TEN

We hurried across the street and into the shadows underneath the Shinra Building, keeping out of sight of the guards patrolling the main entrance. There were only two, nothing the three of us couldn't handle, but I wanted to avoid being noticed for as long as possible. Predictably, though, Barret had other ideas.

"How 'bout this?" he whispered. "We go for a frontal assault, guns blazin' an' all that. Make a good story."

Tifa frowned. "Are you crazy? Going in front?"

Barret snorted. "Hell yeah! Timeta kick some Shinra ass!"

"Why'd we bring you along again?" I asked.

"You got a better plan?" he growled. "Can't be wastin' time. Jessie'll die if we don't get in there an' save Aerith!"

Tifa grimaced. "I know that! But if we get caught…"

"Emergency stairwell," I decided. "Same way Jessie got out. Marissa told us about it, remember?"

"That's much better," Tifa agreed.

Barret sighed. "An' a helluva lotta climbin'…"

"Oh, quit complaining!" she snapped, glaring at him. "And look at it this way. You'll get a good workout."

"Or a goddamn heart attack," he muttered.

I glanced at Tifa. "We could always leave him here."

She stifled a laugh. "Tempting, but no."

"Wha…!?" Barret sputtered. "Oh, now that ain't fair! Them Shinra assholes've got a date with my gun-arm!"

"Then shut up and follow me," I told him.

Without waiting for him to answer, I got moving, ducking quickly into a nearby alley to the left of the Shinra Building. It was darker here, with a thick mako pipe curving along the base of the outer wall. Barret and Tifa followed me as I hurried down the alley, and it was only a few minutes later that we came to a dead end. But there was also a door off to the right. It was small, metal, and fortunately unlocked. A few words had been imprinted across it in bold letters:

STAIRWELL ACCESS

"Jackpot!" Tifa beamed, opening the door.

She darted inside without a sound, and I went next. Barret brought up the rear, grumbling under his breath. I ignored him, standing at the base of the stairs for a moment and looking up while Tifa did the same. It was, like Barret had said, a long climb. Looked to be fifteen stairs per flight, with a landing on each floor. And we had to get all the way up to the 59th. Wasn't gonna be a quick trip.

Barret eyed the stairs. "You have got to be shittin' me…"

"Nope," I told him. "This is it. The way in, thanks to Jessie. As long as you pace yourself, you'll be fine."

"Talk about outta the way…" he muttered.

Tifa started up the steps. "We've gotta get to Aerith somehow, and I don't have time to argue with you! I'm going!"

"Wait, don't go runnin' off by yourself, Tifa!" he said.

She paused halfway up the first flight of stairs and glanced back at him for a minute. "We're only talking fifty-nine floors, Barret. Nothing to it! So get moving, already!"

He sighed and followed her. "Only fifty-nine. Least we ain't doin' a race. Thank the planet for small blessin's."

"Just go," I told him.

We started climbing, going at a brisk walk to move at a decent pace while also conserving our energy. Well, Tifa and I. Barret just stomped up the stairs one by one, and he was already panting by the time we got to the fourth floor. He didn't stop, but I could see sweat beading on his dark skin as he swore softly to himself. A little ways ahead of him, Tifa kept going, her eyes fixed firmly ahead of her.

"What do you think it's like up there?" she wondered.

"Tighter security and more restrictions," I answered. "It gets harder from here. We'll need to find a keycard."

Barret grunted. "One problem at a time, merc."

"Just saying," I told him.

"Yeah, I hear ya," he sighed, panting. "Dunno why the hell we gotta climb all these stairs, though. We gonna be goddamn exhausted by the time we make it to the top."

I followed him to the sixth floor. "Because we're here to save Aerith and get out, not take down Shinra. We don't need much more attention than what we're already gonna get."

He chuckled. "Well, whaddya know…"

"Knock it off," I snapped. "You're creeping me out."

"Wanna take a quick break?" Barret asked.

I didn't. "No. Keep moving."

"C'mon, Barret!" Tifa added, heading toward the seventh floor. "It's not so bad. Just keep pushing."

