Wow... probably the slowest update ever... two months! Sorry guys!

Chapter 6

To Both Fear and Like

He fingered his white gold watch. It gleamed in the dim light and he smiled. It had once been his father's.

It was around six o'clock and it was getting dark. He looked up at his room. It was the same one he had had since he was he was a youngster. It was just redecorated. It had once been filled with pictures of the rock stars he had admired and a poster of the table of elements. There were still marks across the white walls where they had been torn down. The pleasure of sitting in his own room ever since he was a toddler.

H inhaled. Dust came and went up his nostrils, clinging onto the very hairs in them. He coughed a few times, sneezed, and was very unsatisfied. The maid needed to clean the house better or she would…

He laughed softly and thought of what would happen if the maid didn't heed his warnings. He looked up at the dusty blinds and stood up. He closed them and watched as the room went into darkness, the way he liked it.

Ahh, the irony. To both like one thing and have it be your worst fear. Looking towards the door, the only source of light, he closed it.

He sighed and sat down onto the chair he was in, near his desk, which was still peppered with the things he had as a child. Looking into the dark, his mind relaxed. Slowly, he closed his eyes and leaned back… engulfed in his memories of the past…

He proudly pulled on his backpack and his mother handed him his small red lunch pail. "First day of school, honey. Nervous?" she asked.

He nodded his small head. His mother laughed and kissed his forehead. Moisture formed there and he wiped it away. "Get in the car and I'll drive you to school, ok?"

"Ok!" he replied obediently, his voice small and a child's. Seeing his father, he felt excited and proud. "Daddy! Today's my first day of school!"

His father, ah yes… the drunken brute, had a beer bottle in his hand. He took a swig and stumbled. Clearly, he was drunk. "Wuzzat you want ya lil' bastard?" Another swig and the man's drunk eyes turned to face his mother's. "Dun bother takin' the lil' ass ter school, he dun need it. He'll jus' end up like this… dun get his hopes up… education… bah…"

He looked at his mother, whose eyes turned to fire. "He need shis education! Don't you dare say those things in front of—"

His father suddenly turned angry. His hands lifted up and it crashed down on his mother's face. She fell backwards, crying out. "You should go in the car now," she said, looking at him.

He dashed out towards the car and heard his father yell, "Don't order me around, b----!"

He laughed quietly in the night. "Good one, old man. Good one." His hand searched for the jar on his table and he found it. His father's ashes when he had burned him alive. It had been quite fun when his old man went up in flames. He wanted to take another walk down memory lane so he closed his eyes again.

It was the day to bring their parents, but he did not bring either of them. Every other kid had at least brought one parent.

He sat at his desk alone while other students proudly showed their parents their achievements and what they had done in school. He looked at his own work. His work above all was better than every other kid's. While they were still drawing cute bunny rabbits or flowers… he had been drawing landscapes.

While other kids strived to memorize the alphabet, he strived to memorize square roots.

And that was why he was hated. He seemed to be the only one whose parents didn't love him. His mother had grown distant from him. It seemed that his father traumatized her.

He once hugged her, and she just stared at him with tear-filled eyes. Then she wrenched herself from him. "Don't touch me…" she said with hate in her voice. "You're of his blood! I hate him!"

And he had cried for the entire day. The only thing in the world that really loved him was gone. There was nothing left for him in this world. Only hate.

In bed, he had wiped away the remainder of his tears. He had finally decided that he would be independent and made an oath. "There never be anybody in my life. I will treat them the way they have treated me. I will not be warm to them or interact with them! I will be alone!"

He opened his eyes. The oath had been kept. He had been independent ever since. Even now. Everyone were his slaves… though they though they were his "friends." He sighed. They were fools, all fools who were downcast like him… and they had stayed down.

Only he had stood up against the weight pushing against him. He, out of all his servants, out of all those weak fools, only he had not succumbed. He was a mere grain of sand, pushing against a tidal wave.

