Tifa was shoved roughly into the jail cell, stumbling forward at the sudden
push. Cloud, his arms still restrained, turned and stood chest to chest
with Rude, glowering. As far as intimidating the Turk, Cloud failed
miserably. As stoic as ever, Rude simply shoved him into the cell as well.
"Are you okay?" Tifa bent over him and helped him sit on the one cot, since her own hands had not been restrained.
He sighed, heavily, and nodded. She helped him untie the small swatch of rope that bound his wrists together. "Yeah. What about you?" He reached out his gloved hand and carefully touched Tifa's jaw, so he could see the bruise better. He was surprised by his own boldness, but refused to listen to the self-loathing part of himself at the moment. She winced slightly, but still managed to smile slightly.
"I'm okay, its just a bruise."
"Tifa, I'm sorry." He removed his hand, and looked up to her, unable to keep himself from turning red. "This is all my fault."
She sat next to him. "Cloud, this is not your fault." She put a supportive hand around his shoulders and hugged him slightly. "Me and Barett both came on our own free will. Aeris too. She followed us to Sector 7 by her own choice."
He sighed again, sounding burdened. "I know. I just... I can't believe I let you got injured like that. What kind of man hits a woman so brutally?"
"He's a Turk, Cloud. What do you expect?"
His head whipped around at her, his wild hair swaying with the movement. She looked at him, surprised. He looked very upset as he put his larger hand over the one resting in her lap. "I expected that they had some professional honor, and wouldn't beat the crap out of a woman."
"To them, I just as big of a threat as you or Barett." She shook her head, still smirking slightly. "Not that I forgive Tseng or anything. Or Reno, now that I think about it." She laughed quietly, mostly to herself. "I'm not having good luck with those damn Turks, am I?"
Cloud could repress a smile. Although his nervousness gripped him inside and out, he boldly moved a bit closer to her. "Tifa, can I hug you?"
She smiled, her firey amber eyes warming. "Of course. You're my best friend, you always have my permission to hug me, stupid!" She laughed slightly, leaning into the hug.
His heart was racing and his stomach was doing acrobatics, but he felt better. The guilt and the shame of being captured seemed to vanish, replaced by boyish giddiness and a warm red glow to his cheeks. He didn't know, but Tifa's face had also grown red, and her own fears and doubts were silenced in the embrace of a man she hoped would someday be more than her friend.
They broke apart, and Cloud climbed to his feet and seated himself against the wall facing the cot. "Try and rest a bit, we don't know what will happen next." She nodded a laid down on her back, staring at the nondescript celing.
Sometime later, a converstion had started up again between the two. "Do you think we can get out?"
"I'm not sure." He went over to the door and examined the workings. Although the door seemed basically hopeless, he did discover a ventilation shaft that opened into the next cell. Taking a closer look, he couldn't see anything, but he could distinctly hear Barett's rumbling baritone, and the occasional soft-spoken Red.
"Okay, lemme see if I understand, Red." Barett was saying. "Aeris is an Ancient, and the real name of the Ancients is the Cetra."
"Right."
"The Ancients know about a legendary Promised Land and the ShinRa wants it for all 'da mako."
"Yes."
"So then if the ShinRa get there, they'll suck up all the mako, and injure the Planet more."
"Yes, that's right."
"Goddammit" He shouted suddenly. "I'm recruiting more damn members."
"For what?"
"Oh! That's right! I'm the leader of an anti-ShinRa rebellion group." He exclaimed proudly. "It was me an Tifa, and three others. Yesterday in the plate crash, we lost our three friends. And about a week ago, we hired Cloud as a mercenary, 'cause Tifa knew him. When we free Aeris, I think she'll join, too!"
Barett sounded more like a seven year old than the thirty five year old adult that he was, when he spoke about AVALANCHE. He seemed to be a little boy talking about his secret club than a well-known public terrorist bent on bringing down the world's tyrannical government. "What about you, Red?" He asked, excited. "You wanna join AVALANCHE and kick some ShinRa ass?"
"We will see." Red affirmed, sounding like a school teacher, as he punctuated his sentence with a yawn.
"Yer' so damned boring." Barett whined.
"Shut up." Red snapped, in his first display of annoyance. "I miss my grandfather."
"Yer granddad?" Barett barely stifled a laugh.
"Hey!" Cloud called through the vent finally. "Barett! Red!"
"Cloud?" The both answered in unison.
"Yeah, Tifa's with me, and we're both okay." He talked a bit quieter as he thought he heard footsteps outside the door. "Is Aeris with you?"
"No." Barett sounded disappointed.
"I'm over here!"
"Aeris?" All four prisoners called at once.
Cloud wheeled and saw another identical vent on the opposite wall. Trotting over to it he called her name again.
"Yes!" She sounded as though she was smiling in relief.
"Are you safe?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Her soft voice echoed slightly in the metallic ventilation duct. "I knew you'd come for me."
Cloud could managed a cocky grin, though it was only ghost of the one he had used only a few days prior. "Hey, I'm your bodyguard, remember?"
"The deal was for one date, right?"
Cloud and Tifa both turned red, but for different reasons. "Oh, I see how it is." She muttered, morosely.
