12 AM, Mako Reactor 0, Deepground labs...
The mission was to search the old Deepground base for the active computer using the network. Since the Deepground system was a separate network on its own, the WRO needed someone to find the active machine and collect the much-needed information. That's where Yuffie and Caith came in.
Yuffie hadn't been in Deepground's base since the incident a long time ago, but instead of Vincent as her partner, she had Caith tag along on this mission. At least he was quiet and kept up with her pace as she hopped and sprinted through the broken down halls.
"Lass! Slow down already! I haven't been in action for a while now!"
So much for quiet, she sighed as she slowed her pace to allow the mech cat to catch up with her. The place was abandoned and in ruins, how would anyone be here was beyond her comprehension. She soon came to a stop at a hall that leads to either left or right. She may not have been in any rush, but she would hate to waste her time looking in places that weren't important. Plus, she wasn't in the mood to do a full sweep.
"Ok Caith, Connect me to Shelke."
"Roger, that lass."
Caith stood still behind her, and soon his voice was replaced with Shelke's.
"Shelke here, what seems to be the problem Yuffie?"
"I'm at a fork in the road, and I was wondering if you had the map of the building to make my job easier."
"Alright, give me a minute to look for it through my system."
Yuffie waited impatiently for Shelke's response. Her foot tapped rapidly on the dusty floor while staring intensively at Caith hoping he would hurry up. Even if she knew that wasn't how it works. Her intense glared was making her partner awkward.
"Stop staring at me lass; It's very uncomfortable for me."
"Sheesh, sorry but I hate waiting."
"Well staring at me won't get the lass to work faster."
"Fine"
Yuffie sighed and averted her sights from Caith and turning her attention around the hall they were in. Spiders crawling everywhere and everything was covered in dust; she would have sneezed if the dust were to disperse around her suddenly. Other than that, there were rocks and severed cables spread across the floor and ceiling.
Vincent did a number on the place when he was running around, and blasting Deepground soldiers left and right, she guessed. But he could have made less damage on the area so that she could get through it without tripping over gaps and getting into trouble with the mutated wildlife.
"Shelke here again, I have uploaded the map in Caith's memory banks so he will be your guide. And be careful from now on you two, there seems to be an energy spike on the left so someone might be there."
"Hey, this is the Wutai's White Rose your talking to! I haven't been caught yet!"
"Actually, lassy there was that one time you were-"
"That does NOT count."
Yuffie glared at him menacingly which made him jerk away from her in fear, waving his arms defensively in front of him. As if his thin robotic arms could even protect him from the little ninja's wrath, he does not want to be at the end of her large and deadly sharp Shuriken.
"E-easy lassy!"
"Anyway... Just be careful you two." Shelk reminded them again with concern. Which also acted as a way to get the two to focus on the mission.
"Copy that glow sticks."
"... Stop calling me that Yuffie."
"Okie Dokie flat chest."
Shelke sighed before finally hanging up on Yuffie; she really didn't want to discuss this subject at that moment. Maybe later when she got back to base and they were alone.
Yuffie and Caith continued down the left hallway quickly but quietly, against Shelke's earlier warning. They later reached a large sealed metal door blocking their path.
"Now what lassy? head back and check the other route?"
"No way! If there are enemies here, then that means the computer is definitely there." The young ninja protested, all while her eyes examined the hallway. Looking up she spotted a vent that was big enough to fit them both.
"Oh, this is just easy."
She then pulled out her Kaginawa and twirled it over her head then throw it upwards where it hooked on the vent's cover. After yanking the lid off, she grabbed Caith and jumped up and into the shaft. Caith grabbed on to Yuffie's back, effectively leading her through the complex ventilation system while she did all the crawling. During her crawl, she spotted some soldiers patrolling the halls and rooms that they pass, all of which were the escapee Deepground members that were held captive by the WRO.
"Lass, those are all the prisoners we had. What do you think they are doing back here for?"
"I have no idea furball. Hm?"
Yuffie spotted a familiar old man in a white lab coat walking down the hall. He was bold on top and had black hair tied in a ponytail. For some odd reason, he reminded her of Hojo but he was dead she was sure of that. And since she couldn't see his face from where she was, she dismissed the idea and continued her way to the computer room.
They soon reached the room where the energy spike had originated from, and just to their luck; it was empty. Yuffie carefully opened the shaft lip and dropped down to the floor. Caith jumped off her back and went over to the door and hacked the door panel, preventing it from opening from the outside, eliminating any interruptions. He then joined her at the central computer and hacked away at it.
"They didn't renew the passcode."
"They're probably lazy."
"Or they didn't think anyone would come and hack their system."
Caith's tail revealed a flash head, inserting it into the computer's slot and began downloading the files from the network. Yuffie, on the other hand, pulled out her cell phone and immediately called Reeve to report.
"Reeve, Yuffie here. We've successfully reached the computer room, and Caith's downloading the data as we speak."
"Good job, what else did you find?"
"We've spotted most of the escapees on the way here protecting this secret section of the base. And there was this familiar looking old man in a lab coat too, but I couldn't see his face sorry."
"I see let's hope that they aren't after Omega again."
"I don't think that's possible since Chaos is back in the lifestream and the proto materia is lo-"
Yuffie's eyes were attracted to the monitor that displayed some odd file with a picture of a young three or four-year-old girl attached. Her facial features were similar to Aerith's but with black hair and one mako colored eye while the other was green. Under the image was a large block of text that Yuffie had no interest in reading through, but some words caught her attention 'Lab-grown Cetra half breed.'
"Yuffie? Still there?"
"Hold up big boss."
Before she could go back to read the text that she ignored earlier, the alarm went off, and the screens shut off. She quickly hung up on Reeve and turned her sights on Caith who was in a state of panic.
"S-sorry lass! The last file I was downloading had an alarm trigger!"
"So you blow our cover?!"
The sound of heavy metal objects hitting the door alerting them of the danger they were in, and she could tell that the door won't hold up any longer. Yuffie quickly grabbed Caith and went over to the open vent. She could hear the multiple voices of angry soldiers behind the door, but her priority now was to escape and fast. She swiftly jumped up into the vent and closed it behind her hopping to throw them off just enough for her and Caith to escape.
Just as she left, the door finally bursts open, and the soldiers rush in looking for the intruder but found no one. Behind them came a tall man with a muscular build, spiky white hair covering most of his face, and his eyes are blue with yellow rings around the pupils.
"Sir, The intruder vanished."
"Keep searching; they couldn't have gone far. And make sure that 'She' is not discovered by our 'guest'".
