She didn't know how many hours had passed since around three in the evening, the first time she had checked the clock since she boarded the Highwind. She was willing to bet it was dark outside now. It was easy to get lost in work when she listened to music and ever since the really awkward talk with her new boss, Cloud, she had been listening to the same album on repeat for who knows how long.
The shake of the ship reminded her of where she was and brought her out of her work induced daydreams. The shake came with no warning and scared her a good bit. Had they landed? Was something going wrong? Please don't tell her they were falling from the sky. Given that nothing more had come after the initial disturbance, she assumed that the ship had landed and pushed her chair back.
Yanking the earbuds from her ears, she stood up and felt the ache of sitting for too long in her back and legs. She might ask for a cushion later or set an alarm to remind her to stand every once and a while. Taking no further hesitation, she pushed the door open and found the lights in the lounge area off and the room void. Deciding to take her curiosity to the cockpit, she walked down the narrow hallway and out into the open area. The sunlight that would stream down from the cockpit was replaced with artificial light and nothing more. It was dark out. The conference room was also lit, and voices echoed out into the space.
Taking the chance to ask, she made her way over to the open door and before she had the chance to ask anything or to make her appearance known, Barret looks out the door and spots her.
"Stella, get in here! We're talking business." He called out to her and she stiffened for a moment, not expecting to be invited in so early.
The eyes of the others turned towards her as she walked in the door. Cid leaned back in a swivel chair, a cigarette pinched between his fingers and Tifa stood with Cloud. The long mahogany conference table stretched down the length of the room and a map of the planet was displayed on the far wall, the blue screen washed together with the fluorescent lights. Her contraption sat on the table's edge, the detonator button lay next to it.
"Did we land? I felt a shake and wanted to make sure nothing was wrong." She asked, her voice quiet. Cid scoffed and rocked side to side in the chair, it swiveled with him and creaked with his weight.
"You think I'd let something go wrong with my ship? If something bad was happening, you'd know it." Cid half grumbled, half bragged through a drag on the cigarette. She wrinkled her nose at the scent of the smoke that lingered in the air. Did he always do this?
"Come on, Cid. Don't be like that. She didn't mean nothing." Barret spoke up from behind her, stepping away from the door and pulling a chair out, taking a seat. He let his weaponized arm rest on the table in front of him. It was fascinating and she might ask to take a look later, if she could gather the courage. He seemed nice enough, defending her like this, but she still didn't know where boundaries stood for someone she just met.
"Sorry, none of us thought about warning you… guess we should have." Tifa added, her arms folded over her chest. Stella looked to the map and then back at the door.
"So… are we in Gongaga already?" Stella asked and Cloud nodded.
"Take a seat, we're gonna talk about it now. You wanted to know what the deal was, so now you'll know what we do." He gave, rubbing his eyes. He looked tired already. They all did, and now they were having a meeting so late, which only hinted to her that it was going to be a long night.
"Okay, boss." She responded, pulling a chair under her and taking a seat. Cloud gave her a look and lifted his eyebrows.
"Boss? No, don't call me that." He began shaking his head, "Just Cloud, okay?" With his correction, Tifa gave them both a grin and took a seat beside Stella. The brunette smirked and spoke up.
"Hey boss, sit while you can. We're going to be walking a while and you've been on your feet this entire trip." Tifa advised, her teasing tone played with her smile. The blonde opened his mouth to say something, but opted out and just sat down, taking the seat at the head of the table, the map to his back. Each of the members were scattered around the table, Barret and Cloud were the furthest apart and the closest person to Stella was Tifa. It felt kinda strange, but she ignored it.
"Walking? You guys are going for a walk this late?" Stella asked and Cid grunted.
"Yeah, sucks doesn't it? The uncomfortable sleeping bags are what I'm dreading, but what can you do." He complained, shedding better light on the situation. She wasn't going to go with them, was she? She wasn't planning on an impromptu camping trip and she certainly didn't want to get that up close and personal with the forests of Gongaga.
