Cloud Strife and Rude Zikra: Drakonlily
Reno Drannor and Verick Jasco, Jr.: Reno Spiegel
Elena Sayler and Godo Kisaragi: Lindz
Emmerson Reeve and Verick Jasco, Sr: Chocobo Goddess
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Chapter 2
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Cloud strolled down the main street of Wutai. It had been literally two years since he last been to the small nation. That was to drop Yuffie off. Godo had been very simplistic in his request, he never wanted to see any of AVALANCHE again. Yuffie had made the trip to visit Cloud once, about a year ago, but that was the last time he saw the ninja.
That was a year ago, and people had finally stopped calling him for things that heroic people were supposed to do. He really just wanted to be left alone. He didn't think that he was a hero, by a long shot. As a result, Cloud spent the past year wandering.
He had just come from Cosmo Canyon, this time. Talking with Nanaki was liberating now, whereas in the past, it had been nothing short of hard. After he and Tifa broke up, it was Nanaki who offered to have Cloud stay with him for a while. Vincent Valentine would sometimes come up as well, odd, how three totally separate personalities had a common bond. The red canyon walls had become like a home to Cloud, he kept returning there, long after he had sorted himself out. In fact, it was a conversation with Nanaki that spurred him to go to Wutai. The big cat mentioned that he missed Yuffie. So off Cloud went, to pay his old friend a visit.
Cloud left the street and entered the palace. From what the locals said, Yuffie was home with a cold. He hadn't really had a chance to explore the place last time, so he got lost in the maze of hallways. He was about to retrace his steps to find a servant or an exit when he found himself in a rear courtyard. He opened his mouth to call out for someone but stopped at the sound of Godo's familiar, grating voice. Two other people seemed to be with him, and whatever they were talking about, they wanted to keep it quiet. Deciding to keep silent, he shut his mouth and stayed in the shadows. He could see the three figures now; Godo's rotund form looking almost comical beside two sleek, well-dressed ones. With a start, Cloud recognized them as the new president of ShinRa and his son. Verick Jasco, Senior and Junior.
Whatever it was, if those two were involved, it wasn't going to be good.
*****
"I assure you, Lord Godo, my son is quite happy with the arrangement." Jasco, Sr. nodded to the younger version of himself. "Aren't you, Verick?"
Verick nodded, putting on a false face and smiling at Godo like a cat at a mouse. He could be intimidating when he wanted to be, but for now he was pretending to be harmless. He wasn't sure about his thoughts on it quite yet, but fear in Godo came before knowledge in Junior. "Indeed I am, Godo. I must say, your daughter has been seen as a prize by all the men of Wutai for quite some time. I'll be quite..." He paused, raking a well-manicured nail across his own cheek. "Pleased. To know we've made our mark in the city."
Jasco smiled indulgently and turned to the heavy lord of Wutai. "There, you see? All we need now is to tell your daughter."
Godo looked quite happy at the idea that such a fine—and wealthy—young man had expressed an interest in his daughter. "I'm sure Yu Fei will be pleased about the arrangement," he said with a distinct grin.
"Excellent, then, it's settled." Jasco clapped the other two men on the back. "Remember, we want the Turks, too. Don't scare off that Drannor boy or his friends when you tell her. I say, Godo, it's refreshing to do business with you. Now, I believe you mentioned something about lunch? I've been looking forward to your local cuisine all week."
The three men laughed as they left by the opposite door, disappearing into the palace. Their voices faded, the conversation turning to more mundane things now that the serious business was done.
*****
Cloud blinked, waiting until they were gone to move. Yuffie, the Turks, this Jasco? "What the—?" he murmured. "Fuck." His mind worked fast. The men had said Yuffie didn't know yet, and that the Turks were part of their plan. It almost made sense, in a way, that Yuffie would befriend the Turks. After all, Tseng had been Wutain, and in all honesty Cloud wondered sometimes what side the Turks had been on. As trained assassins they should have at least racked in one casualty from the AVALANCHE group. But they hadn't.
