You Are Going To Die
By: General Quistis
Author's notes: Uhm… things became different than they are in the game itself because it's for the sake of the story. So there! Hahahah… Read and be dead in seven days *just kidding*
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Three
"Why can't I go on my own?"
"That's the fifth time she asked that ever since we arrived here…" Tifa thought silently with a restless look on her face. "Tifa, I don't understand why you are insisting that we go with Aerith wherever she will go." Cloud pointed out with an impatient look on his face.
"Can we just go someplace else?" Tifa asked, wanting to change the subject.
"Girl! What's wrong with you!?!?!" Barret demanded with a frantic look on his face as he grabbed Tifa's shoulders and shook her violently.
"N…nothing's wrong with me," Tifa responded before moving away from him. "I just wish you guys would listen to me and stay with Aerith no matter what happens!" she said.
"Why? Is something bad going to happen?" Yuffie asked from out of the blue.
"Something bad is always happening. Aerith is the most important among all of us here, so I think we really need to protect her." Tifa pointed out.
"Why?" Cloud, Yuffie, Barret, Cid, Vincent, Red XIII, Cait Sith and even Aerith herself all said in unison.
Tifa felt so uneasy, she felt the whole area spinning around her. She did not really know how to explain everything to them.
"Damn it, Tifa, if this is just one of your damn @#$%^%$ games, just get the @#$%^%$ hell out of here and go back to your @#$%^%$ hometown wherever the hell that is!" Cid snapped angrily at her.
She stiffened as she bowed down her head. "I'm not going anywhere, I'm staying here…" she told them before smiling sarcastically at them.
They all fell silent.
Unknown to them, the Turks were already able to follow from behind them… they were just hiding.
"What's wrong with them? Why won't they move on?" Reno whispered to his companions.
"Seems to me like they're having an argument and Tifa's the one guilty…" Elena said softly.
Rude just kept quiet while reading an SMS from his mobile phone, "Hey, guys, General Heidegger's telling us to go back to base right now." He told them softly.
"What? Why?" Reno asked.
"Dunno." Rude replied.
With that, the three watched for a few more moments and then decided that they would leave after Cloud and his party would disperse.
"Let's just go, okay?" Cloud told the others before leading the way. Everyone followed right after him…except for Tifa who remained standing there. She turned her gaze to where the Turks were hiding, even though she doesn't know that they were there. She just had this feeling that they were being watched.
Yes, they were being watched by four people.
The three remaining Turks and another one…
Sephiroth smiled slyly as he eyed Tifa from head to toe, "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Now I know why Rufus likes you, Miss Lockheart. Your body is such a wonderland." He said softly with some sarcasm on his face. He watched as she turned away and walked after Cloud and the others who were already far from where she was. He eyed them carefully. "The Black Materia and the Holy Materia will be mine for the taking today…" he thought silently before descending from his hiding place, but upon landing on the ground away from the Turks' view, he was surprised when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
He froze as his eyes widened. He slowly turned around with a stern look on his face. "Oh, it's you." He sneered.
Rufus removed his hand from Sephiroth's shoulder as he spoke up with a stiff tone, "What are you doing here?"
"Shall I ask you the same question?" Sephiroth replied with a haughty look on his face.
Rufus just flipped his hair. "I followed my Turks here but they don't know that I'm here. I want to see how you will bring Tifa to me." He said.
Sephiroth thought for a while, not being able to comprehend what Rufus was trying to prove. "What for?" he asked.
"I want to make sure you will not harm her. I don't want to see any scratches or bruises or any injury when she's already with me, do you understand?" Rufus asked.
"Is that an order?" Sephiroth asked with some sarcasm added with it.
Rufus was quiet for a while before saying, "Yes, that's an order."
Sephiroth was surprised. He thought that all the while, Rufus was afraid of him because he thought he knew of what he can do… but gazing into Rufus's eyes made him realize that he was wrong.