Suddenly, his phone began vibrating his pocket. He grabbed the PHS and took it out. He slowly flipped it open. "Yes?"

"It's something important."

He stood up, smiling in the dark. "You found them?"

"I think I have an idea where they are."

"Good."

-----

The door to the bar suddenly opened and Tifa raised her head. She was ready to say, "Welcome to the Seventh Heaven. What will you have? Breakfast special? A drink or two perhaps?"

When she saw Reno, Cloud, Elena, and Rude step through the door, she stopped herself. "Want something to eat or drink?"

"Yeah… a beer for all of us," Reno said.

Tifa looked at Cloud. "And you?"

He paused a moment, as if waiting. Finally, he made up his mind. "Nothing for me, Teef. I'm fine."

She nodded and turned to go to get the beers, but Cloud's hand clamped onto her shoulder. She stopped.

"Wait, Tifa. I need to talk to you."

She sensed that something was wrong because Cloud's hand stiffened on her shoulder. She winced from the force that he was squeezing and she turned around slowly. "Ok… sure."

The blonde man was aware of her pain and he quickly released her shoulder. Their eyes met briefly and then the link was broken. She immediately found the floor extremely interesting, and she walked out of the restaurant door with him.

She folded her arms and even though she looked at him, didn't meet his eyes. "What is it, Cloud?" She drew a picture of a fish in the dirt with the tip of her shoes.

The dirt she kicked up was swept away by the wind. He opened his mouth to speak, but they were suddenly thrown backwards

A blast came from within Tifa's restaurant and the glass windows of the building burst apart, sending glass into the ground and into the air. A spout of fire shot out, its tongues licking the air angrily.

"Oh s---!" Tifa cursed, and watched as the fire spread. She covered her face to protect it from the heat. "What the hell happened!"

Cloud didn't answer. He hoped it wasn't what he thought it was.

-----

"Ya know… I think Cloud and Tifa are looking mighty cute together," Reno commented, after a moment's pause, he added. "I wish Cloud hadn't taken her out… I want my beer."

"That's what you need to stop doing, Reno, drinking! It totally f---s up your brai—"

Suddenly, a blast emitted from the kitchen and the glass windows shattered, spraying the three with glass. They were thrown from their seats and they landed on the ground groaning. Those who weren't near the kitchen met with the same fate… those who were near the kitchen… weren't quite as lucky. Some were ripped apart by the blast. Shreds of their body parts and blood was sprayed into the air.

People who were still surviving had quickly fled the area. Some others, who were still alive, but unable to move were stuck there, screaming in pain as they slowly bled to death.

Reno grabbed the piece of glass that had embedded itself in the left part of his forehead. He gave a small groan of pain when he pulled it out and felt fresh warm blood trickle into his eye. He wiped it away with the sleeve of his blue tuxedo and he slowly got up, thoroughly shaken.

Elena had already gotten up. She was nursing the right part of her body and she slowly limped towards him. He stopped her with a shake of his head and he went over to examine Rude.

His friend wasn't quite as lucky as the other two. He had been closest to the kitchen, and therefore, took more damage. Glass was embedded in his hands and some parts of his face (though luckily, nowhere near the eyes, nose, or mouth.) Reno slipped his arms under his large friends armpit and heaved upwards.

Rude groaned as Reno slowly lifted him up. "You okay, Rude?" Reno asked.

"Fine…" he grunted as he put a hand on a table to steady himself. He began working on taking out the bits of glass that were stuck in him. "You go check on the rest of the restaurant… look for anyone still alive…"

Reno looked at his companions and nodded. "You guys get out of here. I'm in the best condition… find Cloud and Tifa and see if they're okay."

He looked back towards the kitchen and found that the fire from the explosion was growing. He cursed and ran towards the fire, using his sleeve to protect his face from getting burned. He found a man whose legs were blown off by the blast and slowly lifted him up and away from the fire.

"Oh thank you man…" the guy said, clamping his hands over his bleeding legs.