If memory served him, Turtle's Paradise would be the best place to start looking for them. They had to get Yuffie out of Wutai, and fast. They could think about what was going on once she was safe. As he made his way to the exit he remembered passing earlier, Cloud thought about her situation. He had to admit that it was nice to know she wasn't alone.
The Turks were in all regards hard to miss. Reno Drannor had bright hair, an almost unnatural shade of red, with a pair of dark scars under his eyes. Rude Zikra was darker-skinned and totally bald, and the fact that he was easily pushing 6'6" in height didn't help him blend in. Elena Sayler, if Cloud recalled, was a pretty blonde who had a difficult time keeping her mouth shut. No one really took her seriously, though she was nice to look at.
Turtle's Paradise came into view. With any luck, he'd find one or more of the Turks there.
Gods grant that they didn't still hold a grudge.
*****
Rude looked up when the door opened to reveal Cloud Strife's short, sturdy form. "Interesting," he muttered, then went back to his drink.
Reno, however, had been lost in his own thoughts about whether or not he should get a new pair of shoes and looking at the ground. He almost bumped into his tall comrade, half a foot taller than himself, and just barely kept himself from spilling his own drink. He was about to tell the lunk-head to move his ass when he caught a glimpse of the newcomer. Cloud Strife. Of all the things he could have said, aside from the likely "What are you doing here?" or "Get out of the doorway," his actual reaction was much more curt, as if he'd expected the hero of the Planet to be there. "What?"
Rude rolled his eyes.
Cloud completely ignored Reno and spoke to Rude. "Where is Yuffie?"
The big man shrugged and looked down at Reno expectantly.
Elena gave Reno a sly look from her seat on the other side of Rude. "Last time I saw her, she and Re couldn't keep their hands off—"
Reno, after stepping on her foot, gave her the darkest of looks. He pushed his sunglasses up and turned back to the spiky-haired man from Neibelheim with an expression of total disgust. Straightening up, he crossed his arms over his chest and stared Cloud down. "As if you didn't know we're dating. Jesus, man, at least talk to the guy who would know. To answer your question, she's been hit with a twenty-four hour flu or something. Should be back with us tonight. Now, why the hell do you care, Spike?"
Cloud snorted. "Look Red, I don't give a shit what—or who—she does in her personal life, but she might be in trouble. She needs to leave Wutai soon. All of you should, too."
The redhead didn't seem to be listening. He was patting his pockets with a mildly disturbed expression on his face, muttering something about missing his cigarettes. Elena smiled a little and poked Reno in the back of the shoulder, shoving something into his hand. "You left them on the table," she grinned. Rude merely grunted as Reno lit one up, a beatific smile forming on his lips.
Cloud found himself growing irritated at their attitudes. "Don't you people care about anything? If not someone else, at least worry about your yourselves."
Reno growled at the blonde and narrowed his eyes, clenching the remaining cigarettes until they nearly all bent. It was going to be a bad day, he decided, and it was only eleven in the morning. He looked at the former hero as if the guy was spitting ping-pong balls and shook his head. "What business do you have running around declaring a state of emergency?" he growled, lip curling to show a few surprisingly white teeth. "And while we're at it, what the hell do you mean?"
With an answering growl, Cloud said, "Drop the attitude, Skinny. You guys have heard of those ShinRa wannabes right? The Jascoes?"
Rude sighed, looking down from Reno to Cloud and then at Elena, shaking his head. Reno evenly held Cloud's gaze, not bothering to respond in any other way. Rude did the talking, or, rather, gesturing. For his part, Reno was still snarling slightly, knowing that somewhere deep down he really hated this guy. He occupied himself with amplifying the act of lighting another cigarette to the most interesting degree.
