blow to it's other side, though the demon simply roared in irritation, swatting away Reno like he was a fly with his huge tail, and with a loud smacking sound, Reno flew backward, hitting the wall with a loud hiss.
The wooden rod tumbled from his hand and by Aeris, whose green eyes had widened, and she picked up the staff and clutched it tightly, hauling Reno next to Vincent before dashing next to Sephiroth, who had jumped high into the air, his hair fanning around him as he slammed his blade into the beast's back.
"What are you doing?" Tifa asked, her eyes widening as she saw her friend charging almost in a suicidal way at the beast. Sephiroth seeing his sister lunging at the beast with a wooden rod, swerved, trying to behead the beast or cut it open before it could swipe at his sibling, but the beast, paid him no head. Instead, it turned its enraged eye to Aeris, roared tremendously, as if to welcome the new challenger.
Shaking its tremendous form, it swung its bulky tail catching Sephiroth at the temple, sending him flying to the ground with a large thud. It then charged at Aeris, who gripped her weapon tightly, gritting her teeth in determination. Preparing herself, Aeris locked her eyes on the behemoth, summoning the courage and will to stay planted where she was. It was stupid to do this, but she just had to try.
The beast roared again, and she could almost feel its breath on her face, and she leapt up, her rod raised above her head, though the monster had already figured she would do as much, brought a huge paw into her face, and Aeris's eyes widened with terror. She hadn't expected, she hadn't thought.
The brute suddenly averted his gaze, a snarled growl dying at his throat, for standing beside him, wielding Sephiroth's fallen blade, was Tifa, her face covered in sweat and the beast's blood, driving it deeper into the side of the howling behemoth. With a loud snarl it fell, snapping its jaws, though its movements were becoming slack until the beast's eyes rolled into the back of its head, lying motionless for quite some time, the only sound was Tifa's ragged breath and the soft sound Aeris made when she landed on her feet.
"We should go. C'mon!" Tifa said after a minute, giving Aeris a light push, as she brushed past her and helped up the groaning Reno, who was rubbing his head and making faces as he felt the huge bump forming there. Without another word, she slung Vincent's arm over her shoulders, giving a slight nod to Sephiroth, who gave her an approving look. She gave a shaky smile, turning around, only to be faced with the barrel of a gun.
"No, I think not Ms. Lockheart." Was the cold sneering face of Rufus Shinra, and suddenly all went black.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Cid!" Was the only thing Shera exclaimed, her brown eyes widening with happiness as she flung her arms around him, her muffled sobs coming out from his shoulder, and he only managed a small smile, hugging her back.
"Ya didn't think I was gonna leave ya here?" Cid asked, and Shera just smiled slightly, and for some strange reason, a small bird fluttered in his stomach, though Cid was far too used to it to have it any other way.
Glad to see Shera was okay, and that they had indeed done nothing to her, he rubbed the back of his neck, looking down at her.
"We gotta get out of this joint. Seems like Vinnie and his little buddies are creating a distraction." Cid said, grabbing Shera's hand as he dashed out of the holding cell, sprinting quickly down the hall, which was bathed in blaring red lights, the sounds of sirens shrieking into their ears.
"Do you think they know we're escaping?" Shera yelled over the noise, and Cid shrugged, turning back to her with a roguish grin that she had come to know and love. That was her Cid, always craving for adventure, and all those times she had longed to join him in one promptly sat in front of her face. Oh what she wouldn't give to be home just making a cup of tea instead of on one of these kidnapping businesses. Thank god that Cid had come to rescue her, though she supposed she didn't have any doubt.
"Of course! That's half the fun!" Cid whooped, still running down the hall, as Shera labored to keep up. She hadn't gone through all the training that Cid had and it showed how out of shape she had become while being a housewife. After all, she didn't go to the gym three times a week like Cid liked to do.
"What about Mr. Valentine and his friends?" Shera asked somewhat worriedly, allowing her husband to drag her along, while Cid just shrugged, glad that no one was noticing them in all the chaos, probably thinking that they only were fleeing the scene to save themselves like most of the crowd seemed to be doing. It's not like Cid actually cared, it just made things easier for them. With a slight smirk on his face, he flung open the front door to the building, turning back to his wife.
"Don't worry. I got a plan."
~*Author's Notes*~ So shoot me! Sorry the battle scene was all mismatched and everything, but I'm working on it! Yea, um, right. Anyway, I think this fic is nearing its end. *cheers* Sorry, it seems like dead weight, so I just want to get it over to focus on some other things, y'know? Well, anyway, please read and review!
Sephiroth said nothing, just eyed them coldly, turning his uninterested gaze to Vincent, whom Tifa instantly shielded unconsciously, and he gave a slight smirk, turning his gaze back to Aeris.
"Sister?" He asked softly, as if the word was foreign to him, and Aeris blinked, slowly rising up, meeting his jaded green gaze with her own innocent one.