"You won't last long like this," Reno said. "I'm going to look for others… hold on as long as you can. Yell my name if you feel like you're getting weak."

The man nodded, pale from the blood loss. Again, the ex-Turk dove towards the fire and looked around for any survivors. "HEY! ANYONE THERE!"

"H…help… please…"

Reno turned his head towards the direction of the sound and found that it was within the kitchen… within the burning flames. "F---IN' S---!" he screamed, the fire was too big for him to jump over.

A cutting scream cut through the air. The man was going to be burned alive. The skin on his hands and face were beginning to blister.

Beads of sweat from the heat dripped down Reno's face. What the hell was he supposed to do? Would there be enough time for me to run out of here and go to find a source of water? WHERE THE HELL ARE THOSE CETRA DAMNED FIREFIGHTERS!

"Wait here…" he said, turned, and ran.

-----

Rude and Elena burst out of the door, Rude with blood dripping down his face and hands and Elena clutching her side.

"Are you two alright?" Tifa asked, her eyes wide. "What happened?"

Rude turned to her, blood flecking in the air and landing in the dirt, mixing crimson with brown. "I dunno…" he was slightly out of breath. "S-s-something blew up in there…"

Cloud examined the two. "Where the hell is Reno!" he demanded.

Elena looked back to the burning restaurant. "H-he's still in there, trying to find people who are still alive and trying to get them out," looking at the looks on the others faces, she added, "He insisted on it and he was in the best shape out of us."

"S---!" Cloud cursed and looked at Tifa. "You three stay here… I'm going to go and find that damn constable and get him to send a team of firefighters here. Wait for Reno to come out…"

Tifa watched as he turned to run and cried out, "Cloud!" He turned around. "Be careful… please."

He nodded and replied, "You be careful too."

Chapter 7

Black Doom

Reeve looked at the new Cait Sith design that he had made. He had designed this Cait to be more graceful and feline-like. He also added a special coating of metal, in which the toy cat could become any color suited for the environment around it so that it would be harder to spot.

Damnation… those men hadn't just destroyed a mere robot; they had also destroyed a friend. After President Rufus had fallen, he, being the highest ranked that survived Sephiroth's rage, had taken over. During that time, he had deal with phonies who claimed that they were related to the Shinras, sign a million-paged documents that allowed him to shut off the Mako Reactors, and pay the families of the SOLDIERs that had died from the Weapons attacks. The only thing that comforted him and helped him out was Cait Sith. Most of those Shinra soldiers were only yes men and if not, thick headed dolts that didn't know how to do anything but kill.

"Would you answer this question for me?"

"Yessir."

He decided to have some fun. "Ok… do you know how to do basic algebra and solving equations?"

The man seemed confused, and uncertainly answered, "Yessir."

"Ok… 2x-43x-2… what's the answer to that?" he asked, trying hard not to giggle. Junior high school kids could solve this… but since this guy gave up junior high to be a Shinra soldier…

…well the results would just be too funny. "Uhhhh… request for paper and a pencil, sir."

He looked at the man, surprised. Well… out of the few soldiers he tested this on, this was probably the first one to ask for paper and pencil. Maybe this one would just figure it out. If he could… he'd make him his personal accountant—ok so maybe not his personal accountant, but he sure would promote him. "Granted," he said and set a piece of paper and a No. 2 pencil down on his desk.

The man stared at the blank paper for a long time, as if trying hard to remember something from twenty years ago. Maybe he had learned it twenty years ago. Reeve thought, amused.

The soldier slowly reached for the pencil and then stared at that too. After what felt like two hours, Reeve finally lost his patience and said, "Continue soldier. I don't see what's so amusing about a pencil. I pick one up every single day… but of course… you being the fighting type… you choose the sword over the pen huh?"

The man paled. "Uhh… sorry sir," he immediately began writing down scribbles.

Then Reeve realized that they weren't scribbles at all but numbers Damn, he thought. This guy has a worse hand than a five-year-old!