He grimaced. "Thought I was pushin'…"

"Pushing my patience, maybe," she shot back.

We kept going, stair after stair, Barret huffing along ahead of me as the thudding of our footsteps filled the air. There was a slight echo here because of how enclosed the area was, and on each landing was a door. They were, I noticed, all locked. I was sure Marissa would make certain the one on the 59th floor wasn't, though. She wouldn't have had us take this way if she didn't have a means of getting us in.

"Guess you ain't the selfish bastard I took ya for," Barret laughed as we passed the twelfth floor.

"The hell's that supposed to mean?" I asked.

He went on. "Jus' sayin' Tifa an' Jessie was right 'boutcha. Seems ya do care 'bout others after all. You fightin' for 'em right now—Aerith an' Jessie. Lena, too. Guess I had ya figured wrong."

It was about time. "No shit."

"Ain't gonna gimme an inch, are ya?" Barret snickered. "Jus' sayin' I was wrong 'boutcha, Cloud. Sorry."

"Forget about it," I sighed. "Just keep climbing."

Tifa giggled. "Finally…"

"What's that all about?" I looked up at her.

"Just glad you two are finally getting along," she said, smiling at us from the next landing before moving on.

I blinked. "Huh? We are?"

"Hmph!" Barret snorted. "Still a pain in the ass, though."

"Like always," Tifa quipped.

As we kept going, I eventually passed Barret—the stairs were wide enough that we could've walked up them side by side. Although he had slowed down a bit, he was still going, panting with every step. The soft whisper of Tifa's breathing came from above us, and as for me, I wasn't even winded. SOLDIER training, of course. Still a long way to go, but it wasn't as bad as I'd expected. I kept the image of Jessie, hurt and dying in her bed at Aerith's place, at the front of my mind as I climbed. And I never stopped or slowed down. Not once.

"Take a quick breather if ya want," Barret told me. "Blame it on me, I don't care. Gotta pace ourselves, right?"

I frowned. "That doesn't mean stopping."

His panting was getting heavier. "You gonna jus'… keep walkin' the whole damn way… without a break?"

"That's the idea," I told him, still moving.

"You a goddamn machine, ain'tcha?" Barret muttered.

I glared at him over my shoulder. "No. I was a SOLDIER. You can't hack it, can you? Just say it already."

"I'll hack you, jackass!" he snarled, raising his fist.

"That's enough!" Tifa whirled on us, her dark eyes red and blazing. "Arguing isn't gonna get us there any faster."

I stared at her. "But I wasn't—"

"Not now!" she snapped. "Save it for later."

"He started it!" Barret complained.

Tifa raised her own fist. "I don't care who started it! I'll finish it! So quit fighting, both of you!"

Barret's eyes were wide. "Y-Yes, ma'am…"

"Uh, yeah…" I said, looking away from her angry gaze.

"Good," she went on. "Now let's go."

Tifa started climbing again without another word, and for the next few minutes, it was quiet. None of us said anything, and I concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. Tifa was almost a whole floor ahead of us by now, and when I reached another landing, I saw we had passed into the twenties. It was progress, at least. That was when Barret spoke up again, calmer but still out of breath.

"So… these weird labs an' shit… Marissa was tellin' us 'bout…" he asked. "they all the way… up top?"

I nodded. "Yeah. On the 67th floor."

He sighed. "Figures. Woulda been nice… if they'd had 'em… lower down. Coulda jus' snuck right in there, saved Aerith, an' left… without havin' to… go up all these damn stairs…"

"Don't start," Tifa sighed.

"Too late," I grimaced, knowing what was coming.

Barret continued, right on cue. "So, uh… how long you think these stairs go, anyway? They ever gonna end?"

"Beats me," Tifa answered. "Ask them yourself."

I looked back to see Barret glancing down at the stairs. "Hey, guys. How much farther y'all plan on goin'?"

"Did he just…?" Tifa giggled.

"He did," I said, shaking my head in disbelief.

She laughed, two floors above us now. "Barret, you didn't seriously think they'd answer, did you?"

"Nah, 'course not, Tifa," he said. "They jus' stairs, right?"

"Cloud?" she called. "Keep an eye on him."