Cloud rolled his electric blue eyes. Personally, he really didn't have any hard feelings to any of them. If Reno wanted to be a whiny bitch, that was his issue. "Whatever your little hard ass deal is, that's very nice, you have fun with that, okay?" He turned to Rude, figuring (correctly) that the quiet man was the most level-headed one of the group. "Listen, Godo is going to marry Yuffie off to Jasco Jr. I overheard them talking about it in the Palace courtyard half an hour ago."
Rude's eyes widened, a rare sight to be sure, but the only outward indication that he was surprised at all.
Elena grinned. "Aww, poor Reno's gonna lose the love of his life to a little rich boy." She shut her mouth and ducked her head at his expression, however.
Reno's reaction was a bit more forceful than his friends'. Even as he managed to keep a hold on the cigarette, react he did. The mag-rod was clipped to his belt, and he wasn't sure why he didn't pull it out and fry Cloud's shock-headed ass. What he did do was shove Rude to the side—not an easy feat, as he weighed a lot less than his friend—and rush for Cloud, bringing his fist back and thrusting it forward as hard as he could muster once in range. His eyes seemed to crackle soundlessly with rage, and the vein in his neck said the same as he bellowed out "Liar!"
Cloud drew the Ultima Weapon and backed up. Reno was faster, certainly, but Cloud easily had him out-powered. The reach of the long sword would make up for Reno's speed and the rubber grip wouldn't allow the mag-rod's electricity to be conducted to his hands. He raised the blade like a shield and braced himself. "Shut the hell up and listen! What reason would I have to lie? I don't give a fuck if she is seeing you or not, I just don't want her with that jackass."
Halfway through his movement, Reno realized the wide blade had appeared between him and his target, but it was too late to stop. His fist, knuckles bare, slammed into the side of it with a resounding crack. He yelped and drew back to his fellow Turks, glaring at Elena. He was torqued that he'd managed to injure his smoking hand in some stupid accident. His anger receded for a moment, but he was whimpering—hey, he had punched that thing hard—and couldn't speak, so he left that to one of his companions.
Rude rolled his eyes. "Are you done?"
Reno nodded feebly, still whimpering as his eyes teared up. He jumped a little when Cloud held something out to him: a green orb. Cure materia.
Reno snatched it from him, putting aside for a moment the fact that he had just tried to put a hole through Cloud's head. He held out the materia, concentrating for a moment before the cool sensation of the healing spell took over. It would need a day to fully heal, but this numbed it pretty well until the actual spell could work its way to the bones. He now looked more puzzled than anything as he tossed the materia back to Cloud. "Ok, explain, Spike. Who the fuck is this prick, anyway?"
Cloud replaced the materia and sheathed his sword. "Verick Jasco and his son. They have creepy-as-fuck written all over them. Maybe I'm paranoid, but they wanted you three as well and it doesn't sit well with me. Unless I'm way off base when I say that there was probably only one thing keeping you in ShinRa, you are as against the idea as I am. And they want this Junior to marry Yuff?" He crossed his arms and regarded the Turks. "Maybe I'm wrong, but you sure as hell never looked like you really enjoyed working for ShinRa much."
Rude cocked an eyebrow. "So you came here on the off chance we were forced into ShinRa?"
"Hey, hang on a minute," Elena put in. "What are you doing in Wutai anyway? I thought Godo didn't like you."
Cloud shrugged and smirked at Elena. He seemed to really notice her for the first time since coming in; she looked different now that she didn't wear the Turk uniform. He allowed himself a quick once-over, taking in the tank top and khaki shorts she now wore. "Nothing better to do these days, and I wanted to say hi to Yuff. I figured I'd pay her a surprise visit."
Reno had been on the verge of demanding what business Strife had with Yuffie, then stopped himself. He'd almost forgotten that Cloud and Yuffie went back further than he did with her, thanks to their days in AVALANCHE. He still had a question. "And I suppose you're going to offer a solution to this shit that doesn't involve a few swift kicks to the head and a round through the chest?"