Rufus ShinRa can never fear anything…
Sephiroth just smiled. "Unless… I use his weakness to scare him…" he thought silently. He was still smarter, after all, and he was proud of himself. He chuckled lightly and saluted, "Yes, sir."
Rufus frowned slightly, sensing that something was going on in Sephiroth's head through the look in his green eyes. With that, Sephiroth walked away, a sly smile plastered on his face.
It insulted Rufus, making him angry, but he did not say anything. He just turned away and proceeded to follow him discreetly.
***
Some days passed and they finally arrived at the Forgotten Capital.
Tifa stayed behind. Suddenly, she did not have any desire to follow the rest. "They wouldn't listen to me…" she thought silently. Instead, she just decided to do a little investigating on her own. "Sephiroth could be here somewhere…" she thought silently before she turned to the other direction. She hoped that nobody will notice whether she left or not. "Well, they might not give a damn about me anyway so…" she began to walk away, but her head was still towards the opposite direction… and then she stopped when she bumped against something hard.
"Ow…" she turned her head to face the hard material that hit her…
She froze. Black leather suit. She slowly lifted her gaze to see who it really was.
What she saw made her gasp and move backward, but still keeping her gaze onto him.
"What's the matter? Got Sephiphobia?" Sephiroth asked mockingly with a sly smile on his face as he clutched his Masamune tighter, ready to use it against her in case she does something stupid.
"Wh…what…" she stammered. Maybe Rufus was right… he did warn them… about Aerith. Her eyes widened upon realizing something, "Sephiroth will kill Aerith…" she thought silently.
"Are you just going to stand there and stare at me all day? C'mon, I want you to scream shrilly, like, wake up all the bats in this place and even the dead," Sephiroth told her.
"I don't scream like that." She argued with a voice that seemed to falter. "Okay, Tifa, it's a bad idea to leave your party," her conscience was scolding her already. She clenched her fists.
"Still the defensive Miss Lockheart I knew from five years back, eh?" Sephiroth asked with a demented stare as he raised his Masamune.
She was already in her fighting stance, ready to defend herself… even though she knows that her opponent is way stronger than she is… when suddenly, there was a gunshot.
Cloud and the others heard the sound of the gunshot and it made them freeze. Aerith was interrupted in her prayer. "What was that?" she asked with a nervous look on her face.
Cloud checked all his materia… especially the Black Materia. He turned back to Aerith. "Go on." He urged with a reassuring smile on his face.
She nodded before proceeding with a hesitant look on her face. She could feel that something was going on… something bad…
Death.
She clutched her hands tightly in prayer as she closed her eyes for a moment when that word echoed through her mind. She did not want to hear it anymore, but it seemed to be impending in reality.
"Where's Tifa?" Vincent realized silently as he scanned the others. They were incomplete.
"@#$%!!! Where's Tifa?" Cid asked out loud, interrupting Aerith once more.
"WCid asked out loud, interrupting Aerith once more.
ending in reality.
ment when that word echoed through her mind. h…what? What's going on?" Aerith asked, attempting to stand up, but Vincent stopped her, "No, you stay here with Cloud. I'm going to look for her," he instructed.
Aerith nodded nervously.
"I'm goin' wit ya." Barret told him.
"Me too!" Cid chimed in.
Sephiroth froze upon hearing the gunshot, but he checked on himself and he could not feel any pain. "A warning shot…" he realized silently before smirking at Tifa. "Mwahahahaha. It looks like your Knight in Shining Armor is here today, huh?" he asked mockingly.
Tifa was looking past Sephiroth and that was when he realized that his assailant was just behind him. He was right. He felt the cold metal of a double-barrel shotgun against the back of his neck.
Tifa stepped back a little.
"So, Rufus ShinRa… what is going on?" Sephiroth asked with an innocent tone.
"I should ask you the same question," Rufus responded from behind him, ready to pull the trigger.
Sephiroth chuckled lightly. "You know very well that you cannot kill me with just a mere shotgun… and that you can never beat me in a fight. You're a weakling and you know that. You have no MP, you can't even defend yourself without your dead cat and you can't even beat Cloud Strife before that's why you just flew away with your chopper. Isn't that true, Rufus?" he asked mockingly.