"Tifa?!" Aeris sounded shocked, and Cloud was willing to bet money that she was red too.
Tifa avoided the subject entirely, focusing more on the large predicament they found themselves in. "Aeris, I've wanted to ask you, does the Promised Land really exist?"
"I don't know, Tifa. All I know is that the Cetra are born to the Planet, they speak with the Planet, and they unlock the Planet. Then, the Cetra will return to the Promised Land, a place of supreme happiness. "
Tifa cocked her head. "What does that mean?"
"Other than words," Aeris sighed. "I don't know."
"Speak with the Planet?" Cloud questioned.
"Just what does the Planet say?" Tifa added.
Aeris could be heard shuffling about through the vent. "It's full of people and noisy, and I can't understand what they're trying to say."
Cloud was suddenly very interested. The Ancients. There was something huge just underneath the surface, but he couldn't distinguish what. "Do you hear it now?"
"I only head it at the church in the slums. Mother said it was because Midgar was losing its connection to the Planet. My real mother, anyway." The springs on her cot creaked audibly as she sat down. "Someday, I'll get out of Midgar and speak with the Planet, and find my own Promised Land. Mom said that a lot. I thought I would stop hearing all the voices as I grew up, but it never stopped."
Cloud, for fear she may start crying, said softly, "Let's try to rest, guys. We may need the extra energy."
~~~~
Cloud was startled awake several hours later. He wasn't sure if it was a noise, or the dream he had been having. He groggily saw Tifa, sleeping, and looked around the cell. The nondescript walls and ceiling were bare and cold, and offered no suggestions for escape. The door, as he turned his head, was also completely devoid of any discoverable weakness. His blue eyes widened.
The door was open.
He shot to his feet and tentatively looked outside, no one was anywhere to be seen. "Tifa!" She stirred. "Tifa, wake up!"
"W-what is it?"
"The door's open!"
She was suddenly very much awake. Hopping off the bed, she followed him into the hallway. A guard, in a signature red uniform was laying, slumped in a pool of blood, a deep slash across his torso. A look of fear and shock was frozen on his face.
"I wonder what happened." Tifa breathed, seemingly afraid to get too close to the corpse.
Cloud shrugged, confusion evident on his face. "I don't have a clue, but he should have a key card on him." He rifled through the man's pockets, and produced the small card. "Tifa, see if you can't find our weapons around here. I'll go get Barett and the others."
She nodded, and turned the corner, and Cloud quickly opened the cell containing Barett and Red. "Barett! Get up!"
The bigger man's snoring ceased, as he groggily opened his eyes. "What the- "His eyes widened, and Red began to wake up as well. "How the hell did you get in? Why's the door open?"
"Come with me," He motioned for them to follow as he left the cell. Red followed first, with barett close behind. As soon as Cloud had finished freeing and informing Aeris, Tifa came around the corner, weapons in tow.
Barett happily took his gun from under her arm, and bolted it back into place. Cloud also relieved her from his sword that the had dragged down the hall. Tifa herself slipped on her fighting knuckles, and slid some materia into the slots. Cloud and Aeris also decided to divvy up some materia between them, and Red claimed the remaining fire and poison materias.
Red sniffed the air. "Something is terribly wrong. Follow me, I'll lead the way."
They nodded, and fell in line behind the large cat. As they made it out of the detention area, Red paused again. "I think we are on the same floor as Hojo's lab. But be careful, I smell blood, and lots of it." He stood up on his hind legs, and pressed the open button on the door with a furry paw, and the entry slid open.
It was Hojo's lab, the cat had been right. Bloodstains marred the floor, ceiling, and the walls. "What the hell?" Barett was never able to keep quiet for long.
"No human could have done this," Red growled, sniffing the air for more danger.
"Oh Gods."
Everyone looked to Cloud, who stood petrified, with an absolute look of fear in his shimmering eyes. They followed his stare to a dome in the corner. Where there was one, presumably, a door, there was now a gaping hole. The steel of the doorframe had been warped and curled outward, blood splatter partially hiding the text over the door. "Oh Gods," Cloud repeated. "Did it get away? Jenova?" Tifa had no idea what it meant, nor did anyone else present.
Red only knew of the monster's name. "It looks like it went up the specimen elevator." They followed Jenova's supposed path up two more stories, dead bodies left an easy-to-follow path. Aeris seemed quite disturbed from all the blood and corpses, but Barett was nearby and watching her carefully, just in case she needed some comfort. After a few floors, there were less bodies, but the clear trail of crimson stains was also a giveaway.
They followed the blood all the way up to President ShinRa's office. Where they found him, slumped over his desk. A huge sword stuck out of his back, it rested through his torso, and stabbed a small way into the ground. Tifa and Cloud both paled after a moment.
"He's dead!?" Barett exclaimed, obviously wishing it was he who completed the act. "The leader of the ShinRa is dead?"
"That sword is-"Tifa started, seemingly on the verge of tears.
"Sephiroth." Cloud finished, fear and terror drowning his voice.
Tifa held her hand over her heart, very much at ill ease. "Sephiroth is alive?"