I nodded. "On it."

Barret sighed and brought his gaze back up. "This ain't some kinda endless stairway or somethin', is it?"

"Of course not!" Tifa answered sharply.

"Right, couldn't be…" he muttered. "Couldn't be that…"

I knew it wasn't. "It'll end, sooner or later."

"Hope you're right, merc," he replied. "Thanks for the assist."

I shrugged. "Whatever."

As we made our way up into the thirties, Barret lagged behind a bit more. Didn't stop, though, in spite of all his complaints, so I had to give him that much. I glanced back at him again and noticed more sweat on him than before, his footsteps heavy on the metal stairs as he climbed. I looked forward again a moment later, never once breaking stride as I moved. But I did slow down just a little.

"Thought you'd be in better shape," I told him.

Barret grunted. "I'm fine, SOLDIER boy. Jus' ain't used to doin' the stair climb from hell. I'll manage, though."

I smirked. "You can thank Jessie for this later."

"Oh, I will," he laughed. "Believe me."

Tifa's voice floated down to us. "Hey, guys! Where are you?"

I looked up. "Just a few floors down."

"Good!" she said. "Keep at it! We're doing fine!"

"We there yet?" Barret asked.

"Nope," she answered.

He asked again at the 34th floor. "There yet?"

Tifa sighed. "Not yet."

"How 'bout now?" Barret tried again.

"I said not yet!" she hissed.

I heard him as we passed the 36th floor. "Hey, Tifa—"

"Look, Barret, don't even bother asking!" she snapped. "We're way, way, way, way far from being there!"

"This sucks! I'm goin' back!" he growled.

Tifa glared down at him. "Oh, come on! You really wanna go down all those stairs you just climbed? It'll take just as long for you to do that as it did to go up them in the first place."

"Shit…" Barret grumbled.

He kept going, muttering sourly to himself under his breath again. We found Tifa on the 40th floor, panting slightly with her hands on her hips as she waited for us. Barret was actually still almost an entire floor behind me, so I got there a minute or so before he did. Tifa flashed me a little smile as I joined her.

"Tired?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Not anymore. I feel fine. You?"

I nodded. "Same."

"You're not even sweating," Tifa chuckled. "Must be that SOLDIER stamina of yours. Pretty useful, I'd say."

"Comes in handy," I agreed.

She smirked. "I bet Jessie thinks so, too."

I blinked and looked away, blushing furiously. "I, uh…"

"What's so funny?" Barret asked as he finally joined us. "Heard you two goin' on 'bout somethin' jus' now."

"Nothing!" I told him.

Tifa noticed him panting heavily. "C'mon, Barret, pull it together! I know you can do this!"

"I'm jus' flesh n' blood, Tifa," he said, wiping sweat off his forehead. "'Cept for my arm. Ain't like I was ever in SOLDIER or anythin'. So cut me a little slack here, awright?"

"What about me? I'm human, too!" she argued.

Barret scratched his head. "Huh?"

Tifa waved him off. "Oh, do what you want. I'm going!"

"Sorry, Tifa," he said. "I didn't mean that."

"Alright, me too," she relaxed.

We got moving again, this time with Tifa bringing up the rear and Barret in the middle. I led the way into the forties, the only sounds our breath and the steady thudding of our feet on the stairs. We were pretty high up now, finally starting to get close to our destination. But we still had a ways left to go, so we kept at it.

"Any idea what floor this is?" Barret wondered.

"Not a clue," Tifa answered. "I gave up counting a while ago."

I hadn't. "Forty-five. Fourteen to go."

"Glad someone's paying attention," she laughed.

"Why the hell'd they hafta go an' build this goddamn place so tall?" Barret complained. "Another reason to hate alla them Shinra bastards. They jus' no damn good. No good at all."

Tifa sighed. "Barret…"

He went on. "Damn, I'm beat. Gimme a suicidal last stand any day. Least that'd have an' end. Marlene, Daddy jus' wanted to see your sweet little face one more time…"

"Shut up. Now," I ordered him. "Don't be talking like that."

"Why not?" he asked.

