I do not own Final Fantasy VII or any of the characters.
A.N.:Sorry this took so long. I had this and what is now going to be the next chapter all written and then my computer died before I could save it and I lost everything but the first three words. I then lacked the patience to rewrite the entire thing, so I let myself e distracted by other stories for a while until I missed writing about my favorite game series ever and came back, but decided this part would be better in two parts instead of one. So, without further ado, and with a dozen more apologies for tardiness, i give you...whichever chapter number this is.
New Continent
Cody raised an eyebrow as Yuffie slipped out of Cloud's tent, stuffing his materia into her pocket. He slipped his two materia bands into his pocket, putting on a pair of bands bearing fake materia in their place before closing his eyes again. When he felt the materia slip out of his bands a few moments later, he smiled slightly behind his mask. She was good. Even awake he almost missed it. Of course, everyone was about to be pissed, but that was a problem for a different day. He remained silent and soon drifted off to sleep. When he woke in the morning, he checked his materia bands, finding he still had his real ones and more fakes had been placed in his bands to replace the ones Yuffie had stolen.
"Yuffie went on a thieving spree last night," Jessie whispered.
"I know," Cody said, resting his gunblade on his shoulder, having had it out last night as he was rotating between watching for monsters with Jessie, who likewise had her sword out still. "We'll get them back. Plus I still have all of mine, so it's fine."
Jessie nodded and they all packed up camp and left. They walked for close to three hours before Yuffie decided to make her move. She ran out in front of them all and held her arms out to the sides.
"Hold on!" Yuffie said. "I know this area really well, so you should all listen to me! It's really rough around here."
"I'm sure we'll be fine," Cody said. "We've handled ourselves fairly well so far."
"Yeah, it's fine," Cloud said.
However, at exactly that moment, dozens of Shinra troops flooded out of the trees around them, aiming at them.
"There they are!" one of them shouted.
Cloud's eyes went wide, his eyes flashing to his sword just as the aftermath of Zack's final stand flashed behind Cody's eyes and he pulled Jessie behind himself.
"Is this you, Yuffie?" Cody asked.
"No!" Yuffie said worriedly. "I had nothing to do with this one!"
"This one!?" Barret snapped.
Yuffie squeaked in surprise.
"There's too many," one of the Shinra troops said. "This is a different group. Now what?"
"Capture them!" a captain ordered. "We can question them after!"
Cody narrowed his eyes, then exploded forward with Cloud and Roche, Barret, Vincent, and Jessie both opening fire with their guns as Aerith began to launch blasts of magic from her staff and Nanaki and Tifa both took off. Yuffie spun, hurling her shuriken to clear herself a path before fleeing, and as soon as Cody had slashed the first line of Shinra troops, his free hand slipped his real materia bands on, knocking the fakes off at the same time. Then, his Barrier Materia shone as he cast Manawall on everyone before tearing into the troops in earnest. Instantly, it was chaos. A dozen gunshots bounced off Cody's wards before he sent himself streaking and buzz-sawing through a group of troops, then skidded to a stop beside a riot trooper, using a blast for him Gunblade to slash through its shield and bisect him. A troop stepped up behind him with a stun baton, but Jessie slashed them across the back. Cody spun, pivoting around Jessie before slashing a pair of Shinra troops' rifles, then slashed back the other way, killing both. A helitrooper flew down at them from above, dropping a Shock Trooper, and Cody launched himself into the air with a blast from his gunblade before using a second blast to buzz-saw back down vertically, splitting both troops down the front. He spun, swiping his arm and a half-dozen bolts of lightning flashed across the small battlefield, blasting other helitroopers before sending a Firaga into a group of Shinra troops that were about to open fire on Tifa and Aerith, this group including the captain. Just as he did, Cid vaulted over him with the spear he'd taken from the plane when they left it, and drove the spear down into a troop about to shoot at Nanaki, then ripped it out and spun, slashing another pair with the spear's head. A Shock Trooper charged Aerith, but Tifa flipped over her, slamming a downward kick into the back of his neck, snapping it, then spun, slamming a series of quick punches and a roundhouse kick into another basic troop, killing him as well.