Elena put her hand halfway up in the air. "I don't mind using that solution..."
Reno silently grinned. For all their mutual baiting, there were some things they always agreed upon.
Cloud shook his head. "If that asshole touches her, it will involve my sword through his chest, but I honestly just want to make sure Yuffie's safe. She's like a little sister to me."
Rude cleared his throat. "So you just want to break into the palace, steal the princess and wander around until something happens?"
"Whatever works."
"Whatever works?" Reno's temper rose a bit again, and he puffed his cigarette once more before tossing it to the ground and stepping on it, staring Cloud in his mako-tainted eyes. "And I imagine 'whatever works' was what you were thinking when you went after Sephiroth with the Ancient, am I right?" A sinister grin appeared on his face, and he knew he would pin Cloud with this one. "Or maybe you were thinking 'whatever works' in your SOLDIER days when you wanted to be so close to Sephiroth that you volunteered for the Neibelheim mission? I assume you remember the one. If not, I can get the file. I've read it. Many times."
"Dammit, Re," Elena glanced at him, "That was kinda low, even for you."
Reno snapped a glare at her. "Shut up, I didn't ask you."
Cloud was shocked for a split second then his eyes narrowed. "Why don't you quit bullying her around and act like a man, Reno? I will only warn you once. Don't believe that shit you read. I joined because I was a stupid kid, I sure as fuck didn't volunteer for that mission. What Aeris had to do was her business. I didn't see your ass helping out at all."
Reno dared to crack a smile at him. He felt like being an ass this morning, and god-dammit but his hand hurt. "I didn't even have to read it, Spike. I just did for a second opinion. The first was from Hojo himself, who saw it all, as if you even have to ask how. Oh, sorry, there's that blasted name Hojo again," he said, a bit loudly, then leaned in very close and grinned, most definitely asking for it. "Tell me...do you ever remember calling him by another name...by chance, something to the effect of...Dad?"
Cloud didn't make a sound, he just let his fist fly at the redhead. Reno wasn't there, though; by leaning in, he had bent over just the slightest bit. He dipped down a bit lower still and thrust forward, under Cloud's rushing arm, reaching around behind his opponent. The mag-rod had been flipped into his hand and turned on in an instant, and he thrust forward at the assumingly-unprotected back of the man from Neibelheim.
Elena sighed and looked at Rude. "Am I stopping him or are you?"
Cloud lifted his elbow to crack down upon Reno's back. Just before both men connected, however, Rude grabbed Reno by his collar and Cloud by his. The big man hauled up and backwards, flinging both Reno and Cloud on their asses on the floor, six feet apart. He straightened, popped his neck, and scowled down at them. "Reno, stop being an asshole. Cloud, hurt Reno and I kill you. Understood?"
The two men glared at each other. Cloud snarled, his voice low. "Listen to me, punk. There are some places you should never go with me, and that's one of them. Bring up Hojo again, and Turk friends or no, I'll stick my sword so far up your ass you will choke on it."
Reno pretended not to hear him and scrambled to his feet, pulling out another cigarette. He muttered something that sounded far too much like, "He started it."
"Reno, you started it." Elena grumbled as she passed him to offer a hand to Cloud. "Don't worry about him. He's been in a mood all day."
Cloud took her hand, "Thanks."
"Nice, help the hero," Reno said disgustedly. "I've had enough. You guys have fun hanging around with Blondie here. I need a fucking smoke." He stalked to the door.
"Do you want to help Yuffie or not?" Cloud called after him. "Reno!"
The door slammed shut in response. Elena winced, then sighed.
Cloud rubbed his eyes. "I think I need a drink."
"Come on, then. I'll buy you one." When he looked at her in surprise, Elena grinned. "Turk honor. If one of us is hurt, the others help out. If one of us does wrong, the others apologize for him." She winked and led him over to the bar. "Two whiskeys, please."
