Author's Notes
--------------------
This is an alternate universe story, so expect a lot of changes.
This version of AR has been censored for language. An uncensored version is available on my website which you can find in my profile.
xxxXhIkAmIXxxx asked whether AR would follow a Cloud and Tifa, or Cloud and Aerith relationship path. For all my readers who are wondering about this, I'd just like to say….it's a secret!
Now that has started up forums, I've made one for AR! You can find a link to it in my profile here on the site.
Check back next weekend for chapter IX.
If you have any questions, ask them in your review or send them directly to me. I'll either respond directly, or address them as best I can in the next chapter's Author's Notes.
Luminus
Chapter VIII
Wounded
High above the main level of the never sleeping city of Midgar, Rufus Shinra sat in his office at the top of the Shinra Imperial Government Tower. His posture was sloppy, but not without its own unique form of style as he slumped slightly to the left. His chin rested in the palm of his left hand, propped up on the edge of his desk while his right hand was extended outwards, a champagne glass dangling between his index and middle fingers. He was vaguely aware of the sultry brunette woman massaging his shoulders, as well as the blond one who sat on the floor to his right, anticipating the honor to serve him should he ask for her. It was hardly the women's fault that he wasn't paying attention to them, they certainly were dressed and willing to please. No one would deny that they were beautiful beyond belief, but the events of late were of too great importance to be forgotten by something as simple as lust.
The heavy double doors of the office swung smoothly open on well oiled hinges, and in stepped Reno, prompting Rufus to break out of his stupor. With a snap of his fingers and a motion towards the door, he dismissed his two playthings, who pouted as they made their way out of the chamber, closing the doors behind them as they left.
"Where have you been?" Rufus said as calmly as he could, but no manner of acting could hide the anger seething there. "It has been two weeks. I sent Rude looking for you, but I had to call him back to deal with some pests in the desert."
"Yeah." Reno said as he scratched at his head and continued walking towards the throne. "Sorry 'bout that. Ran into some trouble."
"What happened? Did you find them?"
"Well, yeah." Reno said. "Found them pretty fast, actually."
"So then, what took you so long?"
"Well, things got complicated. They uh, got away."
"You let them escape!" Rufus shouted as he stood from his chair and slammed his fist down into the surface of the elegant desk.
"Settle down, boss." Reno said, raising his hands up. "Sephiroth distracted me; hit me with Ultima while they got away. I managed to track them down though, that's what took me so long."
"And? Where are they?"
"They're in Wutai." Reno looked disappointed. "I couldn't get to them there. Way too much work and it would've blown my cover. That's why I didn't contact you, I was afraid they might be able to pick up the signal."
"Well, next time take the risk." Rufus sighed and sank back into his chair, his forehead wrinkling as he thought the situation over.
"Come on, man. Don't let it get you down." Reno said, trying to soften the problem. "We've had delays before. It's just a set back; at least we do know where to find Holy now. That's a big improvement from what we used to know."
"But they know about Holy now as well, and that's dangerous." Rufus bit out.
"Well, yeah. I guess so." Reno admitted. "Look, they aren't going to get to you or anything. I'll head back to Wutai and watch them, sooner or later they'll leave and when they do we'll plan an attack. They probably don't even know what the damn thing really is, anyway."
"Yes, you do that." Rufus muttered, clearly not consoled by Reno's words.
"Will do." Reno said as he gave a lazy salute and turned to leave before remembering something and stopping in mid step. "Oh, I almost forgot!"
"What now?" Rufus groaned.
"Naw, it's a good thing this time." Reno chuckled as he reached into his coat and pulled out a thin metal object that he tossed to the ground at Rufus' feet. "A little present for you, you know, to make up for not catching them all."
"Well." Rufus said as he looked the item over. "At least that's one thing less to deal with. Thank you Reno, now hurry back. I want to hear from you as soon as they leave the country."
"Right." Reno said and marched out of the throne room.
Rufus let some of his tension drain out as he took a sip of his champagne and stared at the item lying on the floor. It was a belt buckle, no bigger than the size of a fist, marked with the Imperial insignia for General. Though there had been several different Generals who led the Holy Shinra Imperial Army over the decades, only one had ever owned the belt that buckle had belonged to. It was the former property of Sephiroth Kagemusha, and it was spattered in blood.
Light began to filter in through the darkness, and slowly the blur began to fade. Cloud blinked his eyes as the unfamiliar ceiling above him came into focus; not much to look at, really, just dull white.
"Welcome back." A soft voice swam into his ears.
Right away he knew that something wasn't quite right with him; he was disoriented and couldn't tell where the voice was coming from, or even from whom it was. It wasn't until a warm hand touched his cheek and guided his eyes to its owner that he began to piece things together.
"Don't tell me you're shy." Aerith said of his silence, her pink lips forming a friendly smile. "You don't seem the type."
Cloud's mind was moving slowly, causing him to delay in his response which turned out to be nothing more than an open mouth and small cough.