Cody spun, he and Roche both launching themselves at the last group of troops, all of them basic troops, and shredded their way through them as Barret and Vincent dropped the last handful of scattered troops. However, just as they finished, a massive, heavily armored mech suit crashed down in the center of the clearing, its right arm ending with a laser blade and its left in a heavy machine gun. Cody swore and launched himself at it instantly while casting Haste on himself. The mech slashed at him from the left, but he launched himself over it with a second blast from his Gunblade, then used a third to launch himself to the ground, slashing it down the front. It staggered backward, its left arm rising, only for Cloud to slash the ground, a wave of Mako Energy racing past and sheering the arm off at the shoulder. Cody darted past the mech, slashing it along its left side at the same time as Roche passed on its right. Just as they both passed it, the top suddenly ejected an Elite Shock Trooper a second before the mech exploded. Cody was caught in the blast and hurled, and the Shock Trooper chased him, only for a shot from Jessie's sword's barrel to punch through its thigh, making the trooper stagger and fall. A moment later, Cid's spear stabbed into the trooper from behind, killing him.
"Where'd Yuffie go?" Tifa asked as Cid retrieved his spear.
"She escaped during the chaos," Cody said. "And she has all of your materia with her."
Everyone checked themselves before swearing.
"That fuckin' kid!" Barret shouted.
"It's fine," Cody said. "She headed North. We can catch up to her."
Everyone nodded and they all began to chase Yuffie quickly, Cody healing all of their minor injuries and fatigue along the way. About an hour later, they slowed to a stop as they found themselves staring at Wutai. Cody sighed, shaking his head and led everyone into the town.
"Spread out and search," Cloud instructed. "She's going to try to make a run for it, so we'll probably have to corner her."
Everyone nodded in agreement and began to search in groups of two. As they did, Cody and Jessie headed for what Cody was pretty sure was the bar, a building with a large sea turtle on the front above the door.
"You alright?" Jessie asked.
"That fight reminded me of Zack's final stand," Cody said. "Cloud, too, I think. And the last time I was in Wutai, I was working. I just need a drink."
Jessie nodded, but just as they entered, they stopped, finding Rude, Reno, and Elena sitting at a table near the door, drinking.
"Cody, Jessie!" Elena cheered, smiling brightly, Reno instantly spraying his beer out of his nose, then shoving himself up, baton already in-hand.
"Don't start, Reno!" Cody snarled, summoning his gunblade. "I'm not in the mood to play with you today, so if you attack us, I'm not stopping with a shattered jaw. I'm going to take your head off."
Reno took a step forward, but Elena stepped into his way.
"Calm down, Reno!" Elena snapped. "I thought you were on vacation!"
"It's already ruined!" Reno snarled.
"Enough, Reno," Rude said. "Sit back down."
Reno glared at him for a moment before dropping back into his chair and taking a swig directly from the sake bottle. Cody and Jessie walked past the table in silence, Cody sealing his Gunblade as they reached the bar, and Cody ordered a very large, very strong drink while Jessie got a beer. Cody swallowed a mouthful of his before pulling his mask back up, then sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Sorry," Cody sighed.
"It's alright," Jessie smiled, taking his hand. "I understand."
Cody smiled, nodding, and took another drink, only to frown. Jessie swallowed a large gulp of her own and smiled, except she was beginning to sway. Cody's eyes widened, and he lunged, catching Jessie just as she began to fall, only for his own body to suddenly go completely numb, his head spinning and dropping both to the floor. Three more heavy thuds sounded and Cody looked around, seeing Reno, Rude, and Elena now lying on the ground, all unconscious just like Jessie, and like Cody was about to be. Cody groaned, vision beginning to blur as the door opened. He looked, but could only see a heavily blurred silhouette in a bright doorway. His eyes slid closed, and the last thing he heard before losing consciousness was a braying laugh that grated on his nerves. Then, all was darkness and silence.
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