Author's Note: All of FF are belong to Squaresoft, not me. ::sniff::
Chapter Five
Rufus' Whale
Rufus could feel it even before the tremors started. It began as a presence, a feeling that something was in the room with him, hovering nearby, always overshadowing him. Then slowly, it became a wave of feelings. Despair. Loss. Sorrow. Panick. Rage.
Slowly standing, Rufus lifted the blankets out of his way and stumbled out of the room that Reeve had been sheltering him in. He stumbled away from the cot, and tried to make it to the door on the other side of the room. It felt like a battle for survival.
His legs refused to work properly, and the pants Reeve had given him were too long, so he kept tripping on them. The bandages that covered most of his upper body hampered him, and the sling that his left arm was in prevented him from using that hand to catch himself whenever he tripped.
It took him almost ten minutes to cover a distance of ten feet to the door.
Then the tremors began.
Rufus threw open the doors, revealing a balcony to the outside. Sun poured down on him, and he involuntarily winced. He stood straight up, overlooking the ruins of what once was the greatest city on the planet.
All about him, buildings trembled from the force of a small earthquake, the surviving people of Midgar scurried about like the human rats they were. Only Rufus, crippled as he was, was able to stand straight up and look the horror that was occuring in the eye.
In the center of the city where the Sister Ray once stood was now a colossal beast, rising from the belly of the planet itself.
Rufus recognized it instantly.
Where its brother, Diamond, had been a hulking white mass, slow and clumsy, but unbelievably powerful, this Weapon was sleek and black, slender, with a grace that was awe inspiring. It opened its mouth and let out a powerful bellow that screamed its pain at the world, and then it turned, its brilliant green eyes settling on Rufus, half a city away.
Their eyes locked. Diamond, what could be called this Weapon's brother, had been murdered by Rufus, who had in turn lost his own empire to the protector of the planet and been made into something less than he had been.
Their eyes locked, and an unspoken oath passed between them.
And suddenly, it was as if the two knew everything about each other. Rufus, who had been crippled and humiliated by Diamond, would seek out and destroy all of its kind, ridding the planet of these so-called protectors. And this Weapon, who Rufus instinctively knew was Obsidian, would stop at nothing to right the wrong that had been committed to the planet, to take back what had been stolen.
And then Rufus knew in that moment that Obsidian, for all the hatred it had for him, had not been born from the planet to kill him.
The Weapon turned away from Rufus, and leaped away from Midgar, sailing away into the air, only to land miles away, creating another small earthquake with its landing. All of Midgar trembled, save Rufus, who stood even straighter and screamed.
"You coward! I will kill you!"
It leaped upwards once more, and into the distance, away from its nemesis.
When it was no longer in sight, Rufus fell forward, and managed to clutch at the rail of the balcony with his one good arm.
"I will kill you..." he said quietly to himself.
"Hello hello! Is anyone home?"
The idiot has returned at last, Rufus thought to himself. "I'm here. On the balcony."
He heard Palmer's approach from behind him, along with the footsteps of two others. Rufus summoned up his dignity and managed to stand up, fully erect, before any of them could see him. He turned to face them.
Along with Palmer had come the Turks, killers and kidnapers, thieves and spies, who had proven useful in the past. Since Tseng had died, though, murdered by Avalanche, the Turks had shown a decline under the new leadership. He hoped that would be corrected.
"Reno, Rude, Elena." Rufus said their names one by one, giving each a nod. He had trouble remember the blond girl's name. The only times he had heard it were in requests sent by Reno to have her replaced. Well, they were all he had for now. "I have a series of jobs for you. I will admit right now that I have no means to pay you at the moment, but when this is through, I will make the three of you rich enough that you will be able to retire and live a life in unparalleled luxury. What do you say?"
A smile appeared on Elena's face. She seemed almost as happy to serve the President of Shinra, a dead empire, as Palmer did. An annoyed flicked appeared on Reno's face at the mention of lack of funds. Rude's face betrayed no emotion.
"No money?" Reno exclaimed. "We have expenses that will need to be paid off right away, weapons that will need to be supplied. Even if your credit was good, we'd need these things now."
"We can make due with what we have," Elena retorted. "We have that back up stash of supplies that Tseng left in Kalm, remember?
Reno sighed. "Elena. You talk too much. I don't think we should accept this job. It's bogus. What do we get out of it but promises?"
Rude placed a hand on Ren's shoulder and a silent conversation passed between their eyes. Reno looked away after a moment and then nodded.
"Fine fine," the red-haired Turk said. "We'll do it. But I expect to be paid. Now, who do you need killed?"
"No one for now," Rufus answered. "I must first find out what other allies I have. In the mean time, go collect your supplies, then bring them here. Those are our only assets right now, but I assure you, when we're finished, you will be paid back."
Reno looked like he was going to say something else, but a glace from Rude made him clamp his mouth shut. The leader of the Turks nodded, then turned to leave. The other two followed him.
"Well, boss, now what?" Palmer asked.
"You may leave me," Rufus said, a dead calm in his voice.
The overweight businessman nodded, and made his way out of the apartment.
"Now," Rufus said, "I plan to destroy Weapon."
Author's Note: My god am I on a roll. Wow. Alright, I might even do another chapter after this.
