Flower of Fate
A cloudy, dreamlike image slowly materialized out of the white haze. Bright fluorescent lights sent dazzling rays wherever he looked. A large room with large windows for walls came into view, but it was fuzzy, as if he were viewing it on television with really bad resolution. At one end of the room, he saw a huge, plump man wearing green, a short fat guy wearing a red suit, and a scrawny, skinny guy wearing just plain blue. They all stood around a huge desk. To Cloud, it looked pretty expensive, but he couldn't really see too clearly. Back in the back of his head, something clicked. This was the President Shinra's office. But what was he doing here? Did they capture him? They didn't seem to act as if he were there. What the hell is going on? Cloud thought to himself. Surprisingly, something, but not the people, responded him, You'll see. Cloud couldn't find the source of the voice, but the other guys didn't seem to notice it either.
"President Shinra, I've just been to the Sector 5 reactor! The soldiers were all knocked out cold and-" the messenger stammered as he rushed wildly into the president's office. He didn't seem to notice Cloud was there either.
"I thought as much. It just so happens I have already taken the next step. We'll just have to get rid of AVALANCHE in a different way. What do our sources say about the man with the gun for an arm? I'm sure one of our contacts have seen him," the president responded.
"My sources have relayed to me that the man was seen frequently hopping the trains to Sector 7. We don't know exactly where," The man in green responded gruffly.
"Good work, Heidegger. I believe that we'll do something drastic this time. Why don't we drop the plate?" the president asked calmly.
"What? Drop the plate? We can't do that! It would cost so many lives! How would you cover up for the incident?" spluttered the man with jet-black hair, "Is it really necessary to drop the plate to kill just a group with a few people in it?"
"Reeve, face it. You're an idiot. You're so low that you don't even get paid enough to buy new suits with. You'd better flush those problems of yours the next time to go to take a shit 'cause you're so full of it that-"
"Heidegger, please. Reeve has simply been working too long. And whom are you going to give the job to? I don't want any fools to be assigned to do something of this magnitude," President Shinra said in that calm tone of his. Guffawing loudly, Heidegger managed to say, "I'll get the Turks on it," as he left the office guffawing. Reeve turned beet red and clenched his fists in fury. "Reeve, maybe you really should take a vacation. After all, you've been working extraordinarily hard these past few months," the president suggested. Reeve shook his head emphatically.
"No, president. It is my job to see that Midgar is running properly. Dropping a plate would kill tens of thousands of inhabitants. We'd also lose lots of power in the surrounding areas. People aren't going to like this. Not only is the order of the city going to fall apart, the people's faith in Shinra will waver as well," Reeve explained.
"No need to worry, Reeve. I have it all planned out. We will drop the plate, and the incident will be blamed entirely on AVALANCHE. It will only bolster the people's confidence in Shinra. AVALANCHE will be as good as dead. Even if they survive, our story will spread so much hatred against them that they'll report any sightings of AVALANCHE members. Trust me, Reeve," the president said. Reeve forced a nod. After all, what else could you do in the president's presence? Turning on his heel, Reeve stalked right towards Cloud. Trying to move away so that Reeve wouldn't bump into him, Cloud found that he couldn't move a muscle. He was even more surprised when Reeve walked right through him. Cloud just saw a flash of black and Reeve was gone, presumably behind him. The president just turned around and began to mumble to himself. Something about him caught Cloud's attention, yet he didn't know what.
The images faded into the white mist it had come out of, and the disembodied voice appeared again. Now, try and get up. What was this thing talking about? Where am I anyway? What are you? Cloud thought. Eerily, the voice responded as if it could read his mind. You will soon find out. With that the voice faded away, and Cloud could not understand what that was all about. He groaned, not in his head this time, but out loud. To his surprise, a feminine voice, only vaguely familiar, came from somewhere nearby.
"Oh! You're still alive!" the voice said. Cloud cracked one of his eyes open, and the real world came into focus. He saw those lovely brown eyes again, with wisps of hair almost touching his face. Cloud moved his arms and legs. They seemed to be all right. He'd be bruised, sure, but nothing permanent. The face disappeared as he tried to get up. He felt small, yet callused hands grabbing his forearm and pulling him to his feet. Taking a careful look at the young lady once again, Cloud found himself with none other than the flower girl selling flowers the night before.
