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Chapter 1
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Verick Jasco, Sr., current head of what had once been the most powerful corporation on the Planet, looked out of his theater-screen-sized office window. Junon sprawled beneath him in all its patchwork glory. The military base, as the largest remaining city after the cataclysm, had become the new capitol after Midgar's strange destruction. Not that it had necessarily been a bad thing, Jasco thought; the Plate had been pretty much the only portion of that dungheap worth keeping, and Diamond Weapon had taken care of that.
It had been only two years since the world had turned upside-down. Jasco, smart as ever, had abandoned Midgar with his son long before the meteor hit. He had also been in the exact right place at the right time to snatch up ShinRa Power Corp. before it completely collapsed. Now, he ran a kinder, gentler ShinRa, known worldwide for its dedication to rebuilding devastated areas. He smiled to himself and turned to his secretary.
"Contact my son. I have something to discuss with him."
Verick Jasco, Jr., rightful heir to the new ShinRa Electric Company, was already in the elevator and heading to the sixty-fifth floor with a purpose of his own. He was delivering a message from the receptionist at the desk to one of the upper-level men that his meeting had been moved to a separate time. Though son of the most powerful authority figure in the city, he still did the basic work, such as delivering messages and cleaning floors if one of the janitors was out. For some reason, he felt the need to work despite his position.
His pager beeped in his pocket. He pulled it out, knowing just who would page him at ten-thirty this morning. It was his father, of course, probably wanting to speak with him about some trivial business opportunity because he needed a second opinion. Grunting and turning up his lip-he disliked his father immensely, though his mask looked as if he loved the man-he stuffed it back into his pocket and stopped the elevator. He slid his card key for top-floor access, felt the jolt and heard the ding that signified that the elevator recognized him as an executive, followed by a cheery, robotic, "Hello, Mr. Jasco." He rolled his eyes and stepped off the elevator at the top floor, ignoring the equally-cheery, equally-fake, "Have a nice day."
He turned to his father's personal receptionist on the way and told her to page Mr. Jimmson about the meeting delay, then put on the cheery smile and opened the door to his father's office. He crept in and shut the oak slab behind him with a faint click. "You wish to speak to me, Father?"
Jasco, Sr. nodded, hands clasped behind his back. He appeared to be studying the city. Without looking up, he spoke to his secretary. "Leave us, will you, Maria? I'd like to speak to my son in private."
He waited until she'd gone, then turned to his son. A slight frown tugged at his mouth. "Have you been delivering messages again?"
His son straightened his face and raised his chin a bit higher in defiance. "Father, you know how bland this place is compared to what I'm used to. Besides, it's much more effective for me to do that and let the receptionist handle something more pressing. Rufus ShinRa never delivered messages, and look where he and his father are."
"Yes, you have a point." Jasco smirked. "Let's get to business, then, shall we?" He sat at the desk and unlocked a drawer. Four files came out, and he placed three of them on the desk for his son to see. "A little something I've been working on in my spare time. You should recognize these names."
Each file was labeled neatly with a name. The first read, "Drannor, Reno". The other two were labeled, "Zikra, Rudolph" and "Sayler, Elena".
Picking one of the folders up gingerly--Zikra, Rudolph--Verick nodded slowly. He now realized this would not be some trivial business matter. When the Turks' names came into play, the dice started getting a gold plating and they were playing for keeps. "Yes, very familiar names indeed. The three Turks they said went missing during the Meteor incident and reappeared months later in Wutai in some no-name bar. Why are we bringing them up now?" Though he was intrigued to a high extent, he tried to keep too much wonder out of his voice, fearing to sound vulnerable.
"I want them." Jasco looked gratified at his son's flash of surprise. It took a lot to put the boy off-balance. "I never intended to keep this business all sweetness and light. ShinRa and his family had the right goals but the wrong execution." He leaned forward, gesturing. "ShinRa started a war where they needed a lighter touch. They squandered their resources. These people," he jabbed a finger at the files, "could be our greatest asset. Think about it.
"Between them, and this," he brandished the fourth file, "we could rule the world."
Verick mentally debated his father's words. Everyone knew Old Man ShinRa had been driven to madness by the gil involved in the company, and though his father's sanity had been questionable lately, he had a feeling he knew exactly what he was talking about. With the Turks in their hands, they would have the most elite task force not bent on mindless slaughter-unlike the SOLDIER Program-known to man. It was then that he saw the name on the final file. He kept his gaze even, unconcerned, though his heart had just jolted. "And this? What does this have to do with the Turks?" he asked incredulously, barely keeping the edge from his voice.
Jasco raised a brow. "This, my boy, is the key to it all." He handed the file over, the name, "Kisaragi, Yu Fei" written in Jasco's bold hand on the tab. He grinned at his son. "There are two ways to conquer the world, son. Take it by force, or marry it."
Verick's eyes narrowed, wondering just what his father was implying. The soon-to-be Queen of Wutai would not be one easily won over, especially by someone from was essentially a new version of ShinRa. It took him a moment to realize that, while his father certainly would have no problem wedding someone nearly half his age, that this was not his intention. 'So the twit wants to marry me off to some oriental girl so he can stuff his pockets a little tighter. Play along, Verick, that's all we can do.' He smiled gently, as if mocking his father. "So you've taught me in the past, Father. But my question remains unanswered; what part does Yuffie Kisaragi of Wutai play in achieving the loyalty of the Turks, particularly that filthy firebrand Drannor?" he asked, half in curiosity, half in disgust.
With an exaggerated sigh, his father motioned for him to open the Kisaragi file. "As you see by the photos, they appear to have become close over the last couple of years. How close, I have no idea, and it really isn't important. However, the relationship between the girl and her father, Godo, is less than perfect. I've spoken with him already about her; he wants to marry her off as soon as possible. That's where you come in. Where she goes, Drannor goes, and thus the remaining Turks will follow. We win Godo's undying loyalty for taking the girl off his hands and getting the Turks out of his country. The Turks listen to us because we have Yuffie. Yuffie gives us access to Wutai on every level." Now he sat back, hands folded. "Well?"
Verick flipped through the files, seeing everything from Drannor and Yuffie in a respectable café, looking like casual friends, to the two of them-taken from across the way-standing atop the pagoda appearing as if they were...tickling each other. He grunted in disgust, but cut the noise off short, momentarily forgetting his father was no less than four feet away. True, the plan did have its appealing side; anyone with eyes could see that Kisaragi was a mountable prize, but Drannor was no joke, even he would admit. If threatened, that man would kill without a second thought. His father had basically said he was going to marry him off, and win the loyalty of Godo. When that was done, it didn't matter about his own relationship with Yuffie, so long as the power remained.
He shut the folder and clasped his hands behind his back, much as his father often did, and nodded firmly. "I think we may have just become the two most powerful men on the Planet."
Jasco grinned. "I knew you'd agree."
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Author's Notes:
This is the first posting of a project that's been a year in the works. The five of us--Reno Spiegel, Drakonlily, Tio Rank P, Lindz, and ChocoboGoddess--got together in November of 2002. Since then, we've done separate projects or smaller, collaborative works, but nothing with all five of us.
Well, that's all going to change. Thanks for checking out Chapter 1. Read, review, and make us write! :D
~CG
Editor's Notes:
Second post, similar to the first. Due to a lack of time and place, and well, the ability to get together, Wriden went on Hiatus. We are back now, I have taken over the edits, and the cast should remain mostly the same. Look for the notes before the chapter to see who is who. Thanks for reading!
~Drakonlily
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