"Oh, don't try to talk." Aerith said, putting her fingertips to his mouth as concern washed over her. "I was only joking with you. You should conserve your strength. You were badly injured."
The expression on Cloud's face spoke for him; he couldn't recall what had happened that had put him in this predicament, so Aerith decided to explain it to him.
"There was a fight outside of the Cetra ruins four weeks ago; a Turk named Reno attacked us." She said. "You were shot in the chest three times; you were in very bad condition."
As she spoke, her words seemed to unlock the memories of that fateful battle. The intense speed at which Reno had moved, and the ease at which he'd defeated them all.
"What happened?" He managed to whisper, though his throat felt hot and gummy.
"After you fell, Sephiroth attacked Reno and distracted him as the rest of us escaped." Her eyes fell to the bed he was lying on. "He stayed behind to stop Reno from catching up to us. We haven't heard from him since then."
Cloud found it difficult to wrap his mind around the possibility that Sephiroth was dead. The man may have been a cold hearted, homicidal maniac, but he was also one of the most powerful warriors to have ever lived. Although, when he thought about the way Reno had fought, and if it was true that Rufus had given him part of his power, then it wasn't completely far fetched. Despite the circumstances, Cloud couldn't help but feel angry that he hadn't been the one to kill the silver-haired bastard.
"Where are we?" Cloud asked, the words coming out a bit easier now, though his throat still hurt from the effort.
"Wutai." Aerith explained. "Tseng and Jessie felt this would be the safest place to go to just in case Reno followed, and we needed to get you to a proper healer or doctor quickly anyway. I did the best I could at healing you in the meantime, but my training isn't that extensive."
"Are the others okay?" He asked as he recalled the fierce and frustrating battle.
"Oh yes." Aerith said, her smile returning. "You and Tseng were the only two who were badly injured, and your wounds were far more severe than his. The others were worried for your life, but I knew you would pull through. Your spirit is strong, and was fighting hard."
Cloud began to say something, but was interrupted by a string of harsh coughs that had him holding his heart by the time they began to subside. Worried for his health, Aerith leaned over him and placed her hands on his chest, chanting a light healing spell that calmed him as her brunette locks dangled over his skin.
"You should rest." Aerith said as she finished her spell and sat back in her chair some. "You're still not very strong."
Cloud nodded without trying to speak again. There was nothing to dispute; he didn't need to be told how bad he looked to know he was weak. Breathing steadily, he let himself sink down into the bed and drift off to sleep as Aerith ran her hand through his hair to soothe him.
In the streets of Sector Six in the grand city of Midgar, a single man dressed in a tattered trench coat walked towards a small, run-down bar. His identity was mostly concealed by the blue scarf that covered his lower face. Hanging low over his eyes was an old cap that looked like something a newsboy would wear. As the man entered the "establishment", he glanced around at the patrons; all dead-beats and low-life scum. They were just the kind of people he would expect of a place like this.
Without further delay, the poorly dressed man walked to a patched up booth in the back corner that was tucked away from the rest of the crowd. There, seated at the table, was another man dressed in similar clothing.
"Can I help you?" Said the man at the table as he looked up towards the newcomer.
"I think we can help each other." He responded and pulled his scarf down just long enough to briefly reveal his identity. Upon a nod from the man at the table, Reeves slid down into the booth across from him.
"You certainly took your time getting here." Said Lieutenant General Zahn as he scratched at his wrist and did his best to sit in an informal manner. He hated playing this dress up game, but they couldn't risk anyone recognizing them and reporting their meeting to Rufus now that he had returned to Midgar. "What do you have for me?"
"It seems your gamble paid off." Reeves spoke quietly. "Not only did Cloud join forces with Sephiroth, and release Valentine, but they also managed to steal the Holy orb right out from under Rufus' nose."
"Excellent." Zahn smirked from behind the high rising collar of his coat. "I read a report that the XGP was stolen from the Rocket base. Was that them as well?"
Reeves nodded. "I learned that Tseng was sending them intelligence on it, so I assumed a theft was underway. I contacted Cid and prepared him."
"So everything is going according to plan. Now that Sephiroth has his team assembled, he'll likely begin exacting his revenge on Rufus."
"Well," Reeves hesitated. "There is one complication."
"Oh?"
"From what I've been told, Sephiroth is dead."
"He's what?" Zahn asked in a harsh whisper as his eyes narrowed. "Are you certain?"
"Apparently Reno fought him. He brought some trinket back to Rufus as proof of the deed."
"Damn." Zahn cursed. Reno was completely loyal to Rufus. If the Turk claimed he had killed Sephiroth, then it was safe to assume he was telling the truth. "What about Corel?"
Reeves lowered his eyes and shook his head. "Without Sephiroth to sustain the barrier, the city was spotted immediately. Rude was dispatched, I don't know more than that."
"Is Cloud there?" Zahn asked, feeling a knot building in his stomach.
"No. He and his companions were with Sephiroth when Reno attacked them, but they escaped. They're in Wutai right now. I'm expecting to hear something from Colonel Miyama there about what's happening with them any day now. Hopefully we'll get a clearer picture after that."
