Storm Clouds
Chapter 5: Gleaming Auction
"Out of all of God's creations, you are the one I most despise of its existence."
Again ENTER was pressed and as predicted the screen buzzed 'UNEXCEPTABLE' with bold red letters within a perfectly measured box which popped within a background of little tropical fish.
"Damn fucking bastard, mother-fucker, shit-head from shitting hell!" Reno cursed as he again slammed his pointer finger upon the keyboard. Now the computer shrilled a meek but high-pitched beep that never ended. Frustrated beyond limit, Reno kicked the screen without thinking.
Reeve swooshed into the room at the sound of the crash.
"What the fuck Reno!" He motioned toward the computer, speechless that it was Reno's third time this month he trashed the computer. Yet the little fox just twirled in his seat while playfully biting his pencil.
"It didn't like me." He simply said. Reeve gave up on him and slammed the door after himself. Not long Rude entered.
"Again?" Rude noted as he almost stepped on the already broken computer.
"I hate computers! Even when Shinra was around, I hated them! TURK never forced me much on the damn machines but now—''
"But now that there are no more Turks," Rude interrupted. "We must get use to the normal world." He sat at the corner of Reno's desk, staring at the painting which hung on the wall opposite them.
It came with the office but it was pretty to look at and sometimes soothing.
"But I know that you just don't break computers without being frustrated with them first. So? What did you need help with?" Only Reno could see arching eyebrows above the dark sunglasses. Reno thought about telling him why. He spit the pencil out onto the floor.
"I was trying to get somewhere." He clued.
"And?"
"And it wouldn't let me in." Reno continued teasing Rude which was entertaining to him.
"Where did you want to go?" Rude sighed.
"Shinra SOILDER inventory." Rude's face showed his surprise.
"You can't go in there, even if Shinra's records were still floating around you couldn't."
"Well then you don't know what I can do." Reno stared out to the painting as well. "Anyway I knew there was a strong virus on it anyway. Been trying to fix if for a week but I knew it was a waste. Can I use yours!"
Rude was silent.
"I'll…let you use Reeves'!" He insisted brightly.
"Okay, as long as I have your permission that it was your fault." Reno said as he skipped out of the room with Rude alone to clean up the mess.
It was him! It had to be him, no one else had those eyes—no one! Not even if they had as much mako as Cloud. I can remember him tripping into my office at random hours, still high off the shit. Thank God Reeves saved me from that life and added me in TURKS unless I would've killed myself.
The computer was virus free so it allowed Reno's clever hacking skills to float over the password barrier. Just as the redhead predicted, the files were randomly hitting all the porn sites in the net for only those who knew of it to log on. However, anyone who knew of it is dead. All except Reno of course.
If I could learn of the time and date when Cloud was discharged from SOILDER then maybe I can use that time to check out all the hotels or transportation he might have used that day in Midgar.From there I can track a paper trail using what he had left of his SOILDER clearance card. If he used them anyway, if not them I'm screwed.
A particularly striking blonde picked out a single bullet from a large box and inspected it. While twirling the silver shell he glanced over to the barter.
"Ehhh? Nice shit, uh?" He looked like an old pro in the black market still bartering to try to support his grandchildren. Cloud liked him and pitied him at the same time.
"I cannot deny it. It's very masterly crafted." Cloud commented. The barter nodded and began ringing it up.
"But I do see a flaw," He stopped.
"What flaw! Those things are the genuine deal! They don't make them anymore, not since 79 years ago!" He sprayed mucus from his enthusiasm.
"Is that how old he is, 79?" Cloud mused
"What?"
"Nothing. Well I only want to blow about 400,000 so I'm a short and can't buy." Cloud began shuffling the bullet back.
"N-n-nonsense! What you got will be good enough. A…What do you have?" He leaned over the counter to see if the money bulged out of his pockets.
"Only what I said, 400,000." Cloud answered. "Outsider only takes in these bullets and I've heard you're the only one with connections."