"Yes," Cloud nodded, acknowledging his greatest fear. "He's the only one who can handle that sword. The Masamune"
Barett couldn't understand what they were so afraid of. "Who the hell cares who did it! President ShinRa is dead!" Cloud and Tifa both jumped visibly, when a short, fat, bald man in a suit shot out of the shadows and made a break for the door.
Cloud recovered quickly, though, and with Barett's help, restrained the man. "Please!" He begged. "Don't kill me!" It was Palmer.
"What happened?" Cloud prompted.
"I saw him! General Sephiroth!" Palmer babbled, frightened like a small rabbit.
"Sephiroth was really here?" Tifa exclaimed, her eyebrows knit with fear.
Palmer stopped struggling. "Yeah! I saw him with my own eyes."
"You really saw him?" Cloud prompted again. "Don't toy with me."
"Would I lie to you at a time like this?" The older man shouted, obviously shaken up. "And I heard his voice, too! He was saying something about not letting us have the Promised Land!"
"Then what?" Tifa put in cautiously. "Does that mean that there really is a Promised Land." She cast a sideways glance at Aeris. "And that Sephiroth wants to save it from the ShinRa?"
"So he's a good guy, 'den?" Barett scratched his bearded chin.
"Hell no!" Cloud shouted, enraged at something. "It can't be that simple. I know him, his mission must be different!"
They were interrupted by the sounds of a helicopter. They all whirled, to see a ShinRa helicopter hover outside the balcony beyond the expansive windows. Palmer jerked his arms and was able to break away from his momentary captors. He raced outside with suprising speed for a man of his girth, Barett and Cloud released him.
The dark-skinned man caught a glimpse of a figure in white moving about in the helicopter. "Rufus! Fuck! I forgot about him!"
"Who the hell is Rufus?" Tifa shouted over the helicopter, annoyed at all the revelations and complications that seemed to happen in the past three days.
"Vice President Rufus!" Barett yelled, checking his gun. "He's the presiden't brat!"
Aeris furrowed her eyebrows, still taking in all the revealed plans for the Promised Land. "I heard that no one has ever seen him cry."
"Yeah, I heard that too." Barett nodded. "He's been assigned somewhere else for a long time."
Cloud gripped his sword and ran outside to the balcony, where Palmer had fled too moments before. They raced outside, four pairs of booted feet causing pounding footfalls, and two pairs of paws only causing soft thuds.
As Cloud kicked open the door, they were meet with a blast of cold wind, disturbed by the blades of the chopper. As they ran across the balcony, they caught a glimpse of Palmer leaning out of the chopper, speaking to the figure in white as he was preparing to climb in.
"So Sephiroth was actually here?" The man in white yelled over the helicopter. He turned at the sound of the door and saw his father's five prisoners confront him, weapons drawn. "Who the hell are you?"
"AVALANCHE, an' don't you forget it!" Barett bellowed, happy to throw his success into the young man's face.
Rufus' cerulean eyes narrowed dangerously, his firey orange hair blowing in the breeze. "You've come to prevent me from leaving? Or perhaps to fight?" His voice was still young, and he barely looked older than nineteen. "You know me, don't you? I'm President Rufus of ShinRa Inc."
"Yer' only President 'cause yer old man died!" Barett's speech started to become less enunciated, which it always did when he was worked up about something or other.
Rufus leaned casually against the balcony rail, running a hand through his short hair. "You're right, I'll even let you hear my new appointment speech." He stood up straight, and walked slowly towards Tifa. For the first time, they noticed a long shotgun strapped to his body, he made no move for it, nor did he even seem very hostile.
"Father tried to control the world with money," He looked Tifa over momentarily, causing Cloud and Red to step closer to her. Unperturbed, Rufus wandered towards Aeris, "The populace thought that the ShinRa would protect them." Barett took a threatening step closer, but again, Rufus dismissed the threat. "Work for the ShinRa, get your pay. If a terrorist attacks, the ShinRa army will help you. It all seemed perfect from the outside. Father was stupid, though, there were many flaws in his plan. I will do things differently. I will control the world with fear. There were too many factors and conditions in the way my old man did it." He moved back to the railing, smoothing his white business suit carefully, while continueing. "A little fear will control the minds of the common people. There's no reason to waste money on them."
Tifa crossed her arms, disgusted. "He makes speeches just like his lying father."
Cloud, who had been quiet the whole time, suddenly stepped in front his comrades. "Get Aeris out of here."
"What?" Barett and Tifa asked simotaneously.
"Get her out, now!" He looked over his shoulder at them. "The real crisis is with the Planet!"
"The hell are you talkin' 'bout?"
"Just do it!" Cloud was getting frustraded, and it showed in the urgency reflected in his glowing blue eyes. "I'll follow you after I take care of him!"
Barett nodded, and with a hand on Aeris' petite shoulder, he ran back to the office, Tifa and Red trailing him. They ran through the office, and back down the stairs. "If we find anymore goddamned Turks, I'm going to be angry!" Tifa called from the rear of the group. Barett grinned back at her. "Don' worry! 'Dis time I'm gonna kick their skinny asses!"
Aeris halted in her tracks, as they passed through a doorway. "No, stop!" They did so and looked at her, somewhat confused. "Someone has to stay for Cloud, what if he gets hurt and can't make it downstairs?"
