Hello guys!
I want to say something I forgot to tell you.
This fic was inspired by two other FF7 SI fic, namely: Testing Fate and
The Stranger From The Sky.
The reason why I'm pointing this out that there will be some similarities with these two. I'm not the most creative person sadly…
Anyway Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 4: Sector 7 Crash Course
Everyone from AVALANCHE was frozen to the core. There were Helis and AERO combatants, everywhere.
They were found.
Barret was ready as ready as he could be under the situation. He was not expecting that they would be found so quickly. 'Should've made multiple hideouts!' he cursed mentally.
The problem was, that from most of the group, could only do so much. While they knew how to brawl, fighting a whole army of guys in a frontal assault, is a whole other matter. The only one who can do something other than himself is Blaise.
Blaise was taking a deep breath. He was thinking hard how to make sure to lessen the victims.
He was not an idiot. Sadly he knew that saving every possible person is not happening. But he could still change the numbers of victims drastically!
"Okay everyone," Barret started. "This is gonna be a do or die situation, we have to protect the pillar!" Barret gave the order. "Knowin' those assholes, they wanna bring the whole plate down to make sure not even a puddle of blood remains of us!" he finished. He turned the corner of the street and shooted 3 combatants down in a quick succession.
"Let's go!" Barret motioned them. Blaise was closely behind him. Biggs Wedge, and Jessie were a bit farther away from them, so they wouldn't be so easy picking. Biggs had a combat knife, Jessie had a handgun, and Wedge had a rifle with him.
Blaise equipped the cover materia he found earlier. He didn't knew however how, this should work. He remembered that Cloud told him that the knowledge will be poured into him, while the materia is equipped. 'Then again cover materia is situational' Blaise thought while running behind Barret. He noticed a combatant behind a metal sheet, as did Barret. He opened fire at him. While under the suppressive fire, Blaise ran at the cover, and went around it. There was an extra soldier, but they didn't expect such that someone would rush at them. Blaise made quick work of them, by cutting them up. He learned to not think about killing people. It also wasn't the time. In fact Blaise was stressed. He was desperately thinking, how he could either split from the group to tell the inhabitants of this Sector to 'get the hell out of here' or to convince the others, to evacuate the sector. This way they might survive this cluster fuck that's about to go down.
The group hurried to the pillar, and luckily they arrived before Shinra.
"We gonna go up and protect the controls! The stairway and the platform fairly linear so we might be able to stop them!" Barret once again barked the order, and quickly started making his way up. Blaise clenched his hand tight. This is the moment he hoped he could convince them, since splitting from the group is impossible without appearing suspicious.
"Guys!" Blaise exclaimed, still on ground floor, while the trio just stopped on the first few steps on the staircase, Barret around a fourth of the staircase, though he was about out of earshot.
"What?" Biggs asked, wondering why he stopped and why he looked so tense. Scratch that, it's stupid not to be tense in this situation.
"Evacuate Sector 7!" He said in a dead serious voice. "I help Barret protect the pillar!" Blaise told them.
"Don't be stupid!" Jessie exclaimed. "You guys will be even more outnumbered!"
"You don't think we already are!" Blaise rebutted. "If that pillar falls, it will be because of us! Shinra will point it at us! If we let these people will die we are not different from them, we will be buying as much time as we can, at least even IF we die here, the flame of AVALANCHE will inspire a lot of other people for the cause. Not to talk to you guys, but Barret and I are the heavy hitters. When you guys would go up there you three would…die" He finished his speech with absolute conviction but they could hear that at the end he didn't said if but when.
Did he knew them this well in such a short amount of time. Wedge gave a chuckle.
"Next leader in line?" he teased, but then his voice turned serious. "You know Barret will kill you when you catch up to him, right?"
Jessie was shocked "What!?" she couldn't believe what Wedge was saying.
Blaise gave a faint smirk. "He'll be busy shooting at Shinra soldiers."
Jessie tried to protest. "But-" but she was cut off by Biggs.