"Outsider?" The old man asked. Cloud chuckled.
"My gun. The guy before it named it that way. Don't ask—but yah!" Cloud dug into his back pocket for the money and handed the old man the exact cash.
He gratefully took it and watched Cloud gather 4 cases away from his stall. "Be careful with those." He warned and was only answered with a nod.
A slight smile crept through Cloud's features but faded when a familiar voice snuck behind his ear.
"Well look at you?" The assassin silently cursed the world for letting him take a right at the turn. "$400,000! Lot better then what you've made under me."
A feeble greasy man came out from the rack of used sunglasses, reeking from unwashed clothes and oily hair. His teeth were stained yellow from his non-stop smoking and his eyes were dyed yellow from lack of sleep. It looked like he crawled from a rock but really he came from a worse place; the brothels.
"What the fuck you want Dice!" Cloud hissed.
"Oh!" He snickered. "Nothing just checking up on old co-workers. So how's it been my little angel?" Dice was bold enough to run his finger along Cloud's bare arm. The blonde flinched away but retorted by spitting at him.
"Fuck off leech! I don't work for you anymore! I'm making more then what I ever did under you. And don't think I won't blow your head at this very spot because I will." Dice again hissed his laugh through his gapped two front teeth.
"Oh! Cloud, I forgot how much of an angel you were." He cleared his throat of mucus. "But a job like yours only lasts through the season. You know once winter starts no one goes off hiring kills. Its too risky, the police grab in the yearly recruits and their numbers are back high again."
"I'll get by." Cloud snapped. "Anyway why the hell were you following me?" Dice was struck with surprise. "I knew it was you by Rosemary's Blvd."
"Hehe. Just like I said; checking you out. You've been missed my many powerful clients."
"Cough a nail!" Cloud began walking away yet Dice persisted to talk.
"Actually I came because I'm offering you something special." He rounded his way in front of Cloud. The ex-solider sighed.
"I told you I'm threw with all that screwing around. I've got another job I'm more comfortable to."
"I'm surprised because you were so good in just screwing around." Dice cackled at his dirty joke but Cloud had no fun in the matter. With a quick hook from the heels Cloud tripped him on his back. Once Dice's back hit the floor Cloud pinned him down by the foot.
"Get this through your fucking head! I'm not going back, no matter what! Even if this winter season means money will be dry, I'm still not working for you." He proclaimed.
"Say all you want angel, but sooner or later you'll be dying for that cash and then I'll see you crawling back to my doorstep for offers. You tight-ass rent boys are all the same." He sneered while saying his last comment.
Enraged from the title he was given, Cloud raised his thick leather boot high in the air before crashing down upon Dice's manhood. The pimp moaned in pain and continued until Cloud couldn't hear him at all.
Since he'd been here, Cloud grew to know the city which also meant he grew accustomed to a list of favorite bars. Zepha's was his top favorite bar he liked going after having a rough day. The place was small but dark and discrete; hiding between two taller buildings that squeezed it out of the streets. The bartender knew him well and every now and then, if he sensed that the blonde was having a really fucked up day, he'd give him a free drink without being asked.
Zepha's was also known for its erotic show window of dancers. Behind the bar a huge window showed a girl or two groping each other or sliding their perfected skin against one another to excite the customers. Cloud watched them with his one hand holding his head as an innocent boy should. Like hell I'm innocent. I would jump in between them in a second's notice.
One of the girls noticed Cloud and winked towards his direction. Flattered the blonde smiled and continued watching.
"I think she likes you." Cloud's quiet composer snapped when heard that creamy voice. Like a snake it would always charm the victims that heard it. It couldn't be!
He turned around and there he was, as beautiful as the last time he met him.
"Reno!" Cloud gasped. Reno's face sliced in a handsome grin and took Cloud's arm.
"Come and sit with me." He asked softly. Cloud followed him through the maze of tables until he was lead into the darkest corner. Once they sat down Reno was already talking.