"Yes." Aeris said just as softly, her voice lifting and graceful, just as Sephiroth's was deep and secretive, and Tifa shivered lightly, glancing from sibling to sibling. Suddenly Sephiroth tore his gaze away, looking directly at Tifa, who wrapped her arms protectively around Vincent, though she had no idea why. It just seemed like his gaze was predatory, like he might hurt them both, and Vincent had already suffered so much.
'Lucercia, I'm sorry.' He had said, his voice full of anguish, his face contorted in pain. Seeing him like this either didn't help, and it squeezed something inside of her painfully.
"Come." Was all he said, his eyes lingering on Tifa for a moment, then turned to Aeris, his green eyes softening a moment. "My sister." He said softly, as if testing the words, and Aeris smiled slightly, giving his hand a tight squeeze, her eyes sparkling softly.
It was strange, to see a man so physically strong and seemingly emotionless look like he was about to burst into tears, but his mask slipped back into place, and with a slight nod, he turned his booted heel and turned and strode out the door.
"He's. helping us?" Reno asked, sliding one of Vincent's arms over his shoulders, helping Tifa drag him across the room, where Aeris clucked her tongue disapprovingly.
"Of course! My brother has a kind heart, he's just a bit jaded." Aeris said, while Reno snorted again, rolling his eyes as they continued to follow Sephiroth's low easy strides.
"A bit jaded? That's an understatement." Reno said, continuing to drag Vincent along. No matter how skinny Vincent looked, he probably weighed more than Reno did!
"I heard that." Sephiroth said coolly, and Reno almost jumped. He stuck out his tongue, and Sephiroth only rolled his eyes, already tired of the red head's childish actions. Oh well, he supposed it didn't matter, if it meant helping out his. sister. The concept was still strange to him, but why would Aeris lie to him? He knew her well enough to know she was too honest to lie, and wouldn't lie about something so trivial.
"We should get Vincent to a hospital, right?" Tifa piped up, never one for deafening silences, and Aeris nodded, Reno shrugged, and Sephiroth said nothing, continuing his stride down the long winding corridors. Suddenly the sirens went off, an ear piercing wail, the corridors instantly bathed red, as if by blood.
"Déjà vu." Reno muttered darkly, picking up his pace, Vincent's limp form more of a burden now that they were in danger.
"This way." Sephiroth said icily, his tone one of leadership, someone he knew what to do in these types of situations. Without another word, he turned and strode to a wall, punching in a few random buttons on a screen that had seemingly magically appeared. Without another word, the wall gave way, and with a metallic shriek, it was pulled upward, and with a glance over his shoulder, Sephiroth turned and strode in.
"Geez, seems like Shinra has been keeping more from us than we thought." Aeris said lightly, looking at Tifa, who looked a bit stricken, though she said nothing for a moment, then shaking her head as if to clear her thoughts. They needed to get Vincent to a hospital, and fast. Leave Cloud behind.
"Let's move it." Reno stated, being the first to step into the gaping abyss, and Tifa nodded, following him. After Aeris had reluctantly stepped in, the wall closed with a loud clash, and instantly the corridor lit up with bright lights that made everyone but Sephiroth groan in irritation. "Where's the coach in this place?" Reno complained, shifting Vincent a bit on his shoulders to loosen the load, though his complaint wasn't answered.
Sephiroth had stopped, and Aeris in the back piped up.
"What's wrong?" The distant sound of the alarm blaring could be heard, loud and low pitch a dull roar in the walls, the light gleaming on everyone and everything, almost as if it was trying to shield them from something. Aeris was getting a bad vibe from being in this place, but what could it be?
Suddenly the ground trembled, a loud roar echoing through the corridor, and Sephiroth looked up, his eyes narrowing dangerously.
"What the f***?" Reno snapped, legs quaking beneath the weight of Vincent and the thunderous movements the ground was making.
"A behemoth. I can't believe Shinra would go this far." Sephiroth muttered darkly, and Aeris's eyes widened with terror.
"Behemoth? Surely you don't mean the creature Hojo was creating?" Aeris cried, her eyes widening, while Sephiroth only nodded, turning back to Reno and Tifa, who still supported Vincent, who seemed to be regaining some semblance of consciousness.
"Aeris watch over Valentine. He and you would only be a burden in this fight." Sephiroth said coolly, and Aeris made a snorting noise, though gingerly tuck Vincent from Tifa and Reno and settled him down next to her. She knew better than to argue with Sephiroth or his logic, and now wasn't the time.
Suddenly, a snarling vicious head appeared around the corner, sniffling and snorting, foam dripping from it's bared fangs, glistening like Sephiroth's hair in the florescent light, it's purple skin furred, it's head shaped somewhere between a bear and a lion, a bristled mane trailing down it's back. Its huge spiked tail slid also into view as it flicked it against the wall, almost sending the team onto their knees, its beady black eyes suddenly focusing on Tifa, who readied herself, her jaw set in determination.