"Fancy meeting you again, and here," Cloud said vaguely.
"Yeah, I was so surprised when you crashed down through the roof. I thought you'd surely have died," she said shakily, "The roof and flowers must have broken your fall, even though they aren't much."
"What! Oh, I'm so sorry about the flowers!" Cloud yelped as he discovered he was in a bed of yellow flowers like that he had bought.
"It's OK, really. The flowers in this church appear to be truly resilient. I don't know many things that can stand up to a fall like that one," the lady said, her brows knitted in heavy thought. Suddenly, she seemed to drop whatever she was thinking and said, "By the way, my name is Aeris. I think it's OK to introduce myself since it's the second time we've met already."
"Oh, I'm Cloud," Cloud replied, trying to sound sure of himself. Aeris appeared to be unconvinced.
"Do you remember who I am?" Aeris asked Cloud, thinking that maybe this wasn't the same person.
"Oh, yeah. I remember. You were selling flowers on the streets. I bought a flower from you," Cloud said quickly, "I was referring to your name. Aeris isn't a very common name, is it?"
"No, it's not. I'm glad you remember me, though. It at least says that you didn't suffer lots of brain damage," she said as they shared a laugh, "What do you do for a living anyway? You know I sell flowers already."
"Me? I'm an all-purpose kind of guy. I do whatever's needed," Cloud responded, resuming his tough-guy attitude.
"Oh! A jack of all trades!" Aeris teased as a man entered from the church's two double-doors. He had spiked brown hair, and he wore sunglasses on top of his head. He wore marginally formal apparel, a black coat with a white-collar shirt and black dress pants. Expensive leather shoes finished his neat appearance.
"Oh, don't mind me. I'm just passing my time here," the man said in a voice in a gentle, yet chilling tone as Aeris and Cloud turned towards him.
"Cloud, have you ever been a bodyguard?" Aeris asked quietly, no longer with a teasing air.
"I've done it before, why?" Cloud responded.
"I want to ask you. Will you be my bodyguard for a while?" she told him.
"Sure, why not? I'll even do it for free this time." Cloud said.
"For how many people have you done a job free of charge for?" Aeris asked curiously, yet the strain in her voice told Cloud that she was tense about something.
"Um, actually, you're the first," Cloud mumbled, embarrassed.
"Oh, well, that's OK. You don't have to be so embarrassed you know," she said quickly. The man with the spiked hair took a few steps towards the two. Something in Cloud told him that this guy was no ordinary guy. He was obviously up to something. Suddenly, something in Cloud's brain clicked. The suit and glasses, he'd seen it somewhere before, but where? Shinra, he worked for Shinra, Cloud thought, struggling with his memories. He must be a member of the Turks! The Turks were the dark side of Shinra; they did the dirty work for the company. Breaking away from his thoughts, Cloud moved to a better position to protect Aeris.
"Aeris, stay behind me," Cloud mumbled quietly, so only Aeris could hear what he was saying. In a much louder voice, Cloud said, "I know who you work for, and you're not going to come any closer." It was an empty threat, but the guy hadn't seen Cloud fall, and so he wouldn't know that Cloud wasn't in any shape for a fight.
"Do you even know who I am?" the guy asked, "What are you doing anyway? This business of mine doesn't concern you." Suddenly, four or five soldiers burst in through the doors. "You bunch of fools! You weren't supposed to come in so soon!" the Turk yelled, his attention distracted for a moment, "You're a disgrace! You can't even follow simple orders!" While he was reprimanding his troops, Cloud felt Aeris tapping him on the shoulder. Turning his head, he saw Aeris heading towards the back of the church. Knowing he probably couldn't get out of a fight unscathed, Cloud quickly followed her, keeping an eye one his enemies, who were still unaware of their escape. Slipping through the doorway, he found himself in a dilapidated room where rotten floorboards, a broken board, and several gaping holes and pits populated the floor, exposing the dank basement beneath them and a large iron pipe the size of a sewage pipe. The room was in horrible shape and dark. Against one wall was a staircase that led down to the basement, but a ragged hole nearby was located just above the last few steps.