Rufus just smiled slyly at him, "No MP?" he asked.
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed.
"Can't defend myself without Dark Nation?" Rufus asked. "The deal is off…" he muttered before attempting to pull the trigger, but before he was able to do so, Sephiroth seemed to have teleported himself and then reappeared behind Rufus, ready to stab him.
Rufus instantly turned around and cast ice at his opponent.
Sephiroth was surprised even as he dodged the Magic attack.
"No MP, huh? A guy can learn if he wants to." Rufus said mockingly. "And it so happens that I'm a fast learner." He continued with a sly smile on his face before he flipped his hair.
Sephiroth laughed at him. "It seems like I underestimated you, Rufus." He said with a humble tone. "But tell me, how long can you last?" he asked.
"Until you die." Rufus responded.
"Not if I kill you first," Sephiroth muttered angrily.
Tifa felt confused. "So… you two know each other?" she asked in awe.
"Mwahahahaha! Isn't obvious, bitch? Your boyfriend here asked me to get you and offer you to him and then he's going to give me the Promised Land and Cloud Strife in return!" Sephiroth snapped at her.
Her mouth dropped open. "Wh…what?! But… what are you going to do with Cloud?" she asked.
"Simple: kill him. He will just interfere." Sephiroth told her.
"Is that all? I thought you'll build your kingdom in the Promised land and then Cloud Strife's gonna be your Queen! Heh heh heh…" Rufus teased mockingly at him.
He raised an eyebrow, "Excuse me, I have no intention of doing that to Cloud Strife. I just want to get rid of him!" Sephiroth snapped as he prepared to attack Rufus.
"Can't you take a joke, Sephiroth?" Rufus asked playfully.
"Hey, hey, hey! So I am just… being used here like…" Tifa pointed out rather hesitantly.
"It's not what you think…" Rufus began.
"Oh yes, it is, Miss Lockheart. You're just another sex object devirginized and then used by Mister ShinRa." Sephiroth pointed out.
"No, she's not. And you shut up already!" Rufus warned angrily, preparing to attack Sephiroth.
"Damn it!" Now, Tifa was angry. She didn't know who to strangle: Rufus or Sephiroth.
"Tifa, we'll talk later, alright? This time, we have to take this bastard back to where he came from," Rufus told her with a cold look on his face.
But she was still speechless. She just nodded with an unsure look on her face. "Right." She said with a weak tone.
But just when Sephiroth was about to attack them, he froze when he felt some holy energy… coming from a static direction. He smiled slyly. "Oh no, you won't…" he muttered under his breath before he jumped up, landing on a high cliff, and then proceeded up a mountainous structure until he disappeared, leaving Tifa and Rufus below.
"Wh…where is he going?" Tifa asked.
"He's heading for Aerith!" Rufus said before he approached her. "Quick, we have to get there immediately!" he told her.
"But…" she stammered, but she was cut off when Cid and Barret just dove out of nowhere onto Rufus, pinning him down to the ground and restraining his hands behind his back.
Tifa gasped.
"Ya foo'! What did you do to Tifa?" Barret demanded.
"Dammit! I didn't… ow!" Rufus was trying to talk, but Cid punched his face. "@#$% you! You were just usin' her aren't you? We heard everything, you bastard! @##$%@#$ you are such a @#$%!!!!!" Cid yelled angrily at him.
"No, please! Cid, Barret, please no!" Tifa said as she attempted to push them off of Rufus.
"No, Teef, this guy's dangerous!" Barret told her before Cid began to tie Rufus's hands together.
Tifa turned around and saw Vincent approaching them. She smiled in relief upon seeing him. "Oh, Vincent, there you are! Can you tell these two to leave Rufus alone?" she pleaded.
"But…" Vincent stammered.