"Then all we can do now is wait." Zahn looked Reeves in the eyes. "Let's just hope that Strife is as good a replacement for Sephiroth as Hojo built him to be."
With one last click of metal locking together, Jessie finished repairing the materia gun that Vincent had owned when he was a Turk long ago. Back in Corel there had always been something that about the design that had eluded her. Thanks to Tseng, that had changed. After begging him for days to let her borrow it, she'd been able to use his fully functional gun as a guide to help her complete Vincent's. In fact, she'd taken it beyond its original design and added a few new tricks.
Were it not for her busy schedule since they'd arrived here in Wutai, she would have finished the gun much sooner. Unfortunately, between meeting Wutai officials and helping Cid and Sherra complete the remaining unfinished systems aboard the Highwind, she'd had little time to sleep, let alone do anything for herself of her friends. Now that her project was completed and she was beaming with pride, the young engineer tidied herself up and set out to find the weapons elusive owner.
It wasn't exactly an easy task. The Wutai military base they found themselves in had been constructed in the side of a mountain to keep it hidden, and the area was still very alien to her. Not only that, but Vincent had been even more detached from the others than he used to be; not an easy thing to accomplish, by any definition. Her search eventually came to an end at a balcony that had been built out over a deep drop in the mountainside. Jessie's breath was taken away as she took in the view. Evening was fading into night, and the sun was slowly dipping down over the mountain range, spilling red and pink light across the clouds and rock. Vincent Valentine watched the sunset as well, crouched down on top of the safety railing as no sane human would be.
"It's beautiful." Jessie said as she came up alongside of him.
"Is it?" Vincent asked, sounding genuinely unsure. He didn't seem at all surprised by her arrival, but with his enhanced abilities, he'd probably heard her coming long before she'd spoke.
"Of course it is." Jessie replied. "Sunsets always are."
"I remember thinking such things long ago." Vincent said quietly. "But I can't recall the emotion itself. I can't feel the joy that it should bring me. Just another thing that Hojo stole from me."
"Are you really sure he did?" She asked quietly. She shied back when Vincent turned to glare at her, but continued anyway. She'd already started, so she might as well finish speaking her mind. "I know you think that's what happened, but maybe you're wrong. It might be rare, but you do show emotion from time to time. Maybe you were just alone for so long that you forgot how to use them."
For a long time Vincent simply stared at her, and Jessie began to worry that he was going to maul her for daring to voice such an opinion. Then at long last, he let out a quiet grunt and looked back towards the sunset.
"You have a kind heart." Vincent quietly said at last. "But I have lacked feeling for so long that even if such things were still buried within me, how would I even know how to find them? I look at this sunset, this thing of so-called beauty, and I feel nothing. To me it only means that my vengeance has evaded me for one more day."
"You can't expect things to just change overnight, Vincent. You've been this way for so long, it'll take time for it to come back to you."
Vincent said nothing.
"I mean, you can take things slowly. You know? Maybe one day you'll wake up and realize that it feels nice out, or-"
"Why do you care?" Vincent interrupted her, turning his head to stare at her with unblinking eyes.
"What?" Jessie asked, thrown off guard by the suddenness of his question.
"The others, they appreciate me for my power. They think of me as an ally, a weapon and little more. Yet you are different. You show interest in my wellbeing beyond my ability to fight. Why?"
"Well, I-well, you know," Jessie stammered.
"Now you're becoming nervous, but not out of fear that I could tear you apart. This too is different from the others."
"It's just-" Jessie sighed and paused for a moment to gather her thoughts. "I feel bad for you. I used to think I was bad off, but when you told us about the things you'd suffered at the hands of the Empire, I don't know, it just really got to me."
"I do not want your compassion." Vincent said, but there was no anger behind his words. It was just a simple statement. "You don't need to pity me."
"I know that." Jessie said. "But it's more than that, okay?"
"What more is there?"
She sighed again; this was becoming an exercise in patience that she hadn't been prepared for.
"Look, you were once a passionate man." She said, recalling his stories of Lucrecia. "You risked your life for some one you cared about, and I think that caring man is still in there."
"I am not a man any longer. I am merely a monster, born and bred for destruction."
"You're not a monster, Vincent." She said sternly. "People might treat you that way, and you might see yourself that way, but you're not. Hojo did terrible things to you, but there's still a human being inside of you. After all you've been through; you deserve the chance to live a normal life again."
"A normal life." Vincent scoffed and looked back towards the sun. "That is something I can never have."
"Yes, it is." She said as she placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to turn and look at her with an odd expression on his face. "The person you once were is still in there, just waiting to come out. All you need to do is try and bring him back."
"And how would I do that?" Vincent asked. "I am nothing but a killer. All I desire is revenge; it is the only thing that drives me."
"Then be something more than that." She said, her eyes pleading with him. "Be a friend."
"A friend?" Vincent repeated. "I have no one to befriend."