"This area of the church is in really bad shape," she whispered, jumping over a yard-wide gap in the floor. "Lots of things have been here, and long ago, someone broke the boards here. There hasn't been money to fix this place up yet, so it remains just as dilapidated." Cloud quickly followed suit, and the two climbed up the set of oak stairs leading to a three-foot-wide ledge that led along the sides of the walls. Unfortunately, they didn't manage to escape the Turk and his henchmen. Leaping over another gap on the second floor, Cloud forgot for the moment that he was supposed to be escorting Aeris. Turning around, Cloud yelled out to her, "Jump!" Aeris prepared to jump, but the soldiers spotted her before she could jump.
"Look! There she is, get her!" someone yelled as the soldiers opened fire on the girl. "You fools! If you hurt her I'll flay you alive!" the Turk yelled at the soldiers, slapping at their heads to try to get them to stop firing. Luckily, their aim was so bad none of the soldiers managed to hit her directly. However, the bullets did rip through the ground before Aeris, causing her to recoil, and she took a step back onto the edge of the splintering ledge. When she stepped back, the edge crumbled, causing Aeris to lose her footing. With a small gasp of surprise, she tumbled down towards the lower floors. She hit the edge of the hole nearby the basement and slipped off of the torn edges into the basement, ripping her pink dress. Hitting the hard concrete floor knocked the breath out of her, rendering her unable to fend for herself. She knelt on all fours, panting. Cloud groaned and tried to find a way to get her out. Looking above at the rafters, Cloud spotted several large barrels. Taking a glance downward, Cloud saw Aeris recovering from her fall. She stumbled up the stairs only to be confronted by a soldier.
"Cloud! Help me!" Aeris wailed, clutching the wooden banister tightly. Quickly climbing up the rusty iron ladder to rafters, Cloud grabbed a barrel, which felt empty, and heaved it over with stunning accuracy. The barrel landed on the advancing soldier's head, crushing most of the bones in his neck and causing him to tumble down the stairs. Aeris flattened her body against the side of the passage, barely avoiding the tumbling soldier. Cloud was checking other barrels to see if there was anything in them that he could use. Opening the lid of a particularly rotten barrel, Cloud found it full of dry sawdust. Replacing the lid, Cloud picked it up and slung it downward with all his might towards the remaining soldiers. The barrel broke apart upon impact and the thick clouds that bloomed from the barrel immediately blinded the soldiers. Aeris clattered her way loudly up the stairs to the second floor. Cloud swung down and leapt over the edge to the other side. Cupping his gloved hands, Cloud waited for Aeris to step in them so he could help her over. As soon as he felt her weight, Cloud heaved with all his strength and she flew over to safety. Unfortunately, Cloud gave Aeris too much momentum, and she couldn't regain her footing when she landed. Stumbling, she fell to the ledge. Cloud leapt over and yanked her to her feet.
"Hurry up," Cloud whispered fiercely in Aeris's ear as he gave her a gentle push towards the ladder, "They won't be blinded for much longer!" The soldiers below were having coughing fits and rubbing their eyes of dust. As the two reached the rafters, Cloud heard, distantly but quite distinctly, the sound of a cell phone ringing. Taking advantage of the moment, Cloud searched for a way out, but they appeared to be closed in. Far below, he could hear the soldiers yelling. They didn't have much time to get out of this place. Suddenly, he felt a gentle tug on his arm. Aeris was furtively motioning for him to go towards the end of one of the rafters. In the dark, Cloud couldn't see much, but when as he approached the place where the roof met the rafters, Cloud noticed that it was a repair hatch for if the roof was damaged and needed to be repaired. Cloud pushed open the hatch and helped Aeris out of the building onto the roof. Cloud followed quickly, swinging himself up through the hatch and closed it shut. They were safe for the time being.
"We'd better get away from here, or else they'll find us," Cloud muttered quietly, helping Aeris along the roof.
