Chapter 14

Reno moved carefully, cautiously along the street, keeping to the shadows. The further away from the center of the city he got, the less danger he felt, but it was always better to be cautious. After all, he hadn't gotten where he was today – alive – by taking unnecessary chances. The darkness wrapped itself around him as the sun sank slowly behind the clouds from late afternoon towards evening. It had taken him a long time to make it this far; he'd had to stay low and far back while still in the main streets. It was only now as he reached the shoreline that he dared to walk out in the open.

The harbor was back in the northern part of the city; here, even past the underwater facility, there was only water stretching away into the distance. The waves were white capped and dark, and although the street paralleled the shore at a good distance, Reno felt oddly close to the water. It was a mixture of dark blue and green and black, and the smell of salt was harsh in the air along here. Reno found his eyes drifting towards the horizon again and again as he walked, to where the clouds met the ocean and the colors mingled together until it was almost impossible to tell where one ended and the other began.

He was breathing fast, he realized. He felt the air entering his lungs in ragged, shallow gasps, and frowning, he forced himself to slow it down, to find the rhythm and pattern of it. He had been running, true, but still it was odd. He was better trained than this, even if he wasn't in top shape. Concentrating on keeping in the background of the empty streets, Reno wondered briefly before pushing it out of his mind. Now was not the time for worrying about irrelevances.

The black pavement seemed to absorb the light as it wound itself further towards the outskirts and nothingness. The air felt heavy, he realized. Almost like it did just before a storm. Looking up, Reno scanned the sky through narrowed eyes. Yes, he was right; the air felt almost like it was charged with electricity but the dark clouds overhead showed no signs of any sudden violence. Very strange. Walking a little faster, Reno continued on towards the security of the large apartment building just a few more blocks away.

There'd been pursuit at first. He didn't doubt that they were still searching for him, but here the open sky felt like better cover than any of the narrow alleys now left far behind. He didn't understand the people who were following him, either, and it bothered him. He'd encountered every kind of militia and task force during his days as a Turk, but this was beyond weird. The way they seemed to almost know where he was going to turn up, but then still manage to lose him after a few streets.

When he'd accidentally stepped onto a market street, he'd watched, frozen, as a dozen or so pairs of eyes rose to meet his. He remembered in particular the dark hazel eyes of a teenage girl with long brown hair, who'd met his eyes with a strange mix of hatred and quiet enjoyment. They moved like regular people; despite everything, that's what he suspected they were. All of them were no older than himself, and they slipped through the crowds with a familiarity that hinted at the fact that they were probably Junon natives. They knew the streets, and seemed to have an uncanny ability to turn up in the right place at the right time, but nothing more than that.

How had Elena and Rude been caught by a group like that? Sheer numbers, perhaps. If they'd been unarmed, he suspected that the battle would not have gone well for them. And Merdan. Even if Rude had had the chance to get away, he'd given it up to give the boy a chance. Knowing exactly how that part of the story ended made the anger rise again. And now, when he was getting closer to the answer, that damned letter told him to run. Of course, Reno had no doubt that Rude had known what he was talking about; he'd felt the sense or urgency in the words too, but still…

Reno had always known that the world wouldn't stop if he told it too. If he died, he'd be just another nameless face in the gutter, while the world went on. It was a truth that all Turks became too familiar with in the weeks, months or years they lived to continue their work. It was a strange way to live, and it brought you close together with the ones you worked with because, hey, they're the only ones who know the same things you know, who feel the same things you feel. The Turks were an isolated society, and although Reno had never been one to pass up the social aspect of his job he knew it was true.

He'd always done whatever he wanted, and hung around with whoever he wanted. It had never mattered, because at the end of the day, it was always his dark company apartment he went back to, and always the Turks he rejoined with a quiet smile in the morning. That, he supposed, was home.

Rude knew him best of all. Rude had been in training two months before Reno came along, and he'd gone out of his way to make life hell for the 'rookie' at every chance. They'd been rivals, enemies on the field, and when they were suddenly promoted to full Turks, allies against the rest of the world. They'd worked under several different leaders, and had seen new faces come and go. In the end it was only the two of them that had stayed, by skill or sheer luck was always debatable. And that was the way it had been until Tseng came along, filling the role of boss, enemy, friend. And Elena, later, towards the end.