So this was one of Hojo's monsters. She shouldn't have expected any less, for he was known as the insane scientist around here, and this creature certainly did prove it, with its claws flexing, resembling that of a bear's.
With another thunderous roar that almost made Tifa's ears bleed, the monster charged, the ground rumbling beneath its tremendous weight, aiming straight for Reno, who was brandishing a wooden pole, smacking the creature on the left of the snout, then whirling around to deliver another blow to it's other side, though the demon simply roared in irritation, swatting away Reno like he was a fly with his huge tail, and with a loud smacking sound, Reno flew backward, hitting the wall with a loud hiss.
The wooden rod tumbled from his hand and by Aeris, whose green eyes had widened, and she picked up the staff and clutched it tightly, hauling Reno next to Vincent before dashing next to Sephiroth, who had jumped high into the air, his hair fanning around him as he slammed his blade into the beast's back.
"What are you doing?" Tifa asked, her eyes widening as she saw her friend charging almost in a suicidal way at the beast. Sephiroth seeing his sister lunging at the beast with a wooden rod, swerved, trying to behead the beast or cut it open before it could swipe at his sibling, but the beast, paid him no head. Instead, it turned its enraged eye to Aeris, roared tremendously, as if to welcome the new challenger.
Shaking its tremendous form, it swung its bulky tail catching Sephiroth at the temple, sending him flying to the ground with a large thud. It then charged at Aeris, who gripped her weapon tightly, gritting her teeth in determination. Preparing herself, Aeris locked her eyes on the behemoth, summoning the courage and will to stay planted where she was. It was stupid to do this, but she just had to try.
The beast roared again, and she could almost feel its breath on her face, and she leapt up, her rod raised above her head, though the monster had already figured she would do as much, brought a huge paw into her face, and Aeris's eyes widened with terror. She hadn't expected, she hadn't thought.
The brute suddenly averted his gaze, a snarled growl dying at his throat, for standing beside him, wielding Sephiroth's fallen blade, was Tifa, her face covered in sweat and the beast's blood, driving it deeper into the side of the howling behemoth. With a loud snarl it fell, snapping its jaws, though its movements were becoming slack until the beast's eyes rolled into the back of its head, lying motionless for quite some time, the only sound was Tifa's ragged breath and the soft sound Aeris made when she landed on her feet.
"We should go. C'mon!" Tifa said after a minute, giving Aeris a light push, as she brushed past her and helped up the groaning Reno, who was rubbing his head and making faces as he felt the huge bump forming there. Without another word, she slung Vincent's arm over her shoulders, giving a slight nod to Sephiroth, who gave her an approving look. She gave a shaky smile, turning around, only to be faced with the barrel of a gun.
"No, I think not Ms. Lockheart." Was the cold sneering face of Rufus Shinra, and suddenly all went black.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Cid!" Was the only thing Shera exclaimed, her brown eyes widening with happiness as she flung her arms around him, her muffled sobs coming out from his shoulder, and he only managed a small smile, hugging her back.
"Ya didn't think I was gonna leave ya here?" Cid asked, and Shera just smiled slightly, and for some strange reason, a small bird fluttered in his stomach, though Cid was far too used to it to have it any other way.
Glad to see Shera was okay, and that they had indeed done nothing to her, he rubbed the back of his neck, looking down at her.
"We gotta get out of this joint. Seems like Vinnie and his little buddies are creating a distraction." Cid said, grabbing Shera's hand as he dashed out of the holding cell, sprinting quickly down the hall, which was bathed in blaring red lights, the sounds of sirens shrieking into their ears.
"Do you think they know we're escaping?" Shera yelled over the noise, and Cid shrugged, turning back to her with a roguish grin that she had come to know and love. That was her Cid, always craving for adventure, and all those times she had longed to join him in one promptly sat in front of her face. Oh what she wouldn't give to be home just making a cup of tea instead of on one of these kidnapping businesses. Thank god that Cid had come to rescue her, though she supposed she didn't have any doubt.
"Of course! That's half the fun!" Cid whooped, still running down the hall, as Shera labored to keep up. She hadn't gone through all the training that Cid had and it showed how out of shape she had become while being a housewife. After all, she didn't go to the gym three times a week like Cid liked to do.
"What about Mr. Valentine and his friends?" Shera asked somewhat worriedly, allowing her husband to drag her along, while Cid just shrugged, glad that no one was noticing them in all the chaos, probably thinking that they only were fleeing the scene to save themselves like most of the crowd seemed to be doing. It's not like Cid actually cared, it just made things easier for them. With a slight smirk on his face, he flung open the front door to the building, turning back to his wife.
"Don't worry. I got a plan."
~*Author's Notes*~ So shoot me! Sorry the battle scene was all mismatched and everything, but I'm working on it! Yea, um, right. Anyway, I think this fic is nearing its end. *cheers* Sorry, it seems like dead weight, so I just want to get it over to focus on some other things, y'know? Well, anyway, please read and review!