Tifa nodded, the exiliration of impending battle giving her energy. "I'll stay, you go on ahead!"
The remaining three nodded in unison, and raced off down the hallway. Nearly breaking down the doors to the stairway, Barett burst in and began leaping down the stairs, Aeris fearfully in tow. Red was agile and fast and quickly made faster progress then the bigger man. He wheeled to go down another flight, out of Barett's sight. All of a sudden, the red-furred cat was visible again, but running back up the stairs, the way they came. "Turn around, Barett!" He called. "There's some kind of security-"
He didn't have time to finish his sentence. As he spoke, his last few words were drown out by the mechanical hum of a huge robotic defense system. Wasting not a second, both Barett and the machine opened fire on each other. Aeris fell to the hard floor as Barett dropped his support on her. Wincing, she stood and fled back up the stairs to put some more distance between herself and the monster. Concentrating momentarily, she blasted the menace with a bolt of lightning. Circuts flashed and smoke poured out of several openings. Red shot his own magic at the robot, bits and chunks of metal flying into the air. Barett, now very angry, shot a straight blast of energy into the machine's chest. The circuits sparked and wires flew out, exploding the chest and sending bits of steel into the walls.
~~~~
Cloud and Rufus had a bit of a staring competition before either of them spoke. The tension was thick, and both seemed unafraid of the inevitable battle. Rufus' dark blue eyes bore coldly into Cloud's own, mako-infused irises. "Why do you want to fight me?" The young president asked, deceit laced his smooth voice.
"You seek the Promised Land, and Sephiroth." Cloud growled, without hesitation.
Rufus smirked. "Yes, exactly." He seemed to ponder a minute. "Sephiroth is an Ancient, you know."
"A lot has happened," Cloud spat, anything pertaining to Sephiroth made him angry. "But I can't let you get him or the Promised Land."
"A shame, really." Rufus purred. "I suppose this means we won't be friends."
Cloud charged forward, sword held high. "No!" the sword met steel, as Rufus blocked the vertical cut with the barrel of his shotgun. "I suppose not!"
The ex-SOLDIER leapt backwards and fell into an offensive position. With his left foot forward, the tip of the silver weapon rested upon the ground. The fire-haired president loaded two slugs into the barrel of the gun. Raising his arm, the chamber clicked into place and he aimed. Cloud shot forward, right foot coming upwards, and the sword tip swinging out.
Rufus fired, but Cloud's mako-induced speed was too much. The bullets missed, and the heavy sword swung and made contact with the young man's abdomen. "Son of a bitch!" he shouted in pain. He brought the end of his shotgun up at suprising speed, catching Cloud firmly in the jaw. The impact exploded into his face, as he fell backwards.
Now freely bleeding, Cloud charged forward again, unwilling to give Rufus and second chance to reload. The swordsman executed furious swipe after swipe, and the prim and proper businessman could barely keep up. Although Rufus was experienced, he wasn't quite as experienced as Cloud was. Rufus was loosing more and more ground, until he had been backed up against the bay windows. Cloud hefted his sword, intending to decapitate the young president. Rufus realized this, but quickly, he flipped out a small knife and slammed it into Cloud's unprotected chest.
The ex-SOLDIER howled in pain, stepping backwards, gripping his bloodied chest. After a silent moment, Cloud was satisfied that the wound wasn't fatal. He held out an outstretched palm, and a burst of fire burned to life. Realizing he intended to shoot it at him, Rufus quickly closed the gap between them. The blonde swordsman was unprepared for this action and was punished with a punch to his stomach and a knee in his face. Recovering quickly, Cloud swung his burning fist and caught the young ShinRa across his cheek, searing the skin.
Rufus shrieked in agony, as his hand shot upwards, clutching his now blistered face. "You bastard!" he snarled. "I'll kill you for that!"
Cloud smirked sadistically, renewing his dangerous demeanor. "Try it, brat."
The two rushed into close battle, shouting taunts and curses at each other. Largely, magic was avoided, the two men wanted to prove better than the other on their own strength alone. Gunshots echoed in the damp air, the wind was carrying the scent of rain.
"Hiding behind a sword?" Rufus spat, blood dripping from his lower lip. "You coward!"
Cloud dodged a sharp swipe from the small bloody knife. "You suck with a knife! Better stick to daddy's guns."
Rufus raised his shotgun, "Fine!"
The blast echoed, followed by an audible grunt. "Dammit!" The first drops of rain fell, gaining more and more in speed and size. Cloud had a gaping wound in his right thigh, blood pulsated out of it. Sword-fighting would be near impossible now, he admitted. His right hand burst to life with fire, again. The rain was coming down harder now, soaking both men to the bone.
Rufus, all to wary of the biting flame, stood, several feet from the seething, bleeding Cloud. The ex-SOLDIER, wounded badly, wondered what the next plan of action would be. His problem was solved as the chopper began to hover close to Rufus. Catching wind of the pilot's idea, and secretly thankful for the excuse to run, the young president made a break for the helicopter's landing support. Clinging to his shotgun with one hand, and to the runner in the other, Rufus fired one last shot at Cloud as the chopper began to gain altitude. Though wounded, Cloud was still able to dodge. He watched in contempt as the young man was pulled inside the body of the helicopter.