"Damn, where are those Turks when you need them?!" Rufus was thinking angrily before speaking up again, "Listen, you don't have much time! Sephiroth is going to kill Aerith! You have to go back to her and stop him! He doesn't want her to talk to the Lifestream so that you guys wouldn't receive any help! And he's also after the Black Materia!" he warned.
"Aw, c'mon you @#$%$#@! Give us a reason why we should believe you?" Cid asked mockingly as he got up after tying Rufus's feet and legs together.
Barret grabbed a handful of Rufus's hair and forced him to stand up.
"No! Leave him alone!" Tifa said as she pushed Barret away from Rufus. She held onto Rufus's arm and just stood beside him, as if protecting him from the brutes.
"Because I am telling the truth, goddamit!" Rufus snapped impatiently.
"C'mon, let's just go, okay?" Tifa asked. She told Cid and Barret.
"Fine! But if you're not telling the truth, you're really not going to see your damn office again!" Barret warned angrily as he grabbed Rufus away from Tifa and carried him on his shoulder.
"Bloody hell! This is very degrading! Put me down and untie me! I can walk!" Rufus snapped impatiently.
"No way, President Rufus. You're way to dangerous to just let you walk around without ropes restrainin' ya." Barret replied with a mocking tone as they began to walk.
"Tifa, will you tell this big bear to put me down and untie me because they wouldn't listen to me!" Rufus told her with a pleading but stiff tone.
"Barret, please release him," she told Barret with a pleading tone.
"No way, Teef! And since when did you become friends with this guy?" Barret demanded.
Tifa fell silent. She did not really want to answer that question.
"Let's just hurry up." Vincent told them sternly. He suddenly wanted to believe that everything that Rufus had mentioned to them was true. Then, he remembered what happened the other night… seeing Tifa out so late… and what Aerith had mentioned to him. Out loud, he told Tifa, "Were you with Rufus last night?" he asked in disbelief.
Rufus raised an eyebrow at him and Tifa just covered her own mouth with her hand. Vincent realized what he had just said and he felt sheepish upon putting the two to shame in front of two loudmouths like Barret and Cid. He just turned away apologetically and quickened his pace.
Cid noticed that Tifa was holding Rufus's shotgun. "What are you doing with that @#$%$#@ thing, Tifa? Just throw it away!" he instructed.
"This isn't your weapon, Cid, so just get your nose out of it." She wanted to say out loud, but she just shut up and looked away.
They finally arrived, surprising Yuffie, Red XIII and Cait Sith. "Wh… where did you…" Red XIII began as he stared at Rufus.
Rufus just sneered at him.
They all turned to Aerith who was still praying, and then to Cloud who was standing in place near her; watching her quietly with a serious look on his face.
"You'd better tell her to do that some other time because Sephiroth is really going to kill her!" Rufus warned impatiently.
"But… we can't go any nearer to Aerith… she's surrounded by that orb-thing…" Tifa explained upon observing her friend.
"Oh yeah? If Sephiroth is going to kill her, where is he going to come from?" Cid demanded from Rufus.
"I don't know!" Rufus snapped.
"How come you seem to know everything that Sephiroth is planning to do?" Barret asked him suspiciously.
"They're working together, obviously," Cid muttered.
"Just get her away from that place!!!" Rufus shouted impatiently, surprising Cloud.
Cloud turned to look at the others, his attention diverted from Aerith to them. His eyes widened in shock, but he was not able to say anything.
"Look, ShinRa, we're guarding Aerith here. He couldn't pass through us here so don't worry," Barret told Rufus mockingly.
"He could come from up there if he chooses to. Don't expect him to always use the ground entrance." Rufus warned airily.
"What is he talking about?" Cloud asked them.
"He said that Sephiroth's going to kill Aerith so we should get her out of that place," Vincent pointed out.
Cloud's eyes narrowed at Rufus upon hearing that. He frowned before turning back to Aerith. He suddenly felt nervous as he looked at her.
"Don't say I didn't warn you if she dies," Rufus muttered under his breath while eyeing Cloud with an angry look on his face.
"No, you are going to die, ShinRa," Barret warned angrily before dropping him on the ground.