"I'm not that helpless!" Aeris said indignantly, brushing Cloud off. Shrugging, Cloud hopped over onto one of the old, long-abandoned hovels that were used as junk sheds. They were made haphazardly, and they looked like someone simply slapped pieces of metal together. It was, however, a reasonably stable structure, able to carry Cloud's weight. Several other shacks littered the area, each about a yard apart. Some were much larger than others, and others had more than one layer. Hopping over a series of hovels, Cloud used the buildings like a staircase until he was able to get to the ground rather easily. Aeris followed, though at a much slower pace.
"Hey, wait for me!" Aeris called out, preparing to jump to the next roof. After she caught up, Cloud teased, "That's funny, I thought you were all cut out to be in SOLDIER."
"Oh, you're a terrible bodyguard," Aeris complained, but her carefree giggle gave her away. After they jumped off the final shack, they found themselves in an intersection.
"How did you know about that hatch back there?" Cloud asked Aeris.
"Oh, I used to use that hatch to get out," Aeris replied, "They're probably trying to find out where I went again."
"Before? These people came after you before?" Cloud exclaimed.
"Well, yeah," Aeris explained, "Who are those people, anyway?"
"They're the Turks. They mainly scout for potential candidates for SOLDIER, but they do lots of other things on the side too like blackmail and murder. You know, those kind of things," Cloud defined accurately without hesitation.
"No wonder it felt so much like being kidnapped!" Aeris exclaimed in awe, shaking her head.
"Do you know why they're after you?" Cloud asked her.
"They think I have the potential to be in SOLDIER," Aeris said, blushing deeply. Cloud heard some faint noises in the church below.
"Do you want to be in SOLDIER?" Cloud asked curiously.
"No way," Aeris said, shaking her head emphatically.
"So, which way should we go now?" Cloud asked her, changing the subject.
"My house is that way, let's go," Aeris said, straightening up and pointing towards the right fork. A few seconds after they began to walk towards the small group of houses in Sector 5, a dirty guy wearing a worn red bandana and a stained shirt made a grab for Aeris. Fulfilling his duty as a bodyguard, Cloud put one hand on her shoulder, a signal for her to stop as his other hand snatched the guy's wrist inches from Aeris's body.
"Hey, hey! Leggo or I'll hafta hurt ya!" the thug sputtered. Cloud rolled his eyes and snapped back the offending guy's wrist. Squealing in pain, the thug suddenly noticed that Cloud had a huge sword nearly as big as he was slung across his back. Seeing his eyes widen to the size of saucers, Cloud simply smiled and let go. The thug, no longer very threatening, ran off without a moment's hesitation. Cloud snaked his arm around Aeris's waist, pulling her just slightly closer to him as they walked. The rest of the gang members didn't budge from their places. Cloud could almost smell the fear on them.
"You didn't have to make such a lasting impression on those guys," Aeris said softly. She didn't want the gang's pride, if they had any, to be hurt. "They'll be scared out of their wits for months now."
Entering the actual neighborhood, Cloud let go of Aeris and allowed her to guide him towards her house. There wasn't any danger around here, since there was the slum police force patrolling around. Leading Cloud around the central group of shacks, Aeris led him towards a small garden full of the same flowers in the church and an old Victorian house. Cloud nearly gasped when he saw it, for it was by far the most stunning building that he had ever seen in his life.
"Is this your house?" Cloud asked in a hoarse whisper, awed by the sheer beauty of the place compared to the rest of the Sector 5 slums.
"Yep, Come on! I want you to meet my mom," Aeris said jubilantly, hopping up the front steps.
"How did you manage to get a place like this?" Cloud asked, still shocked by the respect that the place seemed to command.
"Well, I'm not really sure. I think it's been in the family for years," Aeris said, frowning slightly as she unlocked the front door with a key she fished out of her red denim jacket and swinging open the door. Cloud followed quietly, trying to look professional. He was, after all, a hired bodyguard. Cloud found himself in an immaculate room with some very old furniture.
"Mom! I'm home!" Aeris called out to the empty house.