"Son of a bitch." Cloud spat, blood spattering the ground.
"Are you okay?" Tifa bent over him and helped him sit on the one cot, since her own hands had not been restrained.
He sighed, heavily, and nodded. She helped him untie the small swatch of rope that bound his wrists together. "Yeah. What about you?" He reached out his gloved hand and carefully touched Tifa's jaw, so he could see the bruise better. He was surprised by his own boldness, but refused to listen to the self-loathing part of himself at the moment. She winced slightly, but still managed to smile slightly.
"I'm okay, its just a bruise."
"Tifa, I'm sorry." He removed his hand, and looked up to her, unable to keep himself from turning red. "This is all my fault."
She sat next to him. "Cloud, this is not your fault." She put a supportive hand around his shoulders and hugged him slightly. "Me and Barett both came on our own free will. Aeris too. She followed us to Sector 7 by her own choice."
He sighed again, sounding burdened. "I know. I just... I can't believe I let you got injured like that. What kind of man hits a woman so brutally?"
"He's a Turk, Cloud. What do you expect?"
His head whipped around at her, his wild hair swaying with the movement. She looked at him, surprised. He looked very upset as he put his larger hand over the one resting in her lap. "I expected that they had some professional honor, and wouldn't beat the crap out of a woman."
"To them, I just as big of a threat as you or Barett." She shook her head, still smirking slightly. "Not that I forgive Tseng or anything. Or Reno, now that I think about it." She laughed quietly, mostly to herself. "I'm not having good luck with those damn Turks, am I?"
Cloud could repress a smile. Although his nervousness gripped him inside and out, he boldly moved a bit closer to her. "Tifa, can I hug you?"
She smiled, her firey amber eyes warming. "Of course. You're my best friend, you always have my permission to hug me, stupid!" She laughed slightly, leaning into the hug.
His heart was racing and his stomach was doing acrobatics, but he felt better. The guilt and the shame of being captured seemed to vanish, replaced by boyish giddiness and a warm red glow to his cheeks. He didn't know, but Tifa's face had also grown red, and her own fears and doubts were silenced in the embrace of a man she hoped would someday be more than her friend.
They broke apart, and Cloud climbed to his feet and seated himself against the wall facing the cot. "Try and rest a bit, we don't know what will happen next." She nodded a laid down on her back, staring at the nondescript celing.
Sometime later, a converstion had started up again between the two. "Do you think we can get out?"
"I'm not sure." He went over to the door and examined the workings. Although the door seemed basically hopeless, he did discover a ventilation shaft that opened into the next cell. Taking a closer look, he couldn't see anything, but he could distinctly hear Barett's rumbling baritone, and the occasional soft-spoken Red.
"Okay, lemme see if I understand, Red." Barett was saying. "Aeris is an Ancient, and the real name of the Ancients is the Cetra."
"Right."
"The Ancients know about a legendary Promised Land and the ShinRa wants it for all 'da mako."
"Yes."
"So then if the ShinRa get there, they'll suck up all the mako, and injure the Planet more."
"Yes, that's right."
"Goddammit" He shouted suddenly. "I'm recruiting more damn members."
"For what?"
"Oh! That's right! I'm the leader of an anti-ShinRa rebellion group." He exclaimed proudly. "It was me an Tifa, and three others. Yesterday in the plate crash, we lost our three friends. And about a week ago, we hired Cloud as a mercenary, 'cause Tifa knew him. When we free Aeris, I think she'll join, too!"
Barett sounded more like a seven year old than the thirty five year old adult that he was, when he spoke about AVALANCHE. He seemed to be a little boy talking about his secret club than a well-known public terrorist bent on bringing down the world's tyrannical government. "What about you, Red?" He asked, excited. "You wanna join AVALANCHE and kick some ShinRa ass?"
"We will see." Red affirmed, sounding like a school teacher, as he punctuated his sentence with a yawn.
"Yer' so damned boring." Barett whined.
"Shut up." Red snapped, in his first display of annoyance. "I miss my grandfather."
"Yer granddad?" Barett barely stifled a laugh.
"Hey!" Cloud called through the vent finally. "Barett! Red!"
"Cloud?" The both answered in unison.
"Yeah, Tifa's with me, and we're both okay." He talked a bit quieter as he thought he heard footsteps outside the door. "Is Aeris with you?"
"No." Barett sounded disappointed.
"I'm over here!"
"Aeris?" All four prisoners called at once.
Cloud wheeled and saw another identical vent on the opposite wall. Trotting over to it he called her name again.
"Yes!" She sounded as though she was smiling in relief.
"Are you safe?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Her soft voice echoed slightly in the metallic ventilation duct. "I knew you'd come for me."
Cloud could managed a cocky grin, though it was only ghost of the one he had used only a few days prior. "Hey, I'm your bodyguard, remember?"
"The deal was for one date, right?"
Cloud and Tifa both turned red, but for different reasons. "Oh, I see how it is." She muttered, morosely.
"Tifa?!" Aeris sounded shocked, and Cloud was willing to bet money that she was red too.