Sometimes, now, Reno wondered if it had ever happened at all. Other days, he wondered if he was dreaming now and soon he'd wake up back in his old life with a mission lined up and an angry Tseng glaring at him for sleeping in. The only other alternative was that this was reality, that life had taken him this far and had left no clue as to how to go backwards or forwards. Out of the three, he wasn't sure which was worst.

What light there was was fading fast now, and the faint sunlight that had come from behind the clouds was disappearing altogether. The place felt slightly unreal in the darkness, with the sound of the waves on the beach below, and the flat, gray sky above. Lights were beginning to come on here and there, glass windowpanes scattering it in every direction. But ever this seemed muted in the buzzing air, and everything felt dull and expectant, almost as though it were waiting. Reno was fairly certain he didn't want to be here to find out what for, either.

Slowly, the tall building came into view. It stood out to him now, tall and stately in a place full of buildings that crouched and skulked at the side of the road. How someone could not notice it still eluded him, but he knew now for certain that he'd seen it before and had walked right past, never knowing. It was a strangely unsettling and vaguely creepy feeling. Reno wondered if Tseng had known about it, because if anyone would have, it would have been him. He would never know now, though, and that was Reno's last thought as he glanced quickly around before darting across the street, up the front steps, through the doors and into the building.


Outside, on the street, a girl with hazel eyes and long brown hair watched as the door clicked silently closed behind a disappearing shadow. She smiled softly, massaging her wrist, trying to bring some warmth to her pale fingers. They were very cold. Tonight, she reflected, as she disappeared back into the shadows she had come from, someone would find out how cold. The only thing left behind was the sound of muted footsteps, those of shoes still lined with dry seaweed.

The apartment was full of light when Reno opened the door, his silver key turning fluidly in the lock. It also smelled very oddly like some kind of curry, and he closed the door behind him before locking it carefully. Kicking off his shoes, he let the warmth and light drift over him before digging his hands into his pockets and following the smell. All of his earlier anger towards Vincent had disappeared, leaving behind only a faint sense of urgency. No matter how safe this place felt, it was time to go.

As Reno rounded the corner into the kitchen, Deth looked up from a large plate of noodles, which he was seemed to be going through quite quickly. Swallowing hurriedly, he smiled, and pointed with an elaborate hand gesture at a pot on the stove.

"Saved you some. Vincent said I shouldn't, but I figured that everybody gets hungry, right?"

Reno laughed an only slightly forced laugh, and made his way over to the pot. As he opened it, steam came rushing out, along with heat and more of that wonderful smell that made him realize that he hadn't eaten all day. Deth looked a little anxious.

"It's okay, right?"

Reno laughed again.

"Kid, you have no idea. I think you might be my new official hero." They both smiled. "Where'd you get the food anyway? There wasn't any here this morning, I can tell you that much."

"Oh, that's easy. At lunch it got kind of obvious that I was really hungry, so Vincent and I went out and got some food. There's a nice little shop just around the corner."

"You… didn't have any trouble, did you?"

"No… Why? Did something happen? Is something wrong?"

Deth looked worried. Reno remembered how the kid had reacted to find himself here earlier that very morning. Yeah, he could understand why the boy might be kinda scared of a repeat performance, or something.

"No. Yes. No." Regretfully, Reno laid the pot lid of the counter before glancing sadly at the empty plate on the counter. "Where's Valentine anyhow?"

"Mm. He's in his study. He probably heard you come in, so don't worry. He looked kind of like something was bothering him, so if I were you, I'd wait 'til he comes out. Have something to eat."

Almost glad for the excuse, Reno didn't hesitate again. There was no time for delay, but the woman who called herself Yolei had seemed to think there was time enough. Well, if Valentine still hadn't put in an appearance afterwards, well, then he'd go bug him. For now though, Reno slid into a chair across from Deth at the table, and they exchanged grins over the amount of food on the plate.

"So, kid. You're going home soon, right? You got a girlfriend waiting for you or something?"