He heard the man muttering slowly. "…subtract 2x from both sides and get… 1x… and so –41x-2… and then you minus the –2 from both sides…"

ADD! YOU ADD THE –2! Reeve screamed in his mind.

"…so you get –61x, divide by one so x-6!" the man glanced up hopefully. "Is that correct sir?"

"Uhh… yeah… uhh… close enough." Reeve said, trying his best to smile…

He was suddenly shaken out of his thoughts by the sudden chirp of the PHS on the desk. He picked it up and looked at the number on the PHS's little monitor. Usually, it identified who the caller was and where the caller was calling from. This time, it flashed "Unidentified." He decided to take some precautions and pressed a few buttons. His phone would record his conversation and record it. When it chirped again, he slowly pressed the "talk" button. "Who the hell are you and how the hell did you reach this number?"

The unknown caller laughed softly, his voice unnaturally deep. Reeve realized that the man was using a voice-distorter device and cursed silently. "Don't worry, Reeve--" Reeve began panicking, he could understand how he had gotten his name… but his own number?

"WHO THE HELL IS THIS!" he shouted into the phone.

The man went on as if he had never even heard the question. "I'd like to inform you of an explosion that occurred in Nibelheim." Reeve's heart stopped beating… an explosion… in Nibelheim?

"How the hell do you know this!"

The man laughed, Reeve couldn't be sure if it was a real laugh or not, as the voice-distorter made it harsh and guttural. "Let's just say that… I'm well informed… and let's stick with that. I don't really see the point of recording our conversation; you'll never be able to track me down with my voice."

With that, the line went dead. Reeve stared at his PHS for a long time, and then dialed his secretary. When she picked up, he requested for her to check on Nibelheim's current status. After drumming his fingers for a while and counting the dots on his ceiling, she called back. She had replied that Nibelheim was in good condition.

Reeve sighed relief and thanked her profusely. Suddenly, his PHS chirped again, and this time, it identified the caller as Cloud. "Hello! Cloud!" he could hear shouting and crackling in the background. "What the hell is up over there in Nibelheim!"

"Something's blown up at Tifa's restaurant." Reeve's heart skipped a beat. "Tifa, Reno, Rude, Elena, and I are all fine, but there are people trapped in her restaurant. I'm trying to get the damn firefighters! Can you call Nibelheim and have someone send a crew of firefighters?"

Reeve didn't speak for a long time. What the hell did the secretary mean that nothing was going on! "O… ok… I'll do everything I can… but something's going on here. Don't worry about it now. Stay safe, Cloud." He hung up and called the number to the constable's office in Nibelheim.

He waited the phone to ring a few times, and finally, a voice came over the line. "Hello?"

"Hello? Is this Constable Edic?" Reeve asked.

"Yeah, that's me. Who the hell is this?"

Reeve disliked the way the man talked to him. "This is Reeve Zhang. I am currently the… owner of Shinra's business. I have heard reports that Nibelheim had just experienced an explosion. I request you to send firefighters there immediately."

The man didn't speak. There was an uneasy silence and then the man said. "There is no fire here. What you heard was false. Have a good day, Mr. Zhang." The man hung up on him.

He looked at his phone in frustration and threw it down onto the desk. He had been hung up on once too many. He called his secretary and requested a helicopter to take him to Nibelheim immediately.

-----

Reno helped up the man who he had rescued. He didn't mind that the man had his legs gruesomely burned off and that his skin could be easily peeled off. He didn't even mind that the man was bleeding all over his already dirty tuxedo. He lifted him the same way he would cradle a baby and ran out the door.

He saw the relief on Elena, Rude, and Tifa's face as he came out of the door. "Get a damn crew of firefighter and a medic!" he looked around, feeling that something was missing. Then he realized that he didn't see the normal bushel of spiky blonde hair. "Where's Cloud?"

"He went off to get firefighters." Tifa replied and looked at the man. "How is he?"