Tifa avoided the subject entirely, focusing more on the large predicament they found themselves in. "Aeris, I've wanted to ask you, does the Promised Land really exist?"
"I don't know, Tifa. All I know is that the Cetra are born to the Planet, they speak with the Planet, and they unlock the Planet. Then, the Cetra will return to the Promised Land, a place of supreme happiness. "
Tifa cocked her head. "What does that mean?"
"Other than words," Aeris sighed. "I don't know."
"Speak with the Planet?" Cloud questioned.
"Just what does the Planet say?" Tifa added.
Aeris could be heard shuffling about through the vent. "It's full of people and noisy, and I can't understand what they're trying to say."
Cloud was suddenly very interested. The Ancients. There was something huge just underneath the surface, but he couldn't distinguish what. "Do you hear it now?"
"I only head it at the church in the slums. Mother said it was because Midgar was losing its connection to the Planet. My real mother, anyway." The springs on her cot creaked audibly as she sat down. "Someday, I'll get out of Midgar and speak with the Planet, and find my own Promised Land. Mom said that a lot. I thought I would stop hearing all the voices as I grew up, but it never stopped."
Cloud, for fear she may start crying, said softly, "Let's try to rest, guys. We may need the extra energy."
~~~~
Cloud was startled awake several hours later. He wasn't sure if it was a noise, or the dream he had been having. He groggily saw Tifa, sleeping, and looked around the cell. The nondescript walls and ceiling were bare and cold, and offered no suggestions for escape. The door, as he turned his head, was also completely devoid of any discoverable weakness. His blue eyes widened.
The door was open.
He shot to his feet and tentatively looked outside, no one was anywhere to be seen. "Tifa!" She stirred. "Tifa, wake up!"
"W-what is it?"
"The door's open!"
She was suddenly very much awake. Hopping off the bed, she followed him into the hallway. A guard, in a signature red uniform was laying, slumped in a pool of blood, a deep slash across his torso. A look of fear and shock was frozen on his face.
"I wonder what happened." Tifa breathed, seemingly afraid to get too close to the corpse.
Cloud shrugged, confusion evident on his face. "I don't have a clue, but he should have a key card on him." He rifled through the man's pockets, and produced the small card. "Tifa, see if you can't find our weapons around here. I'll go get Barett and the others."
She nodded, and turned the corner, and Cloud quickly opened the cell containing Barett and Red. "Barett! Get up!"
The bigger man's snoring ceased, as he groggily opened his eyes. "What the- "His eyes widened, and Red began to wake up as well. "How the hell did you get in? Why's the door open?"
"Come with me," He motioned for them to follow as he left the cell. Red followed first, with barett close behind. As soon as Cloud had finished freeing and informing Aeris, Tifa came around the corner, weapons in tow.
Barett happily took his gun from under her arm, and bolted it back into place. Cloud also relieved her from his sword that the had dragged down the hall. Tifa herself slipped on her fighting knuckles, and slid some materia into the slots. Cloud and Aeris also decided to divvy up some materia between them, and Red claimed the remaining fire and poison materias.
Red sniffed the air. "Something is terribly wrong. Follow me, I'll lead the way."
They nodded, and fell in line behind the large cat. As they made it out of the detention area, Red paused again. "I think we are on the same floor as Hojo's lab. But be careful, I smell blood, and lots of it." He stood up on his hind legs, and pressed the open button on the door with a furry paw, and the entry slid open.
It was Hojo's lab, the cat had been right. Bloodstains marred the floor, ceiling, and the walls. "What the hell?" Barett was never able to keep quiet for long.
"No human could have done this," Red growled, sniffing the air for more danger.
"Oh Gods."
Everyone looked to Cloud, who stood petrified, with an absolute look of fear in his shimmering eyes. They followed his stare to a dome in the corner. Where there was one, presumably, a door, there was now a gaping hole. The steel of the doorframe had been warped and curled outward, blood splatter partially hiding the text over the door. "Oh Gods," Cloud repeated. "Did it get away? Jenova?" Tifa had no idea what it meant, nor did anyone else present.
Red only knew of the monster's name. "It looks like it went up the specimen elevator." They followed Jenova's supposed path up two more stories, dead bodies left an easy-to-follow path. Aeris seemed quite disturbed from all the blood and corpses, but Barett was nearby and watching her carefully, just in case she needed some comfort. After a few floors, there were less bodies, but the clear trail of crimson stains was also a giveaway.
They followed the blood all the way up to President ShinRa's office. Where they found him, slumped over his desk. A huge sword stuck out of his back, it rested through his torso, and stabbed a small way into the ground. Tifa and Cloud both paled after a moment.
"He's dead!?" Barett exclaimed, obviously wishing it was he who completed the act. "The leader of the ShinRa is dead?"
"That sword is-"Tifa started, seemingly on the verge of tears.
"Sephiroth." Cloud finished, fear and terror drowning his voice.
Tifa held her hand over her heart, very much at ill ease. "Sephiroth is alive?"
"Yes," Cloud nodded, acknowledging his greatest fear. "He's the only one who can handle that sword. The Masamune"
Barett couldn't understand what they were so afraid of. "Who the hell cares who did it! President ShinRa is dead!" Cloud and Tifa both jumped visibly, when a short, fat, bald man in a suit shot out of the shadows and made a break for the door.