"You have me." Jessie said softly. "I tried my best to sever my emotions after the Empire killed my parents, but I've realized by now that it was a terrible way to live. I don't want to see you live that way. Let me help you."
"You-" Vincent stopped, his feminine brows furrowing in confusion. "You would do this? You would treat me as a human?"
"I already do, Vincent." Jessie smiled. "You've just been so busy thinking it was strange behavior that you didn't notice it."
Vincent looked away, staring back into the mountains as total confusion ran through him. No one had treated him as any more than a monster in decades. Now faced with some one who some how saw that he might be more than that, he simply didn't know how to respond.
"Oh, I forgot what I came here for." Jessie said just to break the uncomfortable silence.
Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out the gun and extended it towards him. Vincent glanced to it before lifting it, running his right hand over its smooth surface.
"It's good as new." She said cheerfully. "Actually, better than new. I made some nifty modifications to it that I think you'll like. Since these guns are powered by materia, the bullets they fire are always charged by the element of the materia being used. So I added this little button here; press that and the materia inside switches! I put lightning, fire, and ice into it, that's all I could manage to fit."
"Impressive." Vincent said as he studied his rebuilt weapon by turning it over in his hands. He went silent again for a time before he finally spoke. "Thank you, Jessie, for a great many things."
"Anytime." She smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Look, I need to get some sleep, so I'll leave you alone now. See you tomorrow."
Without another word, Jessie walked back into the base. Turning his head, Vincent watched her go, and continued to stare until long after she was out of sight. After quite a bit of time had passed, he looked back to the gun in his hand before slipping it into his belt and raising his eyes back to the sun that was now nothing more than a silver on the horizon. Though he didn't quite understand it, something inside of him felt different now.
"Beautiful." Vincent said at the fading sun, and then he began to quietly and genuinely laugh.
Beads of sweat dripped down Tifa's cheeks, dampening her simple karate gi as she pounded her fists and feet into a black punching bag over and over again, the sounds of impact reverberating through the Wutai base's training center. Any time she hadn't spent sleeping, eating, or sitting with Cloud had been used up here. Though she was determined to further hone her skills after her part in the humiliating battle with Reno, her martial arts were also a form of mental therapy for her. Through her disciplined routine, she could achieve tranquility and shed away the terrible burdens that continued to mount on her shoulders from day to day in this world turned mad. In some ways, it was the only thing keeping her from losing her mind.
With one last volley of attacks against the defenseless bag, she decided to end this session. She was sweaty, she was worn out, and as a result of the two, she was in desperate need of a nice, hot bath. With her teeth she unstrapped one of her gloves, then used her free hand to undo the other and let them both fall to the floor. Stepping off the padded mat that surrounded the punching bag she'd been assaulting, she walked barefoot to the doors that led to the main hall of the base, the concrete beneath her cold to the touch.
Tifa reached for the doorknob, and was nearly hit in the face as it opened from the outside, swinging towards her as Aerith stepped inside.
"Goodness!" The other girl exclaimed, "I'm so sorry, are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Tifa said, her voice a little strained from her exercises. "It didn't hit me. Coming to practice your magic some more?"
"Yes." Aerith said, giving a half hearted smile. "I'm afraid I'm still not very good."
"Really?" Tifa raised a brow. "I hear rumors that you're learning alarmingly fast."
"Oh." She said, looking shocked. "I suppose I could be. No one in my village was ever formally trained in magic, so I don't really have any one else's learning speed to compare to."
"You probably learn faster because you're half Cetra." Tifa pointed out the obvious. "They're supposed to be great with magic, and all that."
"Perhaps so." Aerith said, though she didn't seem to really be giving it much thought. "So where are you headed?"
"I've gotta go take a bath." Tifa laughed. "Otherwise I'm not going to smell very good here in a little while."
"Ah, I see. I thought you might be going to see Cloud."
"I visited earlier today." Tifa said, feeling a sudden knot in her stomach over the subject at hand. "He was sleeping though, so I didn't want to wake him up."
"Yes, he sleeps quite a bit, but I suppose that's to be expected after how badly hurt he was."
"Yeah." Tifa said, her brows creasing slightly. "Well, I guess I should be going. I don't want to keep you from your training anyway."
"Oh, alright then." Aerith said cheerfully, and bowed her head to the other girl. "Have a good day."
As Tifa bowed her head in kind, Aerith stepped past her and headed towards the spell casting area of the training room. Tifa took one step towards the still open door before sighing and turning back, walking swiftly to catch up to her.
"Hey, Aerith, hang on a second."
"Mm?" Aerith stopped and looked to her.
"Listen." Tifa chewed on her bottom lip as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "There's something I need to ask you."
"Go right ahead." Aerith smiled.
"Okay." Tifa said, trying not to let the other girl's perpetual happiness bother her too much. After a brief pause to formulate the words to her question, she continued. "Why are you spending so much time visiting Cloud? I think you're there with him even more than I am, and I've known him all my life."
"He was injured trying to protect me." Aerith said with confusion in her otherwise melodious voice. "If he hadn't been there, I might be dead now. I owe it to him to make sure he's doing well."