"Aeris, do you know how to get to Sector 7? I need to go see Tifa," Cloud said, immediately wishing Tifa's name hadn't been brought up.
"Is Tifa a girl?" Aeris asked, suddenly sounding a bit hurt. When Cloud nodded, she asked tentatively, "A girl as in a girlfriend?" At this, Cloud shook his head, not knowing if she believed him or not. He felt better after Aeris gave a relieved sigh. A few seconds later, a prim woman wearing an emerald green dress and an apron appeared at the top of the staircase. Her hair was worn in a small bun without a single strand of hair out of place.
"Oh, Aeris, you're back! I'm glad you made it safely," she exclaimed. Noticing Cloud, she inquired with the slightest tone of skepticism, "And who might this young man be?"
"Oh, this is Cloud, he was my bodyguard on the way back," Aeris explained quickly, "Cloud, this is my mom, Elmyra."
"You were followed again?" Aeris's mother exclaimed, "Oh my, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, mom," Aeris said, exasperated, "I had Cloud with me. I think I'm going to need to change though, my dress got ripped."
"I'll fix that up for you sometime, dear. You had better go change." Aeris nodded and slowly climbed the stairs to the second floor. "So, you're Cloud, are you?" the woman said.
"Yes, ma'am," Cloud replied with respect, "I'm mostly a mercenary, but I do whatever's needed."
"Ah, yes, a useful trade," the woman said thoughtfully, "And call me Elmyra. I always feel awkward when people address me in such a formal way." Looking at Cloud straight in the eye, she noticed the odd glow in his eyes. Upon seeing this, Elmyra asked, "Your eyes, they have a sort of glow to them. You wouldn't happen to be in SOLDIER, would you?"
"I used to be in SOLDIER, but I quit awhile back," Cloud said, nodding, "Not many people know about the glowing eyes thing being a mark of SOLDIER." Aeris came down the stairs wearing a new pink dress, this one free of rips and tears. She held a chrome rod made from a lightweight, yet sturdy alloy.
"Mom, I'm taking Cloud to Sector 7, I'll be back in a while." Aeris said, heading towards the door.
"But Aeris, it's so late now, why don't you wait until morning? I'm sure Cloud would be glad to stay with us for the night." Elmyra protested. Aeris hesitated, but turned around and said, "You're right, I'll go and make the beds." With that, she trudged up the stairs. Turning towards Cloud, Elmyra whispered, "Cloud?" Turning his attention to her, she continued, "I really don't know how to say this, but Sector 6 is a dangerous place, if you know what I mean, and I don't want Aeris to go, so could you leave in the middle of the night without telling her? I don't want to sound rude or anything, but-"
"It's all right, I understand," Cloud said, but he had the feeling that Elmyra didn't trust him to be with Aeris alone because he was in SOLDIER. Shinra caused all kinds of difficulties like this. Elmyra nodded, but she didn't seem convinced. Aeris suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs.
"I got the room ready for you, Cloud. You'd better get some sleep. We're going to get up early tomorrow morning," Aeris called down. Feeling he had little choice but to go upstairs with her, Cloud took a quick glance back at Elmyra. However, she no longer showed expression of any sort and was retreating into the kitchen, but Cloud couldn't begin to fathom the reason why. Trudging up the stairs, Cloud closely examined the ornate wood of the banister. Though the house was extraordinarily old, the banister showed no signs of splintering. They obviously treated the house well. When he reached the second floor, Aeris was waiting for him.
"That one's your room," she said, pointing to the door at the end of the hall, "Would you like me to sing you a lullaby?" she added playfully. Cloud shook his head vehemently. "Well, fine then. I'll just kiss you good night then," Aeris said, giving Cloud a quick peck on the cheek before he could object. By the time he looked back, Aeris had swept into her own room. I guess I don't really have a choice but to get some rest, Cloud thought. With that, he went into his room. One thing Cloud noticed was that everything in the house was clean. There was not a speck of dust anywhere. This particular room was small, yet it didn't feel cramped, even with the nightstand, the bed, and the desk crammed into a room the size of a prison cell. With a sigh, Cloud flopped onto the soft bed, waiting for Aeris to fall asleep so he could sneak away.