Deth stopped eating and started to cough. Reno's grin widened a little.

"So's that a yes?"

"No!"

"I was just asking." His smirk betrayed him.

"…The only girl I could like… like that, well, she's one of my best friends, so you know…"

"Heh. You didn't have to turn red, kid."

"I'm not!"

"Anyways, it was just a question. No need to get touchy."

There was a silence for a moment as they both ate, although it was a friendly one. When Deth looked up again, he did his best to match Reno's grin.

"How about you? You got a girlfriend back in Midgar?"

Reno didn't answer for a second, and then shook his head.

"No. Doesn't work that way."

"Well… You ever been in love?"

"Why the interest? Could it be that your girl is more than a friend?"

This time there was no hiding the red blush that crept up Deth's cheeks. He stared resolutely at his plate.

"Maybe… maybe I was thinking, you know, when I get back… maybe I could ask her…"

Reno laughed softly again, although his eyes had a funny sharp look to them.

"Go for it."

"But what if she says no!?"

"If she's really your friend, she'll stay your friend. Friends stick by each other no matter what happens, and that's what's really important. Don't forget it."

Reno quickly finished off his plate and stood up. Deth looked up at him before following his example and standing too. He followed Reno over towards the sink.

"Hey, you never answered my question."

"No."

"What… never?"

"Nope."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. Now quit with all the questions. We've got some dishes to wash, so lets get through that so I can go vampire hunting."

They piled the plain white dishes into the sink, and Reno grabbed a cloth sitting on the counter leaving Deth to wash. Deth protested, but he was soundly fought back with the cloth. Laughing, he proceeded to wash the dishes as Reno dried them and found spots for them in the oddly full cupboards. When they were nearly done, Deth attacked Reno with soap bubbles, and the retaliatory counter-attack left a good part of the kitchen wet and Deth needing to change into a non-soaking shirt.

Finally after everything was done, Reno wandered into the sitting room with the giant window overlooking the street. From here, the distant water just looked like a black sheet that stretched on forever. He still felt the buzzing in the air, although it was less pronounced here. No time to waste at all.

"An interesting picture at night."

Reno turned around in the dark room to face the open door in front of which stood Vincent. His face was mostly hidden by the dark, although he just wore a plain red shirt. The light from the kitchen cascaded down the two steps and into the room, but it fell short of either of them and seemed very far away. Reno watched Vincent for another moment before turning back to the window.

"We have to leave. Maybe tonight."

"I know."

"Any idea how long we have?"

"…Perhaps dawn."

Vincent approached the window as well, and the dim light from outside lit his face a little. Red eyes glinted faintly.

"What did you discover?"

"That things are a lot more fucked than I was hoping."

Vincent said nothing, and Reno did not turn around.

"They were completely gone. There was a note for me… It said to run. I know El' and Rude, and nothing scares them. And then the people who came after me… they were just city people. They weren't particularly fast, or strong, and although they knew their way around they were just… kids, most of them. I just don't get it."

He shook his head.

"And then this woman… she called herself Yolei." He turned his head sharply to look at Vincent. "Do you know her?"

Vincent thought for a moment, and then shook his head.

"…No. Although I have a guess who she might have been."

"Care to let me know?"

"No. Not now."

"Thanks. Thanks a lot." Reno didn't disguise the bitter tone. "Anyway, she told me that this whole thing's about Shinra. Can you believe that?"

"Yes."

Reno frowned, facing Vincent altogether now.

"What? I think I'm missing a lot here."

"I know no more than you."

"Then why don't I believe you? It doesn't matter, I guess. All she told me was that they were after all former Shinra employees, and that you and I would be targets. I don't believe her, but I don't think I can afford not to, either."

Vincent remained silent.

"Even if she was telling the truth, why in hell would people do that? Shinra's dead. It's never coming back, believe me. Why would this happen all of a sudden, just like that?"

"Call it social hypnosis."

Deth was standing on the step between the hall and the room, wearing a shirt that was far too big for him. He was silhouetted by the light in the kitchen, and his white hair looked even more strangely ethereal than normal. He took a step forward.