Chapter Five
Rufus' Whale
Rufus could feel it even before the tremors started. It began as a presence, a feeling that something was in the room with him, hovering nearby, always overshadowing him. Then slowly, it became a wave of feelings. Despair. Loss. Sorrow. Panick. Rage.
Slowly standing, Rufus lifted the blankets out of his way and stumbled out of the room that Reeve had been sheltering him in. He stumbled away from the cot, and tried to make it to the door on the other side of the room. It felt like a battle for survival.
His legs refused to work properly, and the pants Reeve had given him were too long, so he kept tripping on them. The bandages that covered most of his upper body hampered him, and the sling that his left arm was in prevented him from using that hand to catch himself whenever he tripped.
It took him almost ten minutes to cover a distance of ten feet to the door.
Then the tremors began.
Rufus threw open the doors, revealing a balcony to the outside. Sun poured down on him, and he involuntarily winced. He stood straight up, overlooking the ruins of what once was the greatest city on the planet.
All about him, buildings trembled from the force of a small earthquake, the surviving people of Midgar scurried about like the human rats they were. Only Rufus, crippled as he was, was able to stand straight up and look the horror that was occuring in the eye.
In the center of the city where the Sister Ray once stood was now a colossal beast, rising from the belly of the planet itself.
Rufus recognized it instantly.
Where its brother, Diamond, had been a hulking white mass, slow and clumsy, but unbelievably powerful, this Weapon was sleek and black, slender, with a grace that was awe inspiring. It opened its mouth and let out a powerful bellow that screamed its pain at the world, and then it turned, its brilliant green eyes settling on Rufus, half a city away.
Their eyes locked. Diamond, what could be called this Weapon's brother, had been murdered by Rufus, who had in turn lost his own empire to the protector of the planet and been made into something less than he had been.
Their eyes locked, and an unspoken oath passed between them.
And suddenly, it was as if the two knew everything about each other. Rufus, who had been crippled and humiliated by Diamond, would seek out and destroy all of its kind, ridding the planet of these so-called protectors. And this Weapon, who Rufus instinctively knew was Obsidian, would stop at nothing to right the wrong that had been committed to the planet, to take back what had been stolen.
And then Rufus knew in that moment that Obsidian, for all the hatred it had for him, had not been born from the planet to kill him.
The Weapon turned away from Rufus, and leaped away from Midgar, sailing away into the air, only to land miles away, creating another small earthquake with its landing. All of Midgar trembled, save Rufus, who stood even straighter and screamed.
"You coward! I will kill you!"
It leaped upwards once more, and into the distance, away from its nemesis.
When it was no longer in sight, Rufus fell forward, and managed to clutch at the rail of the balcony with his one good arm.
"I will kill you..." he said quietly to himself.
"Hello hello! Is anyone home?"
The idiot has returned at last, Rufus thought to himself. "I'm here. On the balcony."
He heard Palmer's approach from behind him, along with the footsteps of two others. Rufus summoned up his dignity and managed to stand up, fully erect, before any of them could see him. He turned to face them.
Along with Palmer had come the Turks, killers and kidnapers, thieves and spies, who had proven useful in the past. Since Tseng had died, though, murdered by Avalanche, the Turks had shown a decline under the new leadership. He hoped that would be corrected.
"Reno, Rude, Elena." Rufus said their names one by one, giving each a nod. He had trouble remember the blond girl's name. The only times he had heard it were in requests sent by Reno to have her replaced. Well, they were all he had for now. "I have a series of jobs for you. I will admit right now that I have no means to pay you at the moment, but when this is through, I will make the three of you rich enough that you will be able to retire and live a life in unparalleled luxury. What do you say?"
A smile appeared on Elena's face. She seemed almost as happy to serve the President of Shinra, a dead empire, as Palmer did. An annoyed flicked appeared on Reno's face at the mention of lack of funds. Rude's face betrayed no emotion.
"No money?" Reno exclaimed. "We have expenses that will need to be paid off right away, weapons that will need to be supplied. Even if your credit was good, we'd need these things now."
"We can make due with what we have," Elena retorted. "We have that back up stash of supplies that Tseng left in Kalm, remember?
Reno sighed. "Elena. You talk too much. I don't think we should accept this job. It's bogus. What do we get out of it but promises?"
Rude placed a hand on Ren's shoulder and a silent conversation passed between their eyes. Reno looked away after a moment and then nodded.
"Fine fine," the red-haired Turk said. "We'll do it. But I expect to be paid. Now, who do you need killed?"
"No one for now," Rufus answered. "I must first find out what other allies I have. In the mean time, go collect your supplies, then bring them here. Those are our only assets right now, but I assure you, when we're finished, you will be paid back."
Reno looked like he was going to say something else, but a glace from Rude made him clamp his mouth shut. The leader of the Turks nodded, then turned to leave. The other two followed him.
"Well, boss, now what?" Palmer asked.
"You may leave me," Rufus said, a dead calm in his voice.
The overweight businessman nodded, and made his way out of the apartment.
"Now," Rufus said, "I plan to destroy Weapon."
Author's Note: My god am I on a roll. Wow. Alright, I might even do another chapter after this.