Cloud recovered quickly, though, and with Barett's help, restrained the man. "Please!" He begged. "Don't kill me!" It was Palmer.
"What happened?" Cloud prompted.
"I saw him! General Sephiroth!" Palmer babbled, frightened like a small rabbit.
"Sephiroth was really here?" Tifa exclaimed, her eyebrows knit with fear.
Palmer stopped struggling. "Yeah! I saw him with my own eyes."
"You really saw him?" Cloud prompted again. "Don't toy with me."
"Would I lie to you at a time like this?" The older man shouted, obviously shaken up. "And I heard his voice, too! He was saying something about not letting us have the Promised Land!"
"Then what?" Tifa put in cautiously. "Does that mean that there really is a Promised Land." She cast a sideways glance at Aeris. "And that Sephiroth wants to save it from the ShinRa?"
"So he's a good guy, 'den?" Barett scratched his bearded chin.
"Hell no!" Cloud shouted, enraged at something. "It can't be that simple. I know him, his mission must be different!"
They were interrupted by the sounds of a helicopter. They all whirled, to see a ShinRa helicopter hover outside the balcony beyond the expansive windows. Palmer jerked his arms and was able to break away from his momentary captors. He raced outside with suprising speed for a man of his girth, Barett and Cloud released him.
The dark-skinned man caught a glimpse of a figure in white moving about in the helicopter. "Rufus! Fuck! I forgot about him!"
"Who the hell is Rufus?" Tifa shouted over the helicopter, annoyed at all the revelations and complications that seemed to happen in the past three days.
"Vice President Rufus!" Barett yelled, checking his gun. "He's the presiden't brat!"
Aeris furrowed her eyebrows, still taking in all the revealed plans for the Promised Land. "I heard that no one has ever seen him cry."
"Yeah, I heard that too." Barett nodded. "He's been assigned somewhere else for a long time."
Cloud gripped his sword and ran outside to the balcony, where Palmer had fled too moments before. They raced outside, four pairs of booted feet causing pounding footfalls, and two pairs of paws only causing soft thuds.
As Cloud kicked open the door, they were meet with a blast of cold wind, disturbed by the blades of the chopper. As they ran across the balcony, they caught a glimpse of Palmer leaning out of the chopper, speaking to the figure in white as he was preparing to climb in.
"So Sephiroth was actually here?" The man in white yelled over the helicopter. He turned at the sound of the door and saw his father's five prisoners confront him, weapons drawn. "Who the hell are you?"
"AVALANCHE, an' don't you forget it!" Barett bellowed, happy to throw his success into the young man's face.
Rufus' cerulean eyes narrowed dangerously, his firey orange hair blowing in the breeze. "You've come to prevent me from leaving? Or perhaps to fight?" His voice was still young, and he barely looked older than nineteen. "You know me, don't you? I'm President Rufus of ShinRa Inc."
"Yer' only President 'cause yer old man died!" Barett's speech started to become less enunciated, which it always did when he was worked up about something or other.
Rufus leaned casually against the balcony rail, running a hand through his short hair. "You're right, I'll even let you hear my new appointment speech." He stood up straight, and walked slowly towards Tifa. For the first time, they noticed a long shotgun strapped to his body, he made no move for it, nor did he even seem very hostile.
"Father tried to control the world with money," He looked Tifa over momentarily, causing Cloud and Red to step closer to her. Unperturbed, Rufus wandered towards Aeris, "The populace thought that the ShinRa would protect them." Barett took a threatening step closer, but again, Rufus dismissed the threat. "Work for the ShinRa, get your pay. If a terrorist attacks, the ShinRa army will help you. It all seemed perfect from the outside. Father was stupid, though, there were many flaws in his plan. I will do things differently. I will control the world with fear. There were too many factors and conditions in the way my old man did it." He moved back to the railing, smoothing his white business suit carefully, while continueing. "A little fear will control the minds of the common people. There's no reason to waste money on them."
Tifa crossed her arms, disgusted. "He makes speeches just like his lying father."
Cloud, who had been quiet the whole time, suddenly stepped in front his comrades. "Get Aeris out of here."
"What?" Barett and Tifa asked simotaneously.
"Get her out, now!" He looked over his shoulder at them. "The real crisis is with the Planet!"
"The hell are you talkin' 'bout?"
"Just do it!" Cloud was getting frustraded, and it showed in the urgency reflected in his glowing blue eyes. "I'll follow you after I take care of him!"
Barett nodded, and with a hand on Aeris' petite shoulder, he ran back to the office, Tifa and Red trailing him. They ran through the office, and back down the stairs. "If we find anymore goddamned Turks, I'm going to be angry!" Tifa called from the rear of the group. Barett grinned back at her. "Don' worry! 'Dis time I'm gonna kick their skinny asses!"
Aeris halted in her tracks, as they passed through a doorway. "No, stop!" They did so and looked at her, somewhat confused. "Someone has to stay for Cloud, what if he gets hurt and can't make it downstairs?"
Tifa nodded, the exiliration of impending battle giving her energy. "I'll stay, you go on ahead!"