"Don't worry, you get to be cushy here until we get back. We don't have enough sleeping bags and you're not bunking down with me." Barret joked with a chuckle, having to have seen the concern on her face. "Yep, you get to hold down the fort here." He added and Stella hadn't considered that. She snapped her eyes to Cloud.
"Wait, am I going to have to watch this ship? I can't… I'm not qualified for that." Stella began and Cloud held his hand up.
"No… yes… kinda? You just have to stay here until we get back. You can defend yourself, right?" He asked, his elbows propped on the table. She stared at him for a second, thinking it was pretty obvious that she couldn't. She was new, didn't have a gun arm, and wasn't buff like Tifa. She gave a nervous laugh in response as she formed an answer.
"Me? I've never been in a fight in my life. What I did at the inn today… that was the first time. If someone comes at me, I'll try my best but… I'm not like you." Her words lingered in the silence they left. Tifa looked down at her hands and Cloud rubbed his temple.
"Well, Cloud, looks like you're gonna hafta get this girl a gun." Cid laughed, putting out the stub of his cigarette. "If she doesn't barbeque them first."
"Right, I'll work on that." He sighed and looked at Stella. "Are you gonna feel safe here by yourself? Does someone need to stay with you?" Cloud asked, his brows pulled forward. She didn't want to be a bother, but being new and having to watch what she assumed was a million gil ship by herself wasn't ideal. Before she could open her mouth, an electronic jingle sounded.
Taking a moment to fish it out, Cloud pulled a cell phone from his jacket pocket, flipping it open. Pressing it to his ear, the room held their breath in anticipation. Cloud didn't give much other than a hum and an "okay" before he flipped the phone shut.
"Well, I think I know who's going to stay here with Stella…" Cloud trailed off and he furrowed his brow. "How does Vincent always know where we are?" He asked as he stood, maneuvering around the chair.
"Oh, I called. Let him know where we were heading." Tifa spoke up, remaining seated. Cloud tipped his head to the side, his question being answered.
Without another word, he slipped out of the door and she was under the impression he was going to let "Vincent" in. There was no telling who the next person she would meet would be? A new and strange character, she assumed, but maybe hoped it was someone normal and someone she could be friends with. Not that anyone sitting at the table with her didn't have that potential, but she was still unsure. The silence didn't last long.
"Vincent is great company, you'll like him if you like things real quiet." Barret gave, tapping his fingers on the table. So far, she appreciated Barret, at least trying to make things seem a little less serious. None of them really seemed over serious, really.
"Oh yeah? Not a conversationalist?" Stella asked, leaning her head on her palm. Cid laughed and shook his head.
"Oh, you'll see. He's a great marksman, I'll give him that, but he's an odd feller." Cid chuckled, tugging at his sleeve.
Stella wasn't sure how to respond so she fell silent. That silence also didn't last long.
"So, spikey head told me what that weapon did to that Shinra lackey. Did it feel good to zap him like that?" Barret asked and Stella gave a non-committed hand wave.
"I thought it would feel good in the long run, but so far, not really. I have a good reason to want to lash out, those blueberries made my job a lot harder with how careless they were with the rooms and keys. Today was the first time one ever pulled a gun on me." Stella admitted. Barret gave a nod of understanding as he grinned.
"Blueberries, huh? I like that." He started with a smile before adding, "You regretting what you did?" His tone held a little more seriousness.
"I'm not sure about regret yet, but it didn't feel great. I always made these things but I never expected that I would be throwing it at someone's head someday. It's a little scary and a little jarring, but I guess I have to accept it. I make weapons." She sighed out, her revelation from the hours she sat mulling over it on the trip was made vocal.
"Well, you might get used to that or you might not. However long this little gig of yours last, AVALANCHE is gonna make sure these weapons are only for those blueberries with targets on their heads." Barret assured, laughing at his own use of the term blueberry.
A pair of footsteps brought Stella's attention to the door, which framed a new figure. A tall lanky man in very peculiar clothes walked in. His long black hair was in complete disarray in a ragged waterfall over his shoulders, which were covered by a red tattered cloak which draped in front halfway down his arms. The rest of him was adorned in black. The only skin shown on him was his fingertips on his right hand, which peaked out from black gloves, and a sliver of his face, which only revealed his eyes and nose. The high, red collar of the cloak covered his mouth and red cloth which only partially kept his hair from his face obscured his brows. He was an "odd feller" for sure.