Rude made as if to follow his friend out the door when his PHS rang. He frowned. That was strange…of the fewer than ten people who knew his number, there was no one he could think of who would be calling him now. He pulled it out, then called over his shoulder to the two blonds at the bar. "Laney, Strife—go get Re. I don't want him wandering around when he's in that kind of mood. Knock his ass out if you have to, Strife."
Elena nodded and hopped up. "Come on, then," she said, motioning for Cloud to follow her. "When strong-and-silent talks, we listen."
The PHS chirped again as they left, Cloud shouldering his blade like a pickaxe. Rude shook his head and answered the phone. He said nothing; if the caller was actually someone who knew him, they'd know to start talking first.
"Rude? Is that you?"
For the second time that day, Rude was surprised. "Reeve?"
"Holy, am I glad it's you. Is it safe to talk?"
There was something wrong with his old friend's voice. "Scrambler." He responded. His line was safe at least. He looked to the door of the bar, wondering how long it would take Cloud and Elena to acquire Reno.
"Thank the gods. Listen, I don't have a lot of time. I think they're monitoring my calls." Reeve's voice grew hushed. "I don't know if you're aware, but the Jascoes are on their way to Wutai. I don't know what they're after, but it's big. I was left out of the planning of the trip." The words came out in a rush. Reeve paused to draw a deep breath before going on.
"Slow down." Rude cautioned. "We ran into Strife. He told us about the plans with Yuffie. What are you doing there?"
"Okay. I'm sorry…it's just been one thing after another." Reeve seemed to relax a little, though.
From out in the street, the sounds of Reno's wild yelps came. They were followed by a metallic clang, much like what a sword hitting a barrel would sound like. Then came his voice, unmistakable: "Get the fuck off m—OW!" he howled. "Lany you bit me!"
Elena held the door open triumphantly, while Cloud carried Reno in like a sack of potatoes only to dump the Turk at his tall companion's feet. His hand was, indeed, red, but when he realized what Rude was doing he sobered and looked concerned. "Who is that?" he mouthed. "You hate phones."
"Reeve." Rude hissed.
Reno's eyes widened. "Wha—?" he started, but shut up. If it was Reeve, and he had called Rude of all people, it was too serious to interrupt.
Reeve went on. "Things around here are weird lately." He took a few more breaths. "I got a job in the new company a few months ago. They came for me, saying stuff like they wanted someone with expertise in this line of work. Problem is, since then, I have no idea what the hell I'm doing here. People coming and going, being transferred between departments, then back again—it doesn't make any sense. I'm supposed to sign things I haven't read. People shut up when I walk in the room."
"What do they want with us?"
"I have no clue. All I know is that it's starting to remind me too much of the old days. Hell, I mentioned that this might not be the right job for me, and I'm not sure, but it seemed a little threatening when I told them I want to quit. All I know is they're hiring people even ShinRa wouldn't touch, and then telling me to keep my mouth shut."
"Like who?"
"Like that Penderfaust guy who worked for Hojo. Remember him? Rufus canned him because he was 'unstable.' And that biker gang I interviewed a few years ago, when the old man was alive—they're on the payroll now. Old Man ShinRa didn't trust them, but the Jascoes are just collecting trash like they're planning to—" Reeve's voice cut off in mid-sentence and changed entirely. "—so yeah, old pal, gimme a call when you're in the area. We'll do lunch. Bring the wife, too, Scarlet hasn't seen her in ages."
Rude went pale. "Penderfaust?" This was bad. Very bad. "Reeve, can you get away for lunch if I say I agree to be hired? If you go to recruit me? Could we get you away that way?"
Elena looked confused. She saw Cloud go white at the mention of the scientist and raised an eyebrow at him. "Who?"
"I'll tell you in a sec," the blond said absently, focused on Rude and the PHS.
Reeve's voice still had that false heartiness to it. "Sure! Like I said, call me, I know a great diner downtown." The last few words sounded strained.