"Is that the only reason?" Tifa asked, her voice getting a little softer.
"Well," Aerith paused, her eyes moving to the ground. "No, not really. I feel…strange when I'm around him. I feel that there is a bond between us. I truly enjoy his company; being with him tends to take my mind off of what happened to my village."
"So, you like him?" Tifa felt a lump in her throat, and a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"Oh, yes." Aerith said, smiling. "Very much so. I'm very happy to have met him."
"I see." Tifa said quietly, avoiding eye contact with Aerith.
"Is something the matter?" She asked, looking worried. "You seem upset."
"No, no I'm fine. I have to go now, thanks for talking with me." Tifa quickly said, and before Aerith could really respond she turned and headed out of the training room.
Tifa moved swiftly through the base until she came to the quarters that had been given to her when they had arrived. Stepping inside, she shut the door behind her and leaned her back against it. In the week since Cloud had regained his consciousness, she'd visited him often, sometimes arriving when Aerith was already there. Cloud had seemed so happy to have the other girl around, and it had worried her some. Now, after speaking to Aerith, she wasn't sure what to think. Were they just simple friends and she was merely reading too much into it? Or was there a spark of something more between Cloud and this flower girl?
"Damn it." Tifa whispered and leaned her head back against the door. "I'm losing him, and I never even had him to begin with."
With a ting of metal on glass, the last of Cloud's food was gone, and he leaned back against the pillows propping him up in his bed. It had only been two weeks since he'd come to and learned that they were in the Wutai Republic, but thanks to the military doctors, and the help of many healing spells, he was almost fully recovered. Aerith, who sat in her usual spot next to him, smiled and pulled the tray of food away from him as he finished.
"It's good that you have a healthy appetite." She said.
"Yeah. Well, it'd take more than a few bullets to stop me from eating. Even if this military hospital stuff tastes terrible."
"It's good that you still have a sense of humor as well." Aerith giggled.
With a deep breath, Cloud sank back into his pillows and relaxed his muscles. It wasn't often he had time to lay around and do nothing, and he knew that would change as soon as he was well, so he'd take advantage of it as much as he could until then.
"May I ask you something?"
Cloud looked to Aerith to see concern on her face. "Yeah. Sure, what's on your mind?"
"It's something I've neglected to bring up before." Aerith admitted. "When you first woke up, and I was here with you, I felt conflicting emotions inside of you. I haven't been able to figure out the reason, so I was hoping you could help me understand."
"Oh." Cloud now looked somewhat uncomfortable himself. "Well, it's complicated."
"I have time, if you'd like to share it."
He looked her straight in the eyes for a long while, searching them as he decided whether or not to discuss the matter. He wasn't the kind to talk about his internal issues, and that had resulted in a lot of pent up feelings over the years. Yet, there was something about Aerith that relaxed him. Whatever the reason, he felt like talking to her might not be such a bad idea.
"Alright." He said at last, sighing quietly as he readied his explanation. "Do you know about what happened to my hometown?"
"Nibelheim, wasn't it?" Aerith asked. "Yes, Tifa told me about it. I'm sorry, it must have been awful."
"Yeah." Cloud said, looking at the sheets as he spoke. "But it wasn't just the murders alone. It was the betrayal. I'd joined the army because I idolized Sephiroth and all that he stood for. I wanted to be able to be strong and help people like he did."
"And then he destroyed your home." Aerith said quietly, understanding how such a thing must have felt.
"Yeah, but the worst part of it was that I couldn't stop him. I just keep thinking that if I'd been a little stronger, maybe I could have beaten him before he killed everyone. I can't shake the feeling that it's all my fault."
"You mustn't think that." Aerith said. "You tried your best, and that's all you can do."
"Maybe." Cloud said, though he didn't sound all that convinced. "Anyway, after I came back from Nibelheim, I devoted myself to the army more than I ever had before. I'd failed to save my home, so I decided to do everything I could to stop things like that from ever happening again."
"You wished to make amends?"
"Yeah." He nodded. "I thought, maybe if I did enough good, it'd make up for my failure there. It didn't really help me feel better though. It wasn't until I met Zach that things began to change. I hadn't really had a friend since Nibelheim. I mean, Tifa was still with me in Midgar, but I avoided her a lot. I guess I was afraid she would bring up what had happened. When I met Zach, though, we became good friends pretty quickly. He's the one who got me to really start talking to Tifa again, and the three of us were always together from then on."
Cloud sighed, his forehead creasing as the painful memories began surfacing. "I was happy then. Finally starting to live again, and then we got involved in this because I had to go and stick my nose somewhere it didn't belong."
"But if you hadn't then you'd still be serving the Empire." Aerith said. "You'd still believe the lies about Rufus."
"Yeah. But Zach would still be alive too. I don't know if that was a great trade off, all things considered."
"From what Tifa has told me of him, I don't believe he would want you to be thinking things like that, Cloud."