Tifa answered for me. "Because wishing for trouble might bring it. And you're not in any shape to fight anyway."

"Hell, I'm—" Barret sputtered.

I cut him off. "No, you're not. You're taking a breather when we get to the top. Call it an order if you want. We don't need you keeling over in the middle of a fight. Understand?"

He nodded. "Yeah, yeah. So what am I s'posedta do?"

"Quit acting like a moron and climb!" Tifa told him. "We're nearly there! It's just a bit further… I think."

I saw she was right. "Just passed forty-nine."

Tifa cheered. "See? Only ten to go!"

"Another day, another struggle…" Barret sang, his voice rough but surprisingly in tune. "Climbin' stairs is so much trouble…"

"That was good, Barret!" Tifa said.

He laughed. "Thanks! Glad ya liked my little ditty."

"Maybe you should sing a duet with Jessie sometime," Tifa giggled. "It'd be fun, and you know she'd like it."

"Uh, I dunno. We'll see…" Barret stammered.

I smirked. "Stage fright?"

"Maybe. I ain't much for that kinda thing," he admitted. "Not really the performin' type myself. That's Jessie's gig. Don't need to tell ya that, though. I'm sure you already know by now."

I did, of course. "Yeah. Star of LOVELESS. She told me."

He went on as we reached the 52nd floor. "Ever hear her sing? She's a diva! Girl's gotta a helluva seta pipes."

"Not yet," I answered. "Aerith mentioned it, though."

"Well then, after this is all over, we'll just have to have Jessie give us a little concert," Tifa decided.

Barret chuckled. "Call it a fee for our services, maybe."

"That's fine by me," I agreed.

The last few floors went by in a blur as all of us—even Barret—put on a fresh burst of speed knowing that the end was in sight. It had been a long climb, but I hadn't doubted that we'd pull it off. The girls needed us, and we weren't gonna let them down. As we raced up the last flight of stairs, I almost felt like I was flying.

A minute later, we were there, standing together on the landing for the 59th floor. It was set in the corner of two walls, and while no more steps went up from here, there were two doors here instead of one. The first led out of the stairwell and into the building itself. That was where we were headed. The second door was on the other wall at right angles to the first and had a few words on it:

EXECUTIVE LEVELS 60-65
AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY

An electronic card reader was mounted next to the door, and I was sure more stairs led up from here on the other side. We didn't have any way to get in there, though. And I didn't think we'd be able to convince Barret to climb any further anyway. He stood nearby, covered in sweat and panting heavily but with a look of profound relief on his face as he realized we had finally made it to the top.

"We made it…" he breathed. "It's about… damn time. Don't wanna see… no more stairs… the resta my life…"

Tifa smiled. "Really takes it out of you, doesn't it?"

Barret nodded. "Bet your ass it does…"

"You did good, though, Barret," she said, taking his shoulder. "You did Jessie proud. And Marlene."

"Makes it all worth it," he grinned.

I tried the first door. It was unlocked, just as I'd expected. "Alright. We've got our way in. Better rest for a minute first, though. Wasn't easy to get here, after all. So have a seat, guys."

Barret did just that. "Damn, but this feels good…"

"You're not kidding," Tifa agreed.

We all sat on the landing to catch our breath after that long climb. I let us have three minutes for our break. That was all the time we could spare. Jessie's was running out, and there was no way Shinra was going to let Aerith go without a fight.

"So Jessie really went down all these stairs?" Barret asked.

Tifa nodded. "Yeah, when she left Shinra, remember? Marissa told me more about it when we were getting ready this morning. That bitch Scarlet actually shot Jessie on the way out, did you know that? Got her in the arm as she ran into the stairwell."

He swore. "Goddamn…"

"I think I know why," I said. "Jessie had worked under Scarlet, was her assistant. We know she designed some of Shinra's weapons—Jessie only wanted to use them to help protect people. But Scarlet altered her designs behind her back and turned them into killing machines. Jessie must've found out about it and confronted her."

"She told you?" Tifa looked at me.

I nodded. "Yeah, in the Sector 4 underplate when we hid the bomb for Reactor 5. She was really broken up about what had happened with Reactor 1. But you guys heard what the president said before we fought Airbuster. They did it, not us. It wasn't her fault."

