Assault
Cloud and Vincent crept around the corner. Behind them, a trail of the perfect chaos-silent chaos-told of their passing; the only thing left breathing were the pipes as they puffed out clouds of steam. Guards were violently strewn about in the morbid wake; oil and blood mixed in the gutters as they moved deeper into the ShinRa building. The ease of the attack had been unsettling: unskilled guards, few in number, had been patrolling randomly around the front with no set routes, and no way of stopping Cloud and Vincent had they even seen them coming. It was far too quiet for Cloud's liking. They were near the top floor, the office of the ShinRa executives, and hadn't run into anything more dangerous than a lone RoboGuard. Not only that, but they found bodies already dismembered and left behind-someone else with similar intentions was in the complex.
The doors slowly shifted open. Too slowly. Cloud wedged the mighty blade and lurched to the right, prying them open even faster. Vincent's gun cocked and protruded briefly from the doorway, then dropped. There was nothing visible in the dark office. Cloud stepped into the room, groping along the wall for a light switch-
"Over here, darling."
The cold, female voice poured from the other side of the room as the lights flickered to life. Sitting on the top of a desk was a blonde woman clad in a dark red suit. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, with a full figured body and pouty, full lips, contrasting sharply with her frigid, calculating eyes. Cloud lowered his sword, but Vincent kept his gun trained on the woman. She smiled seductively at him.
"Oh, but you don't have to use that gun." She slid down off of the desk. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Athene, president of ShinRa Corporation."
Cloud visibly tensed. He had only expected to find Sephiroth here. Killing her now might stop the production of the new..
"Let me guess," Athene began. "The new Weapon we're working on. You're here to find some way of stopping us."
"Yeah." Cloud was perturbed. Us? "How did you know?"
"I know everything, Cloud Strife," Athene retorted. "I even know what you're planning to do. Let me assure you.it won't work."
"What do you mean?"
"Even if you do resurrect Sephiroth...how do you expect to get him to help you?"
A hail of shot clouded the area around Athene, but not a bullet hit her. Vincent's expression didn't change, but almost imperceptibly, the gun in his hand trembled.
"Force field," she said in a lilting, sing-song tone.
"Dammit, Athene!" Cloud suddenly yelled. His sword plunged into the ground next to him, biting easily through the steel and stone floor. "You don't know what it's like-you can't control a Weapon!"
"And how are you any different from me?" Athene inquired. "You plan to resurrect the one person responsible for very nearly bringing about the end of the world to stop me-how do you plan to control that?"
Cloud was struck speechless.
"You see, Cloud, unlike you, I can control the Weapon. A.I. programs will be coded in-"
A shadow abruptly dropped from the ceiling and a glowing green katana was raised to Athene's throat. The force field didn't seem to affect anything but metal. The black clad figure whispered something to Athene, then gestured toward Cloud with the blade. She gulped, barely able to hold her composure, and nodded, and the person disappeared.
"What did he want?" Cloud demanded.
"He said.to leave you alive." Athene panted. She then looked up at Cloud with a devious grin. "However.I'm not inclined to allow that to happen." Athene slammed her fist down on a switch.
The space of floor between them lowered like an elevator for a moment before reappearing. Standing on it was a robotic humanoid, wielding a spear.
"Meet Lance," Athene laughed, icily. "My newest invention. Designed specifically to be the best close combat fighter ever known. He's able to wield any weapon like a master; right now, I see he's chosen a spear." The window behind Athene opened. She backed up a couple of steps, blowing a kiss toward them.
"Why don't you become more intimately acquainted?"
She dropped backwards, out of view.
As the helicopter sputtered off into the night, Cloud and Vincent were left to deal with the advancing robot. Lance twirled the spear so fast it became nothing more than a blurred circle of steel, taking slow, determined steps toward Cloud. Cloud lunged forward to gain the upper hand, thrusting his sword with both hands toward Lance's chest. His arms rattled and stung with the force of the parry the bot delivered-his stroke was turned aside with enough momentum to nearly tear the sword out of his hand. Vincent came from behind with his claw, slashing at the loose wiring between Lance's torso and hip, and just barely dodged a whirling cut from the robot's spear. Cloud lunged again, this time stopping just in front of Lance for a split second-luring him into sweeping at Cloud's legs-then leaping into the air, letting the sword drift upward.upward..until it came singing downward in a powerful arc. The robot didn't stand a chance this time: the blade cut cleanly through metal flesh and left Lance severed in two. However, the cloven sentry had done its duty and prevented Cloud and Vincent from pursuing Athene.
"And who was that guy in the black?" Cloud wondered aloud.