"He's right, we can make a difference and help these people avoid the crossfire." he looked at his two best friend. "Come we wasted enough time here, and you!" he looked at Blaise.
"Get your ass up there!" Blaise nodded. Wedge and Biggs started making their was to the populace, Jessie sighed and went to Blaise and pushed her pistol to him, which looked like an M9 with a longer barrel.
"You might need this and these ammo for range." She looked into his eyes. "We are counting on you!" With that Jessie started to catch up with the rest of them. Blaise was taken aback. No one really said such words to him. This meant a lot to him.
But he realised something important.
"Wait! I never shot with one of these before!" he shouted to her.
She turned back for a second. "Just aim and pull the trigger!" she yelled back.
Blaise sighed, and he double timed to reach for the top.
He had a pistol in his left hand and a sword in his right.
He only met two aero combatants on his way to the top. One was trying to land just after the railing of the stairs, but Blaise managed to blind side him and cut through him.
The other was still some distance away, but opened fire at him. Blaise managed to block them, and started shooting back. The pistol didn't have much recoil, but his aim sucked. He missed 3 shots at him, but the 4th and 5th managed to him his rotor, which made him to fall to his death.
Blaise managed to reach the top. He was slightly out of breath due to how much he ran up to the top. Barret was surrounded by a group of 5 combatants. Blaise said 'hi by catching by cutting in half two of them, giving Barret an opportunity for an attack. "Dodge!" he yelled. Blaise rolled out of the way. An explosion took place in the middle of the group. It was Barret's Grenade Bomb limit break!
"What took you so long!" Barret barked, at him but noticed that he is the only one here.
"Where are the rest!?" Barret demanded. Blaise looked him in the eye.
"They are evacuating the people of this sector. Only the two of us are going to protect this pillar." Blaise explained.
Barret's head was red from anger. "THOSE IDIOTS! ARE THEY TRY-' His rant was stopped by Blaise.
"I told them to…" he interrupted his rant.
Barret's shock quickly turned to anger. "Are you out of your mind?!" he shouted at him.
"No, I'm not Barret!" Blaise yelled back before Barret had a chance to continue the shouting he continued. "We are fighting an army, and you don't realise that this is a losing battle we are fighting right now! Even IF they wouldn't have listened to me it still would be!
All we doing is delaying the inevitable, they are saving those who they can before time runs out!" He finished then took a deep breath to calm himself. "We can continue shouting at each other, or we can cover each other's back leader."
Barret huffed indignantly. "We gonna have a long conversation after this is over."
Blaise huffed as well. "I know what I'm doing. I won't apologise for convincing them not to participate on this suicide mission." Barret regarded him with a look, but decided to shoot the aero combatants, while Blaise also started shooting, while defending the staircase.
Cloud, Tifa and Aerith, just finished their trip to the Don. He was hired by Shinra and informed them about AVALANCHE's base of operation. They made their way through the trainyard. They were able to see a Heli circling around the pillar.
But they also saw how people are fleeing from the Sector. With Biggs, Wedge, Jessie helping them
"This way people! Only bring what you must!" Biggs shouted as he showed the way to Sector 8
"Guys!" Tifa yelled at them somewhat relieved that they are all right. But then noticed that they are short of two members. "Where are Barret and Blaise?"
Wedge decided answer. "They are at the top of the pillar, trying to buy us time to evacuate them." Then a flash of realization hit him. "Damn we forgot about Marlene!" he muttered out horrified. How could they forgot about that little angel in the middle of a life and death situation?
Tifa's eyes widened. She couldn't ask them to go for her, they already have their hands full atm. She turned to Aerith. "Aerith could you go to my bar? There's a little girl there named Marlene. Could you take her to a safe place?" she asked.
Aerith gave a serious nod and headed off towards the bar.
Cloud looked at the pillar, and noticed that the possibility of them being overrun is very high.
"They need our help Tifa." She nodded and sped through the stairs. They cut through a whole lot of them, on their way up.
Blaise was starting to feel fatigued. He never was a guy with monstrous stamina, but he was surprised he was only started to feel fatigued after like what...20th...40th combatant?