"Where? I'll be there tomorrow night."
"You know the place, I think; corner of 5th and Main." Now hope seemed to filter through.
"Fine. We will come get you be ready to fucking run."
"Hey, man, I'm glad you could meet on such short notice. I'll be waiting, got the application and everything." He paused, as if putting his hand over the phone, then came back. "Listen, I gotta run. My two o'clock appointment is here. See you!"
Click.
Rude looked at the phone, his expression even. Then he put it back. "Reeve needs help." Cloud let out a spew of profanities that Reno and Cid would be proud of. Among the words were, "sadistic, fuck, ass-monger, sick, twisted, and insane". Color came back to his face, and he pinched the bridge of his nose.
Rude looked at Reno. "We are in shit."
Reno stared at him, too confused to even smoke, accented by the cigarette held limply in his fingers, the ashes on the ground. "Reeve?"
"What did he want?" Elena asked.
Rude was talking a lot. His voice didn't raise pitch at all, but the other two Turks knew he was angry. "Jascoes are hiring people ShinRa fired. That group of renegade biker SOLDIERS and that fuck Penderfaust. I think they let him go before you two were inducted."
Reno had done his research, and stood up, walking in a quick circular pattern. "What the hell? First they hire Penderfaust, then this shit with the mini-prick." He sighed in frustration. Rude himself had told him of the man Penderfaust. "And Reeve's in trouble?" It was the only thing he knew for sure; Rude was talking a lot, which he did only when his friends were endangered.
"No answered me the last time. Who's Penderfaust?" Elena injected.
Cloud felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise up at the name again. "He was Hojo's personal assistant."
"Ah," Elena said slowly. "That's not good."
Cloud's voice sound hollow, even to him. "They let him go, for being inhumane. Hojo couldn't stand him; they had him moved to the Mansion." He growled again.
Reno scoffed. "Like that freak Valentine, locked up in there?"
"He isn't a freak, Reno. Shut the fuck up." Cloud growled.
Reno mimicked him in a small, high-pitched voice, then turned his back on the AVALANCHE hero, looking at Rude. "So Reeve's in trouble?" he repeated.
Rude shook his head at Reno, and turned to talk to Cloud. "We better go get Yuffie, then we have to bust ass to get to Junon. We'll be making a scene at a diner, getting Reeve and Scarlet, then getting the fuck out and fast." He looked dead at Reno. "Unless you look forward to being in a tube again Reno."
Reno's demeanor changed, and he closed his eyes, hiding the Mako tint they had, despite the sunglasses that took care of that in the first place. Hojo had put them each in tubes, infused them, and set them on the field. The infusion had hurt like nothing anyone else could feel, and it was a week before he stopped vomiting at regular intervals from the cramps and pain. "...Anything for Reeve and Yuffie," he sighed, opening his eyes and flicking his wrist at no one in particular, then caught Cloud out of the side of his eye and groaned. "You're coming with, I assume?"
Sunglasses would do little to hide the bright blue of Cloud's eyes. He rolled them in an aggravated manner. He was beginning to wish that he could just walk away from the whole situation. "Someone's gotta keep your ass out of trouble. Reeve and Yuffie are my friends, I would come anyway."
Rude leveled his gaze at Cloud. "Two conditions, Strife."
"Name 'em."
"One, we do this as a team. And two, no running after that doctor on sight. You want to kill him, he is yours, but not until we know what the fuck is going on." He smirked. "Oh, and quit beating Reno up."
Cloud nodded and extended his hand. "I think I can handle that."
"Rude? Can I still beat Reno up?" Elena said with a grin. Cloud chuckled.
Rude smiled at her. "Just don't embarrass him too much, Laney."
Reno puffed his cigarette and rolled his eyes. "Pricks."
*****
Editor's Note:
Changed slightly, for future consistency.
~Drakonlily
*****
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