"We gonna tell her, right?" Barret said.

"I will," I assured him. "Soon as I can. She needs to know."

Tifa tightened her fist. "Definitely. Shinra caused all that death and destruction. Not Jessie. And if I ever run into Scarlet, I'll introduce my fist to her face. Nobody hurts my friends."

"Kick ass, girl!" Barret grinned.

"Oh, I will," she promised, her eyes narrow.

I checked my phone and got to my feet. "Time's up. Let's go."

"This is it, guys," Tifa said. "Better be ready."

"Damn straight!" Barret pumped his fist. "We ain't messin' around now. Time to kick some Shinra ass!"

I frowned. "Focus on the girls. That's our objective."

He reloaded his gun-arm as he stood up. "Hell, I know. Don't mean we can't have a little fun while we're here. All parta the plan, SOLDIER boy. Save Aerith an' deliver the smackdown."

"Count on it," Tifa added.

"Guess we'll have to fight sooner or later," I admitted. "But we need to make it fast when we do. Don't wanna be noticed until we're already on the way out with Aerith. Got it?"

Barret put on his shades. "I hear ya, merc. Let's rock!"

Tifa slowly opened the door a little and peeked through. "We won't have to wait long. Company's on the other side."

"Guards?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said. "Two guys wearing big, bulky red suits. They look like robots. Weapons on their arms, too."

I nodded. "Armored grunts. Shinra's elite forces."

"Oh, we can take 'em!" Barret grinned.

"Any ideas?" Tifa glanced at me.

I thought for a moment. "They're big but not very fast. Vulnerable to lightning, too. If we're quick enough, we can take them down before they can sound the alarm."

"Surprise attack," Barret suggested. "That's the ticket."

I drew Buster. "Exactly. Let's move."

He and Tifa both got into position on either side of me as I quietly pulled the door open. The grunts' backs were to us, and they looked to be doing a standard patrol, walking a slow circle around the main area. The floor and walls were all shiny black marble, and I spotted two sets of elevators. One was directly across from us, and the other I could just barely see off to my left in the corner.

To my right on the far side of the area sat a pair of dark green sofas with a polished gray coffee table in between them. Must've been a little break area or meeting spot of some kind. The place was empty, though. Several other doors here and there along the walls stood closed and led out of sight, probably to a bunch of offices. A few potted plants nestled in the corners added the finishing touch.

When the armored grunts got close enough, I sprang out instantly, Tifa and Barret right behind me. I focused on my materia and hurled a sizzling bolt of lightning at the nearest grunt, striking it squarely in the back of its red steel chestplate. It staggered and whirled around in time to catch a swiping slash from Buster.

In the meantime, Tifa and Barret closed in on the second armored grunt, fists and bullets ripping into it. The thing fired back but missed, and Tifa hit his helmeted head with a pair of diving kicks while Barret followed it up with a focused burst of gunfire. The grunt collapsed in a heap, his chest full of smoking holes.

The first grunt was still on his feet, but I pressed the attack, cutting with Buster left, right, and left again and using the wide blade to block his gunshots. He had a glowing white energy sword fixed to the end of his right arm and used it to deflect my attacks. I fell back, knowing he'd come after at me sooner or later.

Sure enough, the armored grunt bought my feint. When he lunged at me, I ducked under the clumsy arc of his swing and slammed Buster into his sword. Then I knocked it away, spun around, and sliced him in half at the waist. He fell apart in a shower of sparks and blood as Barret and Tifa finished off his partner.

"Quick an' easy," Barret pumped his fist and grinned. "Ain't nothin' to it. Da-da-da-da-daa-daa-da-dadaaa!"

Tifa gave us a thumbs up. "That's a win!"

I shouldered Buster. "Yeah. Let's look for the keycard."

"You think there's one here?" she asked.

"Marissa would've made sure of it," I reminded her. "Those friends of hers on the inside. We just need to find it."

Tifa nodded. "We will."

