A/N: This chapter heads right into the game, and it starts the adventures of the group, with Beth added. SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!! Do not read unless you have finished the first part of the game! Spoilers!

*****
The blonde haired man dressed in blue led the way for the others in his group, the two women and the big black man, followed closely by a lion like creature. They were running up the stairs when they were captured by President ShinRa himself. The president then explained what he planed to do with the world and threw them in the holding cells on the 67th floor to await death.
Cloud, the spiky haired blonde, not knowing what to do, fell asleep on one of the cots of his private cell, Aeris and Tifa shared a cell on his right, while Barret and Nanaki shared a cell to his left. "What the fuck?" He stared in disbelief at the open cell door.
"Ya say sumthin" Barret asked when he heard the young man curse.
Cloud responded, "My cell door was open... hang on, the guard is dead, let me see if I can find something on him!"
Tifa and Aeris, in the other cell, begged Cloud to hurry. "The other guards will be on their way soon Cloud!" Aeris said. Sure enough, the sounds of boots echoed through the deadly silent halls.
Cloud found two keys on the dead man. One he knew would unlock the doors for his friends and allies, the other one... "I found two keys..." He said as he let Barret and Nanaki out of their prison.
As he let Tifa and Aeris out of their cell, he showed them all the other key.

Barret looked at the key and pointed to a door, "Maybe it goes to that one over there?" He suggested to the blonde haired leader.
"No time, we have to find out who is killing all these soldiers..." Cloud replied, but then he looked into Tifa's begging eyes.
"Cloud, someone could be trapped in there and we could be that person's only hope to seeing the light of day ever, ever again!" She looked up at him with big, watery puppy dog eyes.
That was a face that even the ex-SOLDIER couldn't resist. He handed Tifa the extra key and told her, "Hurry up!"
Tifa hurriedly ran up to the door and tried the key. It didn't work. "Darn, guess it doesn't go to this door." She muttered, she had so wanted it to open so she could see what was on the other side.
As the group headed towards the exit, Nanaki looked back and tilted his head, "You know what... that door is really, really going to bother me for quiet some time..."
Tifa agreed, "You and me both..." She followed Cloud out and onwards, following the trail of bodies and blood.
When the group headed back to where the JENOVA creature laid, Cloud was the one to jump back and gasp. The container was ripped clean open, nothing inside except for some mako. "It's... gone! It... isn't here!" Cloud cried. Barret pulled Cloud away from looking at the empty holding tank and pointed to a slashed body on the floor. "Look! Dar be one o' Hojo's lab assistants.... He's stil' alive!"
Aeris looked to where the big man pointed, so did Tifa and Nanaki. "Barely..." Tifa said, her eyes wide.
Cloud walked over to the dying assistant and kneeled beside him. The assistant looked up at him and whispered, "Here... take this card key.... to the 68th floor... you will need.....need....it...." Cloud took the card key that the dying man handed him. "Oh.... take this too...." Cloud takes the small golden key from the man and looks at him. He whispered, "Please... save her..." and with that, the assistant was dead.
Tifa looked at the group, "Who is this she that they are talking about?" Nanaki spoke up, "Maybe it is that door that we are bothered about? You remember, the one in the holding cell room?"
Tifa yelled, making Cloud jump in his skin a bit. "That's it!" Tifa cried.
Cloud held up his hand, "We have no time for wild goose chases..."
This time, both Aeris and Tifa gave him the puppy dog eyes, which he could never, ever resist. "Fine," Cloud said, handing Aeris the golden key.
Aeris felt important, "Follow me!" She led the group onwards towards the holding cell."
She ran up to the door and held the key in a shaking hand. She managed to unlock the door with a small click and pushed open the heavy door.
Barret was furious. "Tares ain't nuttin' 'ere! Stupid shit 'ead makin' we go on a wil' goose chase an' everything..."
Tifa hushed Barret, "Barret, don't you see that! There, in the corner of the room..."
Barret peered into the darkness, "Eww... is that a coffin?" He asked, looking a little pale.
Aeris walked over to the box and nodded, "Yes, it is a coffin, now... Nanaki, come over here and help me open it!"
Nanaki ran over and helped Aeris pull off the dusty lid of the coffin. They both peered inside. Aeris screamed.
Barret must have passed out at the sight of the stone cold, pale looking woman lying there in the coffin. Aeris passed out as she began to move, groaning, and the woman then put one metallic claw up to her head and groaned.
Cloud looked at the mysterious woman and gasped. She was alive, and she sure wouldn't be too happy.
The woman sat up in her coffin, she wore a long black cape that covered a white tee shirt and black pants and boots. Her long silver hair trailed down her back as if it were a waterfall. She looked all too familiar for any of the group. Cloud finally got the nerve to speak up, "Hello... Miss... what is your name."
"My name is Beth."
Cloud swallowed hard as she turned her mako-filled eyes to look at his own, there, he thought, he was gazing into his archenemies eyes...
"Beth..." Nanaki said softly, "what are you doing here?"
"Repenting for my sins, now, let me sleep..." She closed the lid to the coffin again.
Cloud opened it up, "Tell me, do you know anyone by the name of Sephiroth? We are trying to find him."
Beth mumbled a word under her breathe that sounded to Nanaki like "Brother..." None of the others must have heard it, because they were just looking at her. When she did respond, Cloud nodded, "I have heard of him... yes..."
Aeris looked at her, "Why, may I ask, do you look so much like Sephiroth?"
Beth looked coldly at the last remaining Certa. "It is none of your business... now... like I said, let me sleep in my nightmares." She went to lay down again.
Barret, by this time, had regained his composure.
The whole crew looked at the women that now sat up in the coffin. She didn't look like a prisoner at all. Cloud tried to open her coffin one last time. She wouldn't let him this time, she only spoke, "Be gone!" To them.
Aeris looked at the coffin and sighed. "We were trying to help you..." She said as the others left.
Cloud slowly walked back towards the President's office.
Cloud was almost at the elevator to take them up to the next floor when he was stopped by the shadow of a lady. "Who's there?" He asked.
"It's I..." Beth stood there, holding an eight foot long sword.
Cloud could only stare, but it was Nanaki that said something next. "Your going to come with us?"
Beth smiled, "Well, why not?" She took the sword in her flesh hand and let the metal claw fall to her side.
"Good to have you on our side" The blonde haired man said. Beth nodded and followed the group up to the President's room, where he lay face down on his desk, dead.
Barret was the first one to say something. "The leader.... of Shin-Ra Inc....is dead?"
Tifa looked sick to her stomach, "Who could have done this?" She said softly.
Beth looks at the corpse closer, and sees a six foot Masamue sticking out of the former president's back. She looks at the group and nods, "Sephiroth." The sword in the body magically disappears.
The group, Beth having confirmed their greatest fear, decided it is best to try to escape through the balcony. Or at least, Cloud did.
The heros headed outside, and discover Rufus on the roof, with his pet panther, Dark Nation.
Rufus gave a hollow laugh, "I am the new President of Shin-Ra. My father was wrong, you cannot own the world with money and fortune, you must own the world with fear and terror!"
Nanaki gave a long growl, Dark Nation growled back.
Cloud looked at Tifa and the others in the group, "Guys, get out of here, this is going to be a long hard fight just between the two of us." Cloud motioned for the group to go.
"Cloud!" Tifa started and threw him something. Cloud caught it and looked at the small green orb in his hand. It was a cure materia.
He smiled at her, "Thanks Tifa!" He looked at Rufus, who was ready to fight. "Tifa, go and get the group out of here! NOW!"
Tifa nodded as the group turned on their heels and ran off. Cloud yelled after her, "Don't forget to equip lots of materia!"
Tifa heard her as she ran out of the balcony and into the room where the president's body lay and beyond to the stairs.
Tifa stopped the group at the elevator of the 70th floor. She turned to face them, "Beth... you and Aeris equip these materia..." She hands them the materia as she told them, "Fire, Ice, Cure all..." She said. Then she looked at Nanaki and Barret, "You two guys equipt Fire, Lightning..." She handed out the different materias.
Beth, Tifa and Aeris equipped their materias and Beth put the lighting in her weapon. Aeris put them in her armor. Barret and Nanaki hurriedly equipped their materia. Tifa hit the button for the first floor and the group jumped into the elevator. She then hits the button for the first floor.
"Hey, uh...Tifa, what is that noise?" Aeris looked nervously at the other female.
The group gets thrown into a battle when a monster comes to join them on the other elevator
"What the hell are these things?" Beth said as she steadied her sword.
"That's a Hundred Gunner and a Hell Gunner! Watch out!" Nanaki said.
"No problem..." Tifa went to attack it, "They are too far away, I can't reach them!"
"Use your materia!" Barret said, hitting the thing with Fire.
"Got one!" Nanaki smiled.