At least now he knew how the cover materia worked. One of the shots would have hit Barret, but for a moment the world was in slow motion for him and saw the bullet and with unbelievable speed he managed to block it off.
Blaise was currently, crouching, while using his sword to support his weight. He wanted 1 minute break before continue-ing goddamn it! He heard loud footsteps from the stairs.
'Great another wave!' he groaned inwardly. 'When will Cloud and Tifa finally arrive?'
The second he finished his thought, two very familiar face came up.
"About fucking time you guys showed up!" Blaise told them. But then he mentally cursed. He just might have made himself suspicious.
"Sorry it took so long." Tifa apologized, not being suspicious in the slightest. Cloud brushed his hair. "Thought I let you guys have the spotlight." And his 'I'm Cloud-cool-mercenary' attitude button is on.
Frankly Blaise right now was not in the mood for his facade.
Before Blaise could snap, Barret snapped first. "Quit your yapping, and fight!" He was shooting at the helicopter. The one which Blaise knew who to watch out for.
Reno.
As Barret was shooting at the thing, a Turk jumped out of it, and sprinted towards the control panel. "Too late, Once I push this-" his gloating was halted by Blaise almost cutting his hand off. Reno managed to jump back at the last second.
"Define late would you?" Blaise had a rare kind of smirk on him. A cocky one.
In his past life he never had a reason to be cocky. But right now he had one.
After all he just postponed the demise of this sector.
"You just had to make my job harder didn't you?" he asked nonchalantly, and pulled out his rod.
"Anyday if it involves a massacre!" Blaise said resolutely. And everyone had his weapon ready. Barret started shooting at Reno who just shooted a light out of his rod, and trapped Barret into a pyramid.
Blaise turned his attention to the pyramid, and started attacking it. In real life it's much tougher to break it open. Reno tried to use this as window to push the button, but Tifa intercepted him, and elbowed him in the stomach, and backhanded him in the face.
Tifa was occupying Reno while Cloud and Blaise were thrashing the pyramid. After 10 seconds the pyramid failed.
"You suit-stuff, it was fucking hot in there!" Barret was angry, it was next to unbearable in there. There was very little oxygen too.
"That's the point." he deadpanned. While rubbing his face. Tifa advanced on him, but Reno managed to dodge her uppercut, and hit her with his rod.
But the rod had a paralyzing effect, and right now, Tifa couldn't really move. Once again Reno tried to push the button, but narrowly dodged Blaise's last bullet. Cloud rushed at Reno, with a Braver. He just side stepped from him, but before he could hit him, Cloud put Reno on the defensive, and had to block Cloud swings with all his might in his arms.
Barret couldn't really shoot at him, because he didn't want to hit Cloud by accident, And Blaise couldn't really get close to him atm, because of Cloud's giant ass sword. It had more reach that his sword. But that was not all.
Blaise had a dilemma. Reno isn't really a bad person, and they would need his help later, but here he could potentially, die. If he dies that could mean more complication later. He cursed. He couldn't let the plate fall, but neither could he kill him. 'The few or the many huh?' he mused. After all it looked like he had to choose.
His musing was interrupted by Tifa getting out of paralysis, and Reno suddenly.
"Not bad, but I have to high tail it. Later" he waved us goodbye and ran away.
Blaise was confused. 'Why would Reno just fuck off? He didn't pushed the button'
"We won! Shinra can't take the heat!" Barret cheered. He was about to rub this to Blaise who was pessimistic, but then the sound of a helicopter came.
The heli started to hover somewhat above the platform, and the door opened.
It had the leader of the Turks, Tsung in it.
He gave them a clap, which was interesting, considering he isn't the sarcastic type.
"Not bad from a group of misfits, I admit I'm impressed how you managed to give my colleague a run for his money." He stopped clapping. "However you failed."
Barret balled his fist. "How did we fail ya jackass!? Did he forget to tell you he didn't pressed the button!?"
Tsung merely chuckled at this and pointed his index finger above the pillar.