Reno noticed that the man wasn't conscious. "He's still alive… I think he'll probably go into shock. We need a medic here… dammit! Where the hell are they when you need them the most! They're trained to save lives… but they only show up when you need to get a damn cat out of a tree! There's still another man in there! I think he was in the kitchen before the explosion…"

Tifa's eyes widened in sudden realization. "Lysander! He's still trapped in there! We need to get him out!"

"Co-worker?" Rude asked, and Tifa nodded.

"What the hell is taking Cloud?" Elena looked around. "This is an emergency. There's no time for him to take a potty-break!"

"Yeah… and what if he's taking a 'potty-break?'" Tifa replied, not paying attention to her words.

Reno didn't know if it was the intensity of the situation… or if he was just going mad, but he started cracking up. Everyone watched as he guffawed helplessly, body trembling with laughter. Tears leaked out of the corners of his eyes as he clutched to his sides.

"Holy Cetra… Reno… are you alright?" Elena looked at him quizzically. "Hey… it's not that funny…"

"Hell yes…" Reno gasped, finally stopping in the rounds of laughter. "Ok… I'm done…" Wiping away the tears that had leaked out. Sighing, he peered around and said, "Damn… where is Cloud?"

-----

As much as he hated to, Cloud headed for the jailhouse. Damn it. The constable should have been notified already that Tifa's restaurant was on fire. Unless… of course he decided not to do anything about it and sit his lazy ass on the chair, eating his damn donuts.

F--- you, Edic. He thought and ran up to the front of the… ex-Shinra Mansion. He took a deep breath to calm his breathing and fast-beating heart. He grabbed the doorknob and twisted it, opening the door. Inside, the constable looked at him.

"Well… if it isn't Mr. Strife." The constable said his name mockingly. "Come in and sit down."

"Shut up, Edic. I don't have time for this." the constable's eyebrows flew up at his tone. "Tifa's restaurants on fire and I need you to order a team of firefighters over there…"

The constable toyed with a donut that was in his hands. "Yes… I've heard of Ms. Lockhart's fiery little problem."

Cloud's temper rose. "SO WHY THE F--- DIDN'T YOU TAKE CARE OF IT!" he bellowed.

The constable shrugged. "Oh… I was thinking about it… but then I decided not to. There's no need to overreact. Ms. Lockhart would just have to start over again… wouldn't she? Its no big deal. I'm sure she could do it again… anyways… ashes are good for the dirt. Good for growing pl—"

Cloud charged forward, leaned over the desk, and hauled up the constable by the collar. The constable's eyes went wide with fear. "THERE ARE PEOPLE TRAPPED IN THE RESTAURANT! THEY'RE GOING TO DIE! HOW COULD YOU SAY THAT TIFA'S TO START OVER AGAIN! HOW DARE YOU F---IN' SAY THAT! SHE WORKED HARD TO OPEN THAT RESTAURANT… AND YOU…"

"She should've insured the restaurant," the constable said, his voice trying to keep calm, but a tremble in his voice betrayed him. "And anyways… what's wrong with reducing the surplus population a bit?"

"THE ONLY SURPLUS POPULATION ARE PEOPLE LIKE YOU!" Cloud hurled the constable back into his chair.

Edic flopped backwards and lost his balance. His feet flew up and kicked his table, knocking it and everything on it, over. "Guards!" he called out, struggling to his feet. Two ex-SOLDIERs walked into the room and seized Cloud.

"Let me go, dammit! There's a damn building on fire! People are going to die! Do you know that!" Cloud screamed at the two. They're faces showed no emotion. "You're SOLDIERs! You're meant to protect the people!" He noticed that on their Aurora Armlets, their Reflect materia glowed. He cursed silently, knowing that now, he could not attack them with magic.

Constable Edic laughed. "Mr. Strife… they're ex-SOLDIERs. They work for me now. Yes… the firefighters asked me permission to save them. I repressed them… and they disobeyed me. I had them thrown in jail. So… Mr. Strife… I've learned that you've kept fugitives in your home. You gave them shelter!"