His expression was impossible to read, and not just because his brows and mouth were tucked away. Cloud stepped around him and to the chair he has previously occupied at the head of the table.
"I've talked to Vincent and he'll stay here while we go." Cloud spoke up and Vincent stepped forward and set something heavy and metallic on the table in front of Stella. A handgun.
"For you." And that was all he said before taking a step back and standing near the door. She gave him an appalled look and debated touching the gun, but decided against it. The idea of it going off was too daunting.
"Um, thanks. This is nice of you." She thanked him and he gave her a hum in response before letting his red eyes rest on Cloud. She supposed he wasn't going to sit, as he leaned against the door frame.
"Okay, back to business." Cloud spoke up, taking his previous seat and propping arms on the table as he settled into the chair. "Thanks to Cid, we discovered that Shinra land surveyors have taken camp near Gongaga village and are making it hell for the locals. What was it you said they were doing again?" Cloud directed his question at Cid, who looked up and clicked his tongue.
"They're raising hell, that's what." Cid huffed, "Guarding the water source, not allowing anyone to leave, demanding that the soldiers quarter in the inn, just a bunch of scare tactics. A buddy of mine said that a lot of their business is built on trades so this is messing up their money too, but you know those asses are planning this."
"How exactly are they enforcing it, do you know?" Cloud asked, clasping his gloved hands together.
"Telling the folks who try to leave that they would be getting in the way of the surveying and it's a crime to interfere with official Shinra business. Just blocking them in, that's how." Cid answered and Cloud closed his eyes for a moment.
"So they're already surveying out there and you know what that means." Cloud insinuated vaguely, only to have Barret pick up the thought.
"They're gonna slap a big ugly reactor or facility up. Not if we can help it, right?" Barret added and tapped his fingers on the table. Cloud shook his head.
"There's not a ton we can do right now about that, but we can shake up the surveyors and help the locals as much as we can. And as far as what they're planning, we don't know yet." Cloud stated, his voice lowered.
"Well I know everyone is being shooed out of Rocket Town, that's for sure. They're buying up land, left and right. Trying to get whatever they can get their greedy hands on." Cid grumbled. A voice came from the back of the room, the cloaked man spoke up.
"We don't know what they want yet. That's the first thing we should learn and stealth will suit us better." Vincent suggested, still leaning against the doorframe.
Tifa had been listening along the whole time, but finally pulled her face up from her palm.
"I agree with Vincent. Maybe instead of stirring the pot, we should go and talk to the locals and try to find out as much as we can. We can ask them if they know anything that we don't before we take action." Tifa gave and Cloud nodded.
"That's fair… but we'll have to sneak in and be careful." Cloud confirmed as he watched Tifa open her mouth.
"Sneaking isn't… our strong suit, but we'll have to make it work." Tifa added with a touch of humor, a small smile spread across her face. There was a short silence over the room as everyone listened on. Stella grew uncomfortable and wished she had something in her hand to fiddle with or work on, but the only thing in front of her was the unfamiliar gun which could very well be loaded.
"What do you think, Stella? Anything you want to add?" Cloud asked and snapped her attention up. He was asking her?
"Me? What do I think of what?" Stella asked, surprised and confused. "Why are you asking me? This is over my head."
"You're right, but you're still here. Might as well ask." He concluded and took a stand, pushing his chair back. He slid the EFG on the table in the inner pocket of his jacket and it made her wonder if it would be of much use. She knew they really didn't want to know what she was thinking.
She couldn't understand how this group, AVALANCHE with all its reputation to boot, could think that what they did would help anything. Maybe momentarily they could cost Shinra some money or time, but there was nothing to be done. The Shinra Power Company had more money to spare and more time spread out among all of its network. It was a megacorporation and she couldn't see how a couple of tough people could do anything about a corporation so interconnected in society. She didn't know why and she didn't know how. Part of her wanted to hope that they could succeed in giving Shinra a power check, but she knew it was so improbable. Listening to them talk, it was like it didn't faze any of them or they didn't consider how impossible it seemed.