They looked up and everyone's eye bulged out.
Above them, there were snatchel charges attached to the pillar.
"You son of a bitch!" Barret yelled, and was about to shoot at him, when Tsung brought someone out of the Heli.
"I wouldn't try that, you would hurt our special guest."
It was Aerith.
"Aerith!" Tifa exclaimed in horror
"Oh," Tsung mocked a surprise. "You two know each other?"
"How nice of me to let you see each other one last time. You should thank me." Tsung finished in a patronizing tone.
Blaise only now noticed something in Tsung's hand. He doubted it was a detonator, but it had an antenna. It looked like some kind of detector. 'Why does he have that?' he thought.
Tsung swept the device from left to right. Then his eyes showed surprise for a moment. 'That kid in the black hoodie, must be it, or that blond individual.'
"What's your name?" Tsung asked while pointedly looking at Blaise. Blaise was perplexed.
'Why is he interested in my name? This can't be good.' he thought.
"Blaise." He answered with a cold edge to his voice. Cloud seeing Aerith cut to the chase.
"What are you gonna do with Aerith!?" he demanded angrily.
Tsung put a finger on his chin as he was in thought. "I haven't decided. Our orders were to find and catch the last remaining Ancient. It took us quite a while, but I can finally report it to the president."
"Tifa don't worry they're okay!" she said, but Tsung slapped Aerith.
"Aerith!" Tifa shouted after her in worry. The helicopter turned but before Tsung could shut the door she managed to yell. "Hurry and get out!" and with that the explosives went off, and the heli, flew away.
Everyone frantically looked around for a way to get out of here. Barret unhooked a large hook.
"Everyone here, Grab on me!" he yelled. Tifa was in front of him, was on his right, and Blaise, was on his left. They swinged across to Sector 6, narrowly dodging the falling plate.
The shook took them off the hook, and everyone hit the ground hard.
When everyone recovered, they went to see the result of the destruction.
The sight was… catastrophic.
There were some legs and arms hanging out of the rubble, and blood leaking.
Blaise averted his eyes from the sight.
Barret ran at the rubble desperately. "MARLENE! BIGGS! WEDGE! JESSIE!" he shouted the name of her adopted daughter, and friends. In anguish he started to shoot and punch the rubble. "DAMN IT!" he roared.
"DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!" Barret's eyes were watery. From rage and sadness.
"Barret stop. Please stop Barret." Tifa pleaded, and she also barely held together.
Barret stopped for a second, he started to calm down.
But then he looked at Blaise with fury in his eyes.
"THIS IS YOUR FAULT!" he started to work himself up again. Blaise just looked at him.
"If you haven't told them to evacuate it instead, of fighting, they could have disarmed the bomb! This would have been preventable!" Barret yelled the top of his lung at him.
Blaise was taking shaking breaths. Barret lashed out on him. .Nothing!
Didn't he saw the they already had contingency plan for this shit!
It was the same shit he had enough of his previous life.
He can help anyone any number of times.
He can be nicest person who helps anyone who needs help.
But...One fuck up. One time you refuse to help anyone.
Or just simply needs a scapegoat.
It's always him! And If he refuses to help you once then you're scum of the earth.
"My fault...MY FAULT!?" Blaise snapped. "HOW THE FUCK COULD IT MY FAULT! HAVE YOU SEEN HOW FUCKING HIGH THOSE BOMBS WERE PLANTED! NO THEY COULDN'T HAVE DONE ANYTHING THEY WOULD HAVE-" he bit his tongue, he almost said what would have happened anyway. He took a deep breath. "Don't you dare point it at me."
"Both of you! Cool it!" Cloud ordered. "Barret it wasn't his fault pointing fingers at him isn't going to solve anything!"
Barret took it in what Blaise said. And he regretted instantly. He just… He didn't knew how to word it. He just felt so angry, it boiled over.
When everyone cooled down Tifa was in thought. ''Don't worry they're okay' ' she recycled what Aerith said and then it hit her.