"Maybe not, but I can't help it." Cloud breathed out heavily. "Ever since he died we've been on the run, discovering worse and worse things as we go. The entire world is in danger of being ruled by some demon possessed maniac, and all I can think of is how it's affecting me."
"It's human nature to fear for yourself and those you care about." Aerith said, trying to encourage him. "You should not punish yourself for feeling such things."
"I guess. It's just, so many things about it seem to relate directly to me, and it's really messing with my head. I mean, we were working with the man who slaughtered my entire hometown."
"Yes." Aerith said, her voice dropping low. "I can't imagine how that must have felt. I can't even think of how I would react if I was to need Rufus' help after what he did to Icicle."
"Yeah. And then I go and find out that I'm some damn monster that Hojo decided to whip up in an attempt to rebuild Sephiroth, that was great to learn. Oh, and not only that but I'm also part alien. And to top it all off, now I have a harder time handling things with Tifa because of the way she feels."
"I'm sorry?" Aerith said. "What do you mean by that?"
"It's nothing." Cloud said, waving his hand as he rubbed at his face. "That's a subject I really don't want to get into right now. It's hard to talk about."
"Oh, alright."
"What it all boils down to in the end is that, I just don't know what to do anymore. It feels like I'm just being pushed towards this inevitable conclusion, but I don't really have any control over my part in it. It's frustrating as hell."
"Well, I can certainly relate to you in that aspect." Aerith said, recalling how she too was forced into this conflict when Rufus came after her.
"Yeah, I'm sorry. I know I'm not the only one who's in on this thing."
"It's fine." Aerith assured him. "So what you're saying is that you'd rather be left out of this all?"
"No, not exactly." Cloud sighed. "Rufus needs to be taken down for all the things he's done. I want to be there to see him get what he deserves, and I honestly think I can help make a difference in that battle, whenever it comes. It's just that, it's all happening so fast. It was just a few months ago that I still thought Rufus was our savior, and now I'm trying to find a way to kill him. I just don't know if it will bring me any closure."
"Yes, you've been through much." Aerith said. "But you should take comfort in knowing that you're trying to accomplish something that may very well change the world for the better."
"That's what worries me. Rufus has been the sole guiding force for so much of the world for so long, I'm not sure what kind of impact taking him and his corruption out will have." Cloud said, voicing his final fear. "I just hope you're right."
With another two weeks passed, the entire party was fully recovered. Cloud had begun practicing his sword and magic skills once more, but it didn't seem as if he'd lost anything in transition. The Highwind had been completed, its multitude of systems now fully operational. For a brief time they'd all taken in the sights of the Wutai Republic. That was a culture shock, to be sure. Cut off from the rest of the world on this continent in the past, Wutai had developed their own style of architecture and philosophies about war and politics that the rest of the world simply couldn't understand. From the high rising pagodas to the bamboo sliding doors that offered absolutely no safety from the outside world, Wutai was like another planet, departed from what they'd all come to know as life in the Holy Shinra Empire.
During their time here, they'd met a great many people. There were the indescribably polite civilians of the city closest to the military base, and also the honor-obsessed soldiers of the Wutai Army. There were scientists and technicians who were humble about the mighty airship fleets they'd assembled, and officers who treated them like seasoned members of the Wutai Army rather than newfound allies who had been their hated enemies not long ago. In fact, everyone they met had given them the utmost respect simply because they were outsiders who had chosen to stand against Rufus. They were practically treated as celebrities.
Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and on this world, those ends came rather swiftly. It was mid-afternoon when they were summoned to the officers meeting room of the military base, and the inevitable thought of returning to the fight left them all with mixed feelings. They arrived shortly thereafter, filing into the room and taking seats as they waited for their hosts to arrive.
They all wore their usual outfits, from Tifa's light blue, oriental top, to Jessie's dark green and gray combat clothing. The only one who looked different was Cloud, who had been given what was apparently a great honor from the Wutai military. Out of respect for the life threatening injuries he'd received by standing against Rufus, they'd offered him the ceremonial clothing of a modern day Wutai samurai. He was now clothed from head to toe in black. Though the pants, shirt, and iron breast plate cross strapped over his upper chest were fairly standard issue, the more ceremonial bits were unusual and eye catching. Around his waist was a thick leather belt, emblazoned on the front with Wutai symbols that apparently stood for courage, power, and wisdom. A tail extended from the sides and back of the belt that fell down to the tops of his many buckled boots. Over his shoulders was a pair of smooth black guards, long sleeves falling from their edges to his wrists. It was an impressive look, to put it simply.
The rag tag group sat in their seats around an oval table, leaving three seats open at the south end. From right to left there was Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, Tseng, Vincent, Jessie, Sherra, and Cid; they were all anxious to find out what was on the agenda. Luckily, they weren't made to wait long as the door at the back of the room opened and two women stepped in. The first was clothed in a slick officer's suit all in pale green. Though her jacket, generously decorated with military medals, and her pants weren't exactly flattering to her form, it was clear that she was a thin and well built woman. She wore a cap on the top of her head that she took off and placed on the table as she sat down, revealing short blond hair that faded to black at the roots. Her deep brown eyes and pixie-like face gave the impression of youth and innocence, but it was clear from the stack of files she carried and the subtle look of authority on her face that she was no one to trifle with. Perhaps she was something of a prodigy?