That said, we all spread out and started looking around. Although there wasn't much to search through, I knew the keycard had to be out here somewhere. Marissa's contact would've left it someplace where we could easily find it, and that meant that it wouldn't be in another room somewhere. It would be hidden right out here in the floor's central area where she knew we'd have to go to move on.

I wasn't sure where to look at first, but then I slowly wandered over to the two sofas. Them and the coffee table were the only furniture out here, and they looked ordinary enough. When I walked over, though, I decided to look underneath the dark green cushions. I crouched down and lifted them up one after another. There were a lot of them because both couches were pretty long. But then, Tifa noticed what I was doing and came right over to help, checking one sofa while I did the other as Barret continued to search the rest of the area.

"Cloud!" Tifa called. "Found it!"

I turned around to see her kneeling by the other couch and smiling as she held up a white plastic card with the Shinra logo imprinted on it. "Good job. Under the cushion, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah. And that's not all. Look!"

"Whatcha got there, Tifa?" Barret asked as he joined us.

"Our contact left us a note," she answered.

Tifa had a slim white envelope in her other hand. It was open, and I realized the keycard must've been tucked inside along with the single sheet of paper she pulled out after handing me our prize. As Barret and I listened, Tifa read the note to us. It wasn't that long, and it left us with just as many questions as answers.

To my expected visitors,

If you're reading this little message of mine, then you're well on your way to accomplishing your mission. This keycard will allow you to reach the 60th floor. Sorry I couldn't get you further than that, at least for now, but I wanted to ensure we met face to face before you start raising havoc against Shinra. Of course, you'll need to prove yourselves to me before I'll give you access to the higher levels. I want to see for myself that you're up to snuff. Just a little test, nothing more.

Quite a few guards patrol the 60th floor, so you'll have to sneak your way past them. I've unlocked the doors leading to the escalators, so that's where you'll want to go. I'm sure that you can make your way to the 61st floor from there.It's a bit convoluted, I know, but I'm afraid it's the best I can do. My reach is damnably limited, as you'll soon see. I'm nothing but a poor, caged old bird longing to be set free.

In the Skyview Hall cafeteria and lounge on the 61st floor, you'll find one of my agents. He'll be more snappily dressed than most of the people you'll see up there. Say that you're part of Shinra's Internal Maintenance Division—that's just the company's fancy name for its janitors and repair crews—and he'll tell you to go and fix a broken door upstairs. That's how you'll know he's your man. Then he'll update your keycard so you can get to the 62nd floor, where I'll be waiting for you.

Our mutual friend brought me up to speed on all that's happened, so I know why you're here. Everything is in place, so don't worry about that. Just get here as soon as you can and I'll explain the rest. Shinra's got a lot to answer for, and I can't wait to see you make them suffer! The indignity of what they've done to me! It's terrible! Everything I've gone through and endured. But enough about that. You had better get moving. I'll be seeing you soon. And then we'll make Shinra sorry!

Your BEST friend,
Mr. D

"Who the hell's Mr. D?" Barret scratched his head.

I shrugged. "A friend. We'll find out later. In the meantime, let's do what he said and try to find this guy he told us about. We won't get any closer to Aerith until that's done."

Tifa nodded. "He's on the 61st floor. Skyview Hall."

"Right," I nodded. "Time to go."

We shared a determined glance, then headed over to the larger set of elevators opposite the stairs. A pair of clear glass doors stood closed in front of them with an electronic card reader sitting off to one side. I took a breath, then swiped the keycard through the slot. A second later, there was a little chime, and the light on the side of the machine turned from red to green as the glass doors slid open.

"Paydirt!" Barret grinned.

Tifa smirked as we hurried into the short little hall. "Well, now we know it works. So far, so good."

I hit the call button. "Yeah. But stay alert."

"Count on it," she agreed.

There were two elevators here, and a moment later we heard a soft beep. The doors to the one on the right opened, and we went inside. It was a huge glass cylinder about twenty feet across reinforced with steel along the top and bottom edges and where the button panel was. Next to it was another card reader, and after swiping the keycard through it, I tapped the button for the 60th floor. It changed color from white to a pale green, and the elevator started to rise.

One step closer to Aerith.