Rufus did not wince or cringe in pain; he was quiet even as the pain surged through his body.
"No! Barret, how could you?!" Tifa cried out in annoyance as she ran to Rufus and helped him.
"What's the meaning of this?!" Yuffie demanded in shock as she watched the two.
They all froze when they saw something descending from above.
Cloud's eyes widened, his mind was screaming already, but he could not move.
Tifa gasped as she clutched the shotgun tightly and then mindlessly placed her aim at Sephiroth and pulled the trigger.
Aerith jerked upright when she heard the gunshot and she instantly looked behind her, but there was no one there… and Cloud just pushed her off the podium with him. Since he wasn't able to keep his balance, they rolled together down the steps, but he made sure that she was on top of him when they landed so that she would not get hurt.
They all watched in disbelief as Sephiroth landed on the spot where Aerith had been, his left shoulder bleeding… but he did not seem to mind any pain at all.
"Oh my God!" Aerith covered her mouth as she gasped and held on tightly to Cloud.
Cloud glared angrily at Sephiroth.
Sephiroth just stared blankly at him and then at Aerith… then at Rufus.
Rufus narrowed his eyes as he stared back at Sephiroth furiously.
"You just had to ruin everything, huh?" Sephiroth asked softly.
Rufus just frowned at him.
Sephiroth sneered at him, "You are going to die," and then left by teleporting.
They were all stunned for a few more moments before Aerith interrupted the silence with a sob. All eyes turned to her and Cloud touched her face. "Aerith, are you alright?" he asked gently.
She wiped her tears away. "I'm… I'm okay… are you?" she asked gently.
He smiled gently at her before turning his gaze to Rufus, his eyes appeared to be thanking him; but Rufus just looked away.
Tifa just remained with Rufus and she did not move as she watched Barret and Vincent help Aerith and Cloud up. She waited until everyone's attention was on the two and that's when she let go of the shotgun and began to undo the ropes tied around Rufus's legs.
Rufus stared unbelievably at her, "What are you doing?" he asked in a whispery tone.
"Shh…" she warned with a wink.
The coldness from his eyes disappeared as he smiled slightly at her.
She smiled back at him with a slight blush on her face.
"Hey! What do you think you're doin'?!" Barret demanded from her.
She froze.
"Damn…" Rufus muttered frustratingly.
Barret pulled her away from Rufus and he tightened the ropes. "Don't expect to be escaping, ya foo'." He warned.
"Don't worry, I'll just stay in one place," Rufus replied with a sarcastic tone.
"Better stick to your word," Barret warned before he got Rufus and carried him. "Let's get out of here, fellows." He told them.
"Wh…where are we going?" Tifa asked nervously.
"We are going to look for some place to rest. Aerith is tired… and we are holding Rufus as hostage." He replied with a mean look on his face.
"What the bloody hell are you talking about?! You can't do that to me!" Rufus snapped angrily.
"Oh yes, we can, President Rufus. You're in our hands now." Barret told him mockingly.
"But Barret, Rufus meant no harm… he…" Tifa began, but Cid cut her off, "What the @#$% are you @#$%$#@ talking about?! That guy's an asshole and @#$% him, he's a goddamn ShinRa! He almost put you into @#$%$#@ danger a while ago!"
"But he was only trying to protect me from Sephiroth!" she said impatiently.
"Nonsense! Why would a person like him even try to protect someone like you?" Yuffie asked.
"Oh so you mean to say that I'm not worth protecting just because I'm this worthless girl from the slums?" Tifa asked airily.
"Stop it you guys," Cloud warned with a stern tone.
Tifa just looked away.
"Foo'! C'mon, let's just get out of here and we'll argue later. Just make sure that the Turks aren't followin' or somethin'." Barret snapped at them.
Rufus was thinking, "Where are those stupid Turks anyway?" and then he turned to Tifa, looking at her as if saying, "Do something!"
But Tifa wasn't looking at him. She had her eyes on the ground as if wanting to avoid further conversation from any of them.
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to be continued…..