With the apparently high ranking officer was a much more familiar olive-toned face; Yuffie, the young, tan and green clad assassin they'd met in the forest outside of Costa Del Sol nearly two months ago. Her mere presence concerned them all, as they'd come to understand that she was a secret operative for Wutai who rarely left her espionage and guard assignment on the inner continent.
The blond and brown haired officer cleared her throat as Yuffie took a seat, and it was time to begin.
"Thank you all for coming. My name is Colonel Ayu Miyama of the Wutai Special Operations branch. For those of you who haven't met her yet, this is Captain Yuffie Kasaragi, one of my best officers.
"Before we begin, I would like to thank each of you for putting your trust in us. As former civilians and soldiers of the Holy Shinra Empire, we know you were all taught to hate the Wutai Republic, and choosing to help us now speaks highly of your character.
"I feel it is time to set the record straight for those among you who may not fully know how the Wutai Republic fits into your ongoing fight against the Empire." Placing her files down on the table; she flipped the first manila folder open and began. "Wutai has known the truth about Rufus for some time now, or at least enough of it for us to not trust him.
"The ongoing war we are in with the Empire is in part due to this knowledge, though it is also true that we had no interest in surrendering our independence to join the Empire even before we knew of Rufus' true face. Over the years, we have had our fair share of battles with one another, but Rufus has always held the Empire back for fear of seeming too bloodthirsty to his followers.
"Fearing that this would one day change, and knowing that we had no way of outlasting the superior numbers of the Empire when that time came, we began seeking alternative methods to defeat the Empire and bring the war to a close.
"A little over four years ago we were contacted by the former General of the Holy Shinra Imperial Army, Sephiroth Kagemusha. Although we weren't entirely sure of putting our trust into a man who had recently left the Empire under such…unfortunate conditions, we felt it was a worthwhile risk."
Miyama flipped to another section of her files as she continued. "Our alliance with Sephiroth proved to be invaluable to us, as he was able to fill us in on many details about Rufus that we were unsure about. It became clear to us that we didn't have the power to defeat a man with the magical capacity that Rufus contained, and that's when a number of plans were begun.
"With Sephiroth's help, we laid the groundwork for spy networks that were previously unavailable to us. Using him to gather former Imperials who wanted to help defeat Rufus, we founded many small insurgency groups to cause internal turmoil for the Empire, weakening it and diverting attention away from our true plans."
"Like Avalanche?" Tifa interrupted, looking to Jessie, who nodded.
"Yes." Miyama confirmed. "Barret Wallace and his Avalanche team were one of the original groups. However, these groups had an ulterior motive; namely, to locate the second incarnation of the Omega Project, and to bring him to Sephiroth.
"It was his belief that he could find a way to defeat Rufus if he was able to work with Cloud, Vincent, and a few other choice soldiers who he hoped to discover as he went. I assume those to be the rest of you, as you're the primary men and women Sephiroth entrusted with his objectives. Now, that should bring you all up to speed on the alliance between the Wutai Republic and Sephiroth, so I will now turn this meeting over to Captain Kasaragi, who has more to share."
As Colonel Miyama took her seat, Yuffie rose from hers, looking around the table at familiar and new faces alike.
"As I'm sure you're aware, General Kagemusha has been missing since the confrontation with Reno that you were all a part in." Yuffie's face darkened. "Though I assume you suspect this already, I regret to inform you that we believe Sephiroth to be dead."
Yuffie paused to let this news sink in, but no one made a sound. As she had guessed, they had likely come to the same conclusion beforehand.
"Unfortunately, Sephiroth's death affects a great many things; the most important being the eventual attack on Rufus, and the well being of the Outlaw City of Corel."
"Oh no!" Jessie gasped as a sudden realization came to her. "You don't mean-"
"I'm afraid so." Yuffie nodded, her face twisting with mental anguish. "With Sephiroth gone, the magical barriers he'd put in place to hide Corel vanished as well. It didn't take more than a few days for the city to be spotted. The Empire organized their soldiers and invaded right away. By the time I arrived everyone was already dead or missing. We assume they took many as prisoners for interrogation and experimentation."
Again, no one said a word, but there was no need for anyone to speak. The looks on their faces, the hands over mouths, and the terrible silence spoke for them. They had all prepared themselves for the news of Sephiroth, but no one had thought about the consequences his death would have on others. An entire city of refugees who'd been hiding from the Empire for so long and all of them were dead or captured now.
Quietly, Yuffie returned to her seat as Miyama stood and resumed the briefing.
"With Sephiroth and Corel now lost, we are forced to rely on those of you gathered here. We've waited to bring this up with you until you had all recuperated, but now that you're all healed, there's no more time to waste. Who is in charge of your party?"