It's been a long time since I slept in a bed like this, Cloud thought. When was the last time I was in a bed this comfortable? Suddenly, a memory flashed before him. He was at his mom's house. Turning his head, he could see his mom sitting by the window. Wait, isn't my mom dead? Cloud wondered, didn't she perish in that fire five years ago? Has it been that long since I felt a bed like this one? Eager to discover more, Cloud slipped into unconsciousness, allowing the memory to flow like a rampant river.
"My, my, I haven't seen you sleep like this before. Is something wrong?" his mother sighed, worried about her son.
"It's nothing, mom. I'm just tired. That's all," he said, drawing his breath slowly.
"The girls must never leave you alone in the city," his mother guessed.
"No, not really," he answered.
"You know, I'd prefer it if you just settled down with a steady girlfriend. If you ask me, I think she should be a bit older than you, so she can take care of you. What do you think?"
"I'm all right, mom, really. It doesn't really matter to me." With that, blackness covered his sight. Suddenly, a cold voice resonated through his mind. So, what's it like to be back home? What? He'd heard this voice before, but where? Don't you remember me? It asked, the syllables bouncing around, jumbling together. Suddenly, a high-pitched laugh filled his head. It was unbearable, evil, cold. Cloud's eyes shot open, and the laugh faded, yet Cloud could still hear its remnants sounding, and the voice far away, saying something he could not hear. Was I asleep? Cloud thought, jolted back into the real world. Glancing at the clock on the wall, Cloud noted that it was nearly 11:30, which meant that Aeris would be asleep by now. Silently, Cloud slipped out of bed, and silently cracked the door open. The house was as quiet as a grave. Without making a sound, Cloud tiptoed down the hall to the staircase. Careful not to make a single sound, he crept down the stairs like a snail. When he finally reached the bottom, Cloud paused and listened. He couldn't hear anything save for the faint tick of a clock somewhere. Cloud sneaked to the door, which he found unlocked, and quietly slipped out of the door, with only a tiny sound as he closed it. Straightening up, Cloud walked off into the night, headed for Sector 7
Cloud wandered around the silent neighborhood, listening for any kind of sound. Sometimes, he could hear a light scuffle in the background, but every time he swung his head around to search for that sound, he couldn't see a thing. Shrugging each time, Cloud picked his way back to the intersection. Aeris said that it was the other fork that led to Sector 6, which he would go through to get to Sector 7. A large, cracked concrete hole in a wall looked much more like a cave entrance than a sector gate. As Cloud loosened his sheathe, preparing to go through the gateway, someone yelled from behind him. Swinging around and putting a hand to his sword, he saw, much to his dismay, Aeris running towards him with her chrome rod in her hand.
"Hey, wait for me!" she yelled as she ran towards him. Astonished, Cloud dropped his guard.
"Aeris! You shouldn't be here," Cloud exclaimed urgently, "Why are you here, anyway?"
"I thought you wanted to get to Sector 7," Aeris sniffed, slightly hurt that Cloud didn't want her to go.
"Well, I don't want you coming because… because I don't want you to get hurt," Cloud said in a more gentle tone, "How did you know I left? I didn't make a sound when I left."
"Well, I was wide awake, thinking about something, and I heard the front door open and close," Aeris explained. Cloud shrugged. "Anyway, I'm coming with you! You don't know the way to get to Sector 7, and Sector 6 is rather dangerous, so I'm coming with you, whether you want me to or not!" she said firmly, determined to go with Cloud.
"Well, I guess I can't stop you from coming," Cloud said, admitting defeat, "I'll let you come, but you have to promise me that you won't get into trouble."
"Don't worry, I live in the slums. Here, you have to be able to protect yourself. And besides, we don't know what could be lurking around in the dark, so I can't really promise you. But I'll try really hard not to," Aeris promised him, her eyes twinkling like the stars that couldn't be seen. With that, she skipped through the gateway. "Hey, wait up!" Cloud yelled, chasing after her through the hole in the wall.