Finally, the group gets down to the first floor, after defeating the two monsters.
"Where is Cloud?" Tifa looked around, she was nervous that he hadn't made it.
Barret raised his head. "I hear sumthin!"
Aeris turned just in time to see Cloud come down the stair on a motorcycle.
"I found out what that other key was for guys!" Cloud laughed as he revved up the engine.
"That's just fucking peachy Cloud-ass!" Barret yelled, "But what are we going to drive?"
Cloud merely pointed to a truck, a prototype for the newest breed of vehicles in Midgar. Barret glared at him.
Aeris, Tifa, Beth and Nanaki got in the back of the small pick up truck. Barret turned and looked at his ally on the motorcycle. "Damn you if this piece of shit starts!"
It did. It's engine roared to life as soon as Barret turned the (nicely placed) key. It was a lovely sound.
"Cloud! There are men on motorcycles!" Aeris yelled as they took off out of the Shin-Ra building and down the road.
Cloud pulled out his sword and knocked the guy off his motorcycle. He did this many more times.
"Cloud!" Beth yelled as two came at once.
"Don't worry!" Cloud yelled back as he knocked on into the other, sending both men flying to the side.
Barret did his best to drive, avoiding both the Shin-Ra Blues on motorcycles and Cloud as he darted around to knock the said Blues off their bikes.
Cloud stopped his bike at the end of a sharp cut off. Barret stopped the truck as the whole group piled out.
"Dead end." Aeris said.
"Yeah, at least there aren't any more Blues after us now!" Tifa replied as she jumped from the truck.
Beth nodded silently in agreement as Nanaki walked up to her side.
"What do we do now?" Barret said.
"Sephiroth is still out there... I have to settle the score." Cloud said as his eyes turned to the now star filled night.
"You mean... leave Midgar?" Aeris said.
Barret nodded. "We have to go on..."
As they left Midgar, Tifa looked back on the giant town rising in the middle of the wastelands. "I guess this is just the start of our journey." She said.
Cloud pointed north west. "I think there is a town that way."|
Barret nodded, "Yes, Kalm town. It will be a good place to start."

The group travels all the way to Kalm in the dark of night.