"Think about it. It's not sudden, not at all. Like me… For two years all I've been told is that Shinra was evil, Shinra was the reason everything bad happened. It doesn't matter if it's true or not. That's not the point. If I didn't know better and somebody pointed out an ex-Shinra and told me they wanted to start everything all over again, yeah, I'd probably be mad."

Reno studied Deth carefully in the half-light, his eyes betraying nothing.

"Would you hate them? Kill them?"

"I…" He stopped for a second. "On just somebody's word? No. I wouldn't." He walked carefully over to stand next to Reno. Looking down at him, Reno noticed that the tips of his hair were still damp from the incident in the kitchen. He did not smile. Deth went on.

"But people… people are scared. I mean… Meteor changed everything. Nothing will ever be the same again, you know what I mean? Everything's different now, and people, well, they're scared that if they don't take control of it it'll go back to like it was before, or worse. I'm not saying what's happening is right," he added hastily. "I just mean that you have to be careful, because they will always be afraid.

"Everyone from Shinra either faded into the background or is now leading a new all-powerful corporation. They were scared too, and didn't know what to do, if people would like them now. So most of them hid, and the people, well, they don't know how to live with them either. The whole order of things changed, and they've never had any practice living with things the new way."

He laughed suddenly.

"Am I making any sense at all?"

Reno just smiled the ghost of a smile.

"You are one smart kid. I'll give you that."

Deth met his eyes, and shot back a half smile. Vincent slowly came over to stand next to the other two.

Out, over the water, the clouds parted a little and the moon was finally visible in the sky. It was a little over half full, and the faint light lit the faces watching. The ocean beneath looked, if anything, even blacker than before, and the white light stained the branches of trees along the shore, making them look momentarily like bones rattling in the wind. It was Vincent that finally spoke again.

"…It's going on nine now. We will be leaving before dawn. Make all necessary preparations before then."

Silently, they moved away from the window, each in their own direction. Deth made determinedly for the kitchen while Vincent disappeared once more into the blackness of his study. Reno hesitated a moment, before looking out the window one last time. Clouds skidded across the moon, and the light reflected oddly on everything, throwing strange shadows. Before turning to leave, Reno drew the curtains, leaving the room in darkness once again.

Standing in front of the mirror, Reno let the water run, his hands resting on the edge of the sink. Looking in the mirror, blue eyes met blue in the dark; he hadn't bothered to turn the light on. Quickly, he broke his gaze away, splashing water on his face with a strange feeling washing over him. He reached for a towel, but found nothing. For a moment he imagined he felt another hand grabbing for his and voices shouting. With a sharp breath, he whipped his hand back. He noticed light-headedly that his both his hands were shaking.

He suddenly realized that he felt very cold, and that the chances of him making it back to his room right now were very slim. He didn't feel like he could walk, and the weird panic struggling to get out didn't help. Slowly, he lowered himself to the floor, letting his back and head rest against the cabinet. No, it wasn't just his hands now either. He was shaking all over, and he didn't have the willpower to stop it. Just sitting, he wrapped his arms around his knees and wished like hell he'd stopped on his flight through the market to pick up something to drink.

He felt hollow and not hollow, and he couldn't stop the shaking. Silently, not daring to move, he hoped that time was moving faster for Deth and Valentine than it was in his head. They weren't voices; just memories. But still they echoed in his head as though they were happening for the first time. He thought about yelling for help, but found no voice to yell with. The cold tile under him and the dark sky all around him, he felt a flash of vertigo as he began to fall and fall.

Still he remained, sitting in the corner, staring into the dark.

A/N – Yay for interpretable endings! - Hehe. No, seriously though. Sorry about that. I promise you that nothing's wrong with Reno. Well, not seriously. Okay, at least nothing I did to him. I was thinking about his character in this story, and how he's so many opposites. I told a friend once that the only way this Reno was ever going to be okay again is if he was broken entirely and put back together. I suspect I may have been right. Poor Reno. He has some serious problems, and we still have a LONG way to go yet. This chapter is actually a lot stranger than I intended, and I blame this entirely on Seether, Evanescence, Hawksley Workman and Depeche Mode. Especially those last guys. They're weird. ;