Cloud and Vincent crept around the corner. Behind them, a trail of the perfect chaos-silent chaos-told of their passing; the only thing left breathing were the pipes as they puffed out clouds of steam. Guards were violently strewn about in the morbid wake; oil and blood mixed in the gutters as they moved deeper into the ShinRa building. The ease of the attack had been unsettling: unskilled guards, few in number, had been patrolling randomly around the front with no set routes, and no way of stopping Cloud and Vincent had they even seen them coming. It was far too quiet for Cloud's liking. They were near the top floor, the office of the ShinRa executives, and hadn't run into anything more dangerous than a lone RoboGuard. Not only that, but they found bodies already dismembered and left behind-someone else with similar intentions was in the complex.
The doors slowly shifted open. Too slowly. Cloud wedged the mighty blade and lurched to the right, prying them open even faster. Vincent's gun cocked and protruded briefly from the doorway, then dropped. There was nothing visible in the dark office. Cloud stepped into the room, groping along the wall for a light switch-
"Over here, darling."
The cold, female voice poured from the other side of the room as the lights flickered to life. Sitting on the top of a desk was a blonde woman clad in a dark red suit. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, with a full figured body and pouty, full lips, contrasting sharply with her frigid, calculating eyes. Cloud lowered his sword, but Vincent kept his gun trained on the woman. She smiled seductively at him.
"Oh, but you don't have to use that gun." She slid down off of the desk. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Athene, president of ShinRa Corporation."
Cloud visibly tensed. He had only expected to find Sephiroth here. Killing her now might stop the production of the new..
"Let me guess," Athene began. "The new Weapon we're working on. You're here to find some way of stopping us."
"Yeah." Cloud was perturbed. Us? "How did you know?"
"I know everything, Cloud Strife," Athene retorted. "I even know what you're planning to do. Let me assure you.it won't work."
"What do you mean?"
"Even if you do resurrect Sephiroth...how do you expect to get him to help you?"
A hail of shot clouded the area around Athene, but not a bullet hit her. Vincent's expression didn't change, but almost imperceptibly, the gun in his hand trembled.
"Force field," she said in a lilting, sing-song tone.
"Dammit, Athene!" Cloud suddenly yelled. His sword plunged into the ground next to him, biting easily through the steel and stone floor. "You don't know what it's like-you can't control a Weapon!"
"And how are you any different from me?" Athene inquired. "You plan to resurrect the one person responsible for very nearly bringing about the end of the world to stop me-how do you plan to control that?"
Cloud was struck speechless.
"You see, Cloud, unlike you, I can control the Weapon. A.I. programs will be coded in-"
A shadow abruptly dropped from the ceiling and a glowing green katana was raised to Athene's throat. The force field didn't seem to affect anything but metal. The black clad figure whispered something to Athene, then gestured toward Cloud with the blade. She gulped, barely able to hold her composure, and nodded, and the person disappeared.
"What did he want?" Cloud demanded.
"He said.to leave you alive." Athene panted. She then looked up at Cloud with a devious grin. "However.I'm not inclined to allow that to happen." Athene slammed her fist down on a switch.
The space of floor between them lowered like an elevator for a moment before reappearing. Standing on it was a robotic humanoid, wielding a spear.
"Meet Lance," Athene laughed, icily. "My newest invention. Designed specifically to be the best close combat fighter ever known. He's able to wield any weapon like a master; right now, I see he's chosen a spear." The window behind Athene opened. She backed up a couple of steps, blowing a kiss toward them.
"Why don't you become more intimately acquainted?"
She dropped backwards, out of view.
As the helicopter sputtered off into the night, Cloud and Vincent were left to deal with the advancing robot. Lance twirled the spear so fast it became nothing more than a blurred circle of steel, taking slow, determined steps toward Cloud. Cloud lunged forward to gain the upper hand, thrusting his sword with both hands toward Lance's chest. His arms rattled and stung with the force of the parry the bot delivered-his stroke was turned aside with enough momentum to nearly tear the sword out of his hand. Vincent came from behind with his claw, slashing at the loose wiring between Lance's torso and hip, and just barely dodged a whirling cut from the robot's spear. Cloud lunged again, this time stopping just in front of Lance for a split second-luring him into sweeping at Cloud's legs-then leaping into the air, letting the sword drift upward.upward..until it came singing downward in a powerful arc. The robot didn't stand a chance this time: the blade cut cleanly through metal flesh and left Lance severed in two. However, the cloven sentry had done its duty and prevented Cloud and Vincent from pursuing Athene.
"And who was that guy in the black?" Cloud wondered aloud.