All eyes seemed to gravitate towards Cloud who, for better or worse, had been the primary leader of their little adventures since the beginning.
"I guess that's me." Cloud said, taking the hint from the others.
"You were apparently the team that Sephiroth was prepping to take with him to defeat Rufus. Our agreement with Sephiroth was that we would supply him with resources during his preparation, and then when he was ready he and his team would attack Rufus' tower while we assaulted Midgar city itself to distract the Imperial forces from the fight with the Emperor." Miyama said, now directing her attention to Cloud. "We must know if this plan still has merit, and if you can continue without him."
Cloud looked around at the others to see if they wanted to chip in on the answer, but they seemed to trust him with their opinions, so he answered on his own. "There's still much we don't know about what Sephiroth was up to. We have Aerith and her Holy orb in our possession, and we know that if has an effect on Rufus, but we don't really know why yet."
"I see." Miyama said, sounding demoralized.
"But," Cloud continued. "Before Reno attacked us we learned of the location of a large group of living Cetra and possibly more weapons to use against Rufus. We'd like to go there and try to discover more about Rufus and the Cetra. I think we may be able to uncover the means to stop him there."
"Excellent." A guarded smile crept back onto Miyama's face as this news brightened her outlook on their increasingly perilous situation. "If you can pick up where Sephiroth left off and find a way to defeat Rufus, we will transfer our alliance with him to you."
"Good." Cloud said. "We should probably head out right away, if that's all right."
"Of course." Miyama nodded. "The resources of the Wutai Republic are at your disposal."
"Well, we'll need a means of transportation." Cloud said.
"You already have the Highwind." Cid spat out. "And you can be damn sure there isn't anything here that's better than her."
"I didn't want to speak for you, Cid," Cloud explained. "We don't know what we're going to be getting in to."
"Don't give me that ----." Cid growled. "Look, you busted me and Sherra out. I owe you, the Highwind's yours until you don't need her anymore."
"Okay." Cloud grinned at the older man. "Thanks, pops."
"----in' little.." The rest of Cid's response was lost in a mumble.
"I will see to it that your airship is well supplied." Miyama told them.
"Great." Cloud nodded approvingly. "Then there's only one other thing I need to ask you."
"What's that?"
"You said Wutai planned to attack Midgar to let Sephiroth go after Rufus undetected." Cloud repeated what she'd mentioned earlier. "We need you to be ready to launch that attack. I don't know what we're going to learn from the Cetra, but if we do obtain a means of fighting Rufus, we should use it right away. Hit him hard and fast before he has the chance to find out what we're planning."
"I understand." Miyama nodded. "I'll begin preparing an attack right away. We've been waiting a long time for this, so you can believe that we'll be ready quickly."
"In that case, we should get started." Cloud said.
"Indeed." Miyama nodded to Yuffie, who stood and walked out of the room, apparently to start preparations for the possible operation. "Your ship will be stocked within the hour. I suggest you all gather what you need and be ready at that time."
Reno, alert as ever, lay on his back with his arms folded behind his head on a patch of grass in the mountains of Wutai. So long as he didn't actually make a scene, they wouldn't notice his presence, and as the sunglasses over his eyes and the fedora pulled low over his brow proved, he certainly wasn't out to draw attention to himself.
It had been a couple weeks since Rufus had sent him back here to watch for Cloud's little team of rebels to leave the Wutai, and he'd basically been sitting here on his ass ever since. It wasn't like he was going to complain though; he didn't often get the chance to be one hundred percent lazy; it was usually closer to seventy-five.
A sound interrupted his little nap, causing him to yawn and stretch his arms out as he pushed his hat up and looked around. It was a low and distant hum, mostly indistinguishable from any one of a hundred similar sounds, but he knew exactly what this one belonged to. Sitting up, he looked north towards the Wutai military base that Cloud's merry little band had entered and watched as the Highwind rose smoothly from its hangar and began to turn east.
Any normal person wouldn't be able to tell whether or not it was just the Highwind, or the entire group of asshats he was after, but he was hardly normal. The Jenova power within him resonated as if calling out to the diluted dose of Jenova inside of Cloud. Clearly, the spiky-headed blond was on board that ship.
Reaching into the pocket of his suit coat, Reno withdrew a radio and flipped a switch that connected him to Rude, who was now back in Midgar with Rufus.
"Hey, Rude, old buddy." Reno said into the device. "Just giving you a heads-up, the dick-squad just left Wutai heading east. I'm going to follow after them and see what they're up to."
"Understood." Rude said, his voice coming through with only a small amount of static. "I'll inform Rufus of the news."
"You do that." Reno said, grinning as he did so. "When I find out where they're going I'll give you another buzz so you can come join the party."
"I'd appreciate that." Rude said in his typical bored fashion. "Until then."
"Don't go and get excited or nothing, pal." Reno sarcastically spoke to the air as he flipped the switch back off and returned the radio into his coat.
Standing up, Reno stretched once more and then headed out to follow the Highwind. They'd escaped from him once before, but this time they wouldn't be so lucky.