"It took me a hell of a night trying to find you!" He shifted to get comfortable.
"But how? I made sure my tracks were swept clean!" The blonde said.
"Tracks swept clean? Why didn't you want anyone to find you?" Cloud blew off the question with another.
"Still, how though?"
"Well. I tried to follow a paper trail by tracing your clearance card which stopped being used when you were in Tifa's shop. I asked around some of the people who lived there for a while and they remembered seeing a Shinra Solider in the past. Basically that's what I did. I played Sherlock fucking Holmes all the way to this place."
"What are you doing now?" Cloud was still shocked that this guy found him, after almost 2 years of making sure he's dead from the world. Reno thought his answer while stumbling for a lighter.
"Not all of us Turks are dead. Rude, Reeves and I are still working together. You know, 'all for one and one for all'. But nothing like The Turks. Reeves was sly enough to get us an upper end job in the hierarchy of Tuesas."
"Is that were you guys are? Tuesas!" Cloud took out his lighter to light Reno's cigarette. With the cig already in his mouth Reno leaned in close. The ex-solider remembered it was his way of getting closer and touchy with him.
"Yah." He blew out a steam of smoke from his pursed lips. "But it was here in a restaurant that I saw you. You were walking out," He hesitated to say the last part. "But you didn't see me. I was worried you didn't remember me." His tone grew to a lower pitch, and from his heavy eyes Cloud knew it hurt him when he said that.
"There are a lot of things I wish I can't remember, but you are not one of them. Sorry, I'm just use to looking ahead and not noticing people around me. Even if you have hair like yours."
"Oh, shut-up!" Reno joked. He took another drag from his cigarette.
"So, how's the gang?" Cloud was still curious of the people he abandoned.
"Well, Tifa is still in Midgar setting up a bar or something like that. Barrett, last I've heard of him, is having a good life playing dad for this orphan. Cid is flying his ship, Yuffie is still the same. Um…All of this is really old dated info. I'm not really close with your crowd, as you know." Cloud nodded but Reno forgot one last person that he desperately wanted to hear the most.
"What of Vincent? How's he been doing?" Cloud asked. He knew Reno would have something on him, since he admired the man above all others. Before Reno's time, Vincent was the first original Turk who knew how to shoot and be quiet about it. But his time in Shinra ended the day he was done being quiet.
"Don't know. After the war and everything he's the type to just slip off the radar." He looked at Cloud closely. "Like you." The blonde blushed and turned his eyes away.
"If you're thinking of getting some explanation out of me on why I left, don't think I would!" Cloud's voice sharpened in a minuets notice.
"I wasn't!"
"Cause you can't understand why I left! It was…" Cloud stopped himself there. The angel of silence floated over their conversation.
"Anyway, I had no idea that you left them." Cloud turned his head toward Reno. Fuck! Now he knows I'm hiding from them! He'll soon want to tell everyone that I'm here.
"But don't worry," He scooted closer to Cloud and draped his arm around him. "I won't tell." Reno's parted lips meshed with Cloud's while their tongues eloped in a familiar dance. Kissing Reno made Cloud remember his year of 17; running through corridors with Reno leading the way and trying to find a place to make-out. We were such horny bastards. Cloud mused.
Cloud felt Reno's free hand move over to his hip. The warmth of it on his skin inflamed his body in an everlasting heat. Cloud ended the kiss by playfully nipping at Reno's bottom lip.
"I forgot kissing you was like kissing an ash tray." Cloud whispered.
"Well look who's talking. It seems that you've taken the habit too, you know." They both smiled and Cloud kissed him again with more passion. For the better part of the hour, the couple stayed in the shadows coiling themselves tighter together before one of them got up.
Sorry if that was too long! Lots of info in that chapter. I made up Clearance Card as sorta like a credit card for Shinra soliders only. So if you don't know already, Outsider is a gun that Vincent used in the game, but I made it that he gave it to Cloud. Why? We'll see.
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