The remaining three nodded in unison, and raced off down the hallway. Nearly breaking down the doors to the stairway, Barett burst in and began leaping down the stairs, Aeris fearfully in tow. Red was agile and fast and quickly made faster progress then the bigger man. He wheeled to go down another flight, out of Barett's sight. All of a sudden, the red-furred cat was visible again, but running back up the stairs, the way they came. "Turn around, Barett!" He called. "There's some kind of security-"
He didn't have time to finish his sentence. As he spoke, his last few words were drown out by the mechanical hum of a huge robotic defense system. Wasting not a second, both Barett and the machine opened fire on each other. Aeris fell to the hard floor as Barett dropped his support on her. Wincing, she stood and fled back up the stairs to put some more distance between herself and the monster. Concentrating momentarily, she blasted the menace with a bolt of lightning. Circuts flashed and smoke poured out of several openings. Red shot his own magic at the robot, bits and chunks of metal flying into the air. Barett, now very angry, shot a straight blast of energy into the machine's chest. The circuits sparked and wires flew out, exploding the chest and sending bits of steel into the walls.
~~~~
Cloud and Rufus had a bit of a staring competition before either of them spoke. The tension was thick, and both seemed unafraid of the inevitable battle. Rufus' dark blue eyes bore coldly into Cloud's own, mako-infused irises. "Why do you want to fight me?" The young president asked, deceit laced his smooth voice.
"You seek the Promised Land, and Sephiroth." Cloud growled, without hesitation.
Rufus smirked. "Yes, exactly." He seemed to ponder a minute. "Sephiroth is an Ancient, you know."
"A lot has happened," Cloud spat, anything pertaining to Sephiroth made him angry. "But I can't let you get him or the Promised Land."
"A shame, really." Rufus purred. "I suppose this means we won't be friends."
Cloud charged forward, sword held high. "No!" the sword met steel, as Rufus blocked the vertical cut with the barrel of his shotgun. "I suppose not!"
The ex-SOLDIER leapt backwards and fell into an offensive position. With his left foot forward, the tip of the silver weapon rested upon the ground. The fire-haired president loaded two slugs into the barrel of the gun. Raising his arm, the chamber clicked into place and he aimed. Cloud shot forward, right foot coming upwards, and the sword tip swinging out.
Rufus fired, but Cloud's mako-induced speed was too much. The bullets missed, and the heavy sword swung and made contact with the young man's abdomen. "Son of a bitch!" he shouted in pain. He brought the end of his shotgun up at suprising speed, catching Cloud firmly in the jaw. The impact exploded into his face, as he fell backwards.
Now freely bleeding, Cloud charged forward again, unwilling to give Rufus and second chance to reload. The swordsman executed furious swipe after swipe, and the prim and proper businessman could barely keep up. Although Rufus was experienced, he wasn't quite as experienced as Cloud was. Rufus was loosing more and more ground, until he had been backed up against the bay windows. Cloud hefted his sword, intending to decapitate the young president. Rufus realized this, but quickly, he flipped out a small knife and slammed it into Cloud's unprotected chest.
The ex-SOLDIER howled in pain, stepping backwards, gripping his bloodied chest. After a silent moment, Cloud was satisfied that the wound wasn't fatal. He held out an outstretched palm, and a burst of fire burned to life. Realizing he intended to shoot it at him, Rufus quickly closed the gap between them. The blonde swordsman was unprepared for this action and was punished with a punch to his stomach and a knee in his face. Recovering quickly, Cloud swung his burning fist and caught the young ShinRa across his cheek, searing the skin.
Rufus shrieked in agony, as his hand shot upwards, clutching his now blistered face. "You bastard!" he snarled. "I'll kill you for that!"
Cloud smirked sadistically, renewing his dangerous demeanor. "Try it, brat."
The two rushed into close battle, shouting taunts and curses at each other. Largely, magic was avoided, the two men wanted to prove better than the other on their own strength alone. Gunshots echoed in the damp air, the wind was carrying the scent of rain.
"Hiding behind a sword?" Rufus spat, blood dripping from his lower lip. "You coward!"
Cloud dodged a sharp swipe from the small bloody knife. "You suck with a knife! Better stick to daddy's guns."
Rufus raised his shotgun, "Fine!"
The blast echoed, followed by an audible grunt. "Dammit!" The first drops of rain fell, gaining more and more in speed and size. Cloud had a gaping wound in his right thigh, blood pulsated out of it. Sword-fighting would be near impossible now, he admitted. His right hand burst to life with fire, again. The rain was coming down harder now, soaking both men to the bone.
Rufus, all to wary of the biting flame, stood, several feet from the seething, bleeding Cloud. The ex-SOLDIER, wounded badly, wondered what the next plan of action would be. His problem was solved as the chopper began to hover close to Rufus. Catching wind of the pilot's idea, and secretly thankful for the excuse to run, the young president made a break for the helicopter's landing support. Clinging to his shotgun with one hand, and to the runner in the other, Rufus fired one last shot at Cloud as the chopper began to gain altitude. Though wounded, Cloud was still able to dodge. He watched in contempt as the young man was pulled inside the body of the helicopter.
"Son of a bitch." Cloud spat, blood spattering the ground.