She didn't want to open her mouth now, not when it wasn't her place to. Not when she didn't know the ins and outs of the group she was now hired for. She just hoped she could be more helpful than unhelpful.
"It's go time, right?" Barret said more as an observation than a question, seeing the blonde stand and stretch.
"We got a long night ahead of us." Cloud sighed and frowned, "We need to get moving, it's already dark." With his call, the room came alive with everyone standing up and pushing their chairs under the table. Everyone idly made their way around the table and to the door. Stella was the last to stand, giving a wary look at the gun on the table. Best she didn't touch it for now, she could come back later.
"Don't look so sad. It's been a while since we were able to set up a campfire." Tifa offered Cloud, trying to sound positive. Everyone looked so tired and hardly ready for a nightly trip into the forest, Cloud was no exception. Stella felt a twinge of pity for everyone and a little guilty that she didn't have to go.
"Yeah, it's been a while. Last time we had stuff for s'mores…" He trailed off and gave a small smile, "Maybe next time it won't suck as much." He added, Tifa giving him a smile in return as she headed out the door. Cloud remained near the wall, waiting as everyone shuffled out the door. Vincent was the last to step out, leaving Stella the only one who lingered. She didn't know whether or not to see them off or to just go back and work while they left.
"Are you gonna leave that there?" Cloud asked and gave a nod to the gun left on the table.
"I um… was gonna get it later. It might be loaded and I-" Stella tried to explain and Cloud called out the door before she could continue.
"Hey, Vincent, a word?" His call brought the taller man back, who stopped by the door. His red eyes gave her a look. She faked a smile, not exactly happy with the new guy who would be watching her for a while. With no words from him, Cloud began and motioned over to her.
"Can you give her a little crash course? Nothing major, just a rundown and maybe let her shoot some." Cloud asked and the man nodded.
"Babysitting and class." He confirmed, "Okay." His response was short and humorless and Stella felt her mood sink.
"Babysitting…" Stella groaned. "That's not entirely fair, but not far from the truth." She reluctantly commented. Cloud shrugged and gave Vincent a pat on the shoulder as he left through the door.
"Gotta go grab the supplies. We'll be heading out soon." And he was gone down the hallway with the others.
Stella was left with the cloaked man, who closed his eyes and exhaled through his nose. His reaction was close to how she felt now, but she instead crossed her arms and looked away. He strode around her and picked the gun up from the table, holding it in his hand.
"Hold it like this." He demonstrated as he held the gun properly. "Finger off the trigger unless you plan to shoot. Safety is on the side." His words were quick. He held the weapon out to her and she gingerly took it.
"Is it loaded?" She asked, tilting it in her hand. The round safety was pressed in and the gun was heavy. It felt loaded, but she couldn't tell. The only gun she had handled before was an empty shell that she put components and a laser into.
"Yes." he gave simply. "You can shoot tomorrow and I'll show you how to clean it." He gave again and then turned on his heel, the conversation over.
She looked down at the gun while the man left her in the conference room. She debated going and asking if anyone needed her help before they left, but decided to go be useful doing her job. It was going to take a while to fix the kinks in her current projects and work on miniaturizing some of the designs. She made sure the safety was on again and dropped the gun into her pocket. She was still cautious, not wanting it to go off. Her own inventions, however, flawed and buggy on their own, felt safer to her than a well-crafted gun. She remembered the pain in her shoulder, no scar or wound to show for it.
It had been a long day.
Trying to forget it, she left the conference room, dodging Cid as he strode around her, backpack being swung onto his shoulders. Ignoring the dark outside, she felt as if her long day was only starting now as she walked down the hallway to the lounge. Taking a breath, she opened her door and stepped into the workroom, her mp3 player lay on the table beside her soldering iron. It was going to be a long night and maybe even a longer couple of days, but at least she wasn't going to her bed and dreading sleep only to wake up under the same routine.
Now she had something to look forward to, even if she didn't know what yet.