"But you let them go…"

"Where are they, Strife? I want them!"

"Find them. They're no longer of my concern." Cloud said smartly, and was rewarded by a blow to the head from one of the ex-SOLDIERs.

Edic smiled… evilly. "Well… if that's the case…" he gave a hand motion to the two ex-SOLDIERs one pinned him to the ground and the other began throwing his fist into his stomach… and if "accidentally" missing… into his diaphragm.

He bit his lips to keep from screaming in pain. "This is assault dammit… I'm gonna report you… you corrupted sonofa—"

"There's no need for cursing, Mr. Strife. If you cooperate… then there will be no damage done to you… but of course… you're not cooperating. I'm the law here, Mr. Strife, and I do what I please. Everyone follows me." Edic's lips spread wider into an even uglier smile. "And as for reporting me… Mr. Strife… you won't be around to do it. I am guessing though… that those three Turks… are somewhere near that fire. Hmm? Tell me and rather than… unfortunately dying through… er… physical questioning… you… die a rather painless death."

Cloud spat at Edic. It missed and rather… landed at the constable's feet. Edic stared at it for a while and began to laugh. "Why so compassionate… Mr. Strife? After all… these are just some Turks… and they even delayed you in saving the Planet. What changed your mind?"

"Nothing changed my mind! To me, they were always people who were raised the wrong way and went to the wrong side!"

Edic looked at him, feigning surprise. "People brought up the wrong way… like you? Why of course you would think that way… a clone of Sephiroth! Of course you were mistreated! After all… just a weak failure clone. And… what do you mean by the wrong side, Mr. Strife? Why would Shinra's side be the wrong side? Is that what the half-breed Cetra told you? That President Shinra was wrong to help the people and give them energy? Even those materia on your arms are from him."

Cloud coughed and felt warm blood streaming from his lips. "It would've been better if he hadn't created them at all… then we wouldn't have had such devastating losses in the Great War."

"Mr. Strife… the Great War would have happened anyways. We would have fought with guns and swords. Our homes would be powered by gas and oil, both which are explosive."

"…Gas and oil do not harm the Planet. And swords and guns cannot cause the widespread damage like an advanced spell with materia… without mako… there would be no SOLDIERs… and without SOLDIERs… no Sephiroth…"

"…And without Sephiroth… that Cetra wouldn't have died. And you would have never left Nibelheim. You would have never been lied to. You would have known the truth. Mr. Valentine wouldn't be mutilated. Mr. Wallace would still have his arm and his wife. Marlene's father, Dyne would still be alive. Zack would be alive. Oh yes… I know it all, Mr. Strife. All of who had been affected by mako. And… the Weapons wouldn't have been roused… Shinra wouldn't have been dead. We wouldn't be here." Edic walked towards Cloud, and from inside one of his pant's front pockets, he drew out something that glinted.

Cloud's eyes widened in horror. "It can't be! It was destroyed with Sephiroth!"

Edic slowly waved the piece of Black Materia in his face. "This isn't just used to call down Meteor Mr. Strife." He slowly set a piece on his hands. It remained motionless for a while, and then slowly, it sank into Edic's hand, mixing skin with black.

Cloud noticed that the constable had only about 1/16 of the original Black Materia. He can't call Meteor with that small of a piece.

Slowly, Edic flexed his hands and sighed. "The Black Materia contains much power. When mastered, this small piece can overpower the combined power of AVALANCHE's materia. He clenched his hand into a fist and pulses of energy waves wrapped around the man's hands.

Cloud leaned backwards. He could feel the hum of the raw, black energy of the Black Materia. It writhed in Edic's hand. Cloud immediately knew that it did not recognize Edic as its master. It had no master. It would control Edic and then destroy him, the same way it had done with Sephiroth.

"Lights out, Mr. Strife." Edic said, smiling wickedly, and threw the black ball of energy at Cloud's face.

Umm... I will try to update faster... but then... my writer's block's not helping... but don't worry! I've written a chapter ahead!