Meanwhile Blaise checked his clothing, and noticed his hoodie was all torn up. 'Great, now all I have is my fucking T-shirt.' thought Blaise in irritation, He undressed his hoodie, and throw it away. He then looked over to everyone and other dust, and dirt, their clothes were fine. 'Seriously, what are those made of?' he questioned.
Barret came up to him. "Look." Barret eyes were red from the tears, but he had a somewhat apologetic face. "I was out of line okay, I didn't meant-" Blaise halted him with a hand.
Blaise sighed. "Look I get it, I 're anger and frustration went overboard. You didn't mean it and..." Blaise thought about it too. "And I'm sorry for-" Barret just shook his head.
"The hell you sorry for? I was the one who snapped." he chuckled mirthlessly.
"Barret I think they're okay!" Tifa exclaimed. Barret just looked at him with emptiness.
"Marlene, Wedge, Biggs, Jessie. They probably all right!" Tifa said, and Barret's eyes were filled with hope. "R-really?"
"She said 'Don't worry, they're okay.' She must have meant them." Tifa told him. Then she looked dejectedly to the ground."But the people of Sector 7..."
Barret's anger risen up again. "Those damned Shinra, killing the planet and Its people, just to make their wallet full of gold." Barret finished.
"Yeah, but…" Tifa started. But didn't finish it.
"But we also must be accountable for our own actions." chimed in Blaise.
"Heck do you mean?" asked Barret.
"Barret whether you like it or not, we ARE somewhat responsible for this bucket of shit." Blaise elaborated. "We were the ones whose base was at Sector 7, and the consequences of our actions were paid by them." Seeing that Barret was about fume again. He quickly elaborated. "Don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying that Shinra is innocent" he said that with distaste, "But merely acknowledge our faults."
Barret decided to digest what Blaise said, but Tifa was surprised at his maturity.
'Most people not just in his age, but older than him would just love to shift blame whoever they see fit.' she thought.
"Somehow we must pay them back. I'm going to make sure." Barret declared. He then looked at Cloud. "What about you?" Cloud was in thought, and decided to walk away, towards the sector 5 slums.
"Where do you think he's goin'? Barret asked them. Tifa suddenly realised where he might be heading. "Oh! Aerith!" Tifa exclaimed.
"Oh, yeah that girl." Barret said out loud. "What's up with her?"
"I don't really know…" She answered truthfully. "But she's the one I left Marlene with."
"Damn! Marlene!" Barret was eager to find her daughter. He started to run after Cloud, but turned back. "Tifa, Blaise. There ain't no turning back now." with that he hurried after the ex-SOLDIER. Tifa and Blaise glanced on more look upon the ruins of Sector 7 and hurried to catch up with them.
"Cloud!" Tifa shouted after him. They were able to catch up to him.
Cloud stopped. Barret went to him up to him. "Take me to Marlene, and the gang!"
"You going to help Aerith?" Tifa asked him. Cloud nodded.
"Yeah…" He answered. "But before that there's something I want to know." He then turned his back to them. "It's about the Ancients." He then had a far away look on his face.
He was clutching his head with his hand and like when you suddenly get a very painful headache. "...Sephiroth?" he me mumbled, then got down in on knee.
Tifa hurried to him, with concern. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah." was Cloud's simple response. They got up and they hurried to Elmyra's house.
When they arrived, at Elmyra's house. There were Wedge and Jessie sitting by the table.
Barret was relieved as were the rest of the group. But the happiest was Blaise.
'I...did it.' he thought in disbelief. 'I actually did it!' he mentally cheered.
"You guys are actually alive!" Barret exclaimed relieved. But he soon noticed their short of one member. "Where's Biggs." Both of them had sour expression on their face.
"He's upstairs sleeping. He was badly injured." Elmyra informed him.
Then looked at two individuals."Cloud, Blaise is it? It's about Aerith is it?" she asked.
Cloud shook his head and looked dejectedly on the ground in shame.
"I'm sorry Shinra have her." Elmyra sighed.
"I know. They took him just outside of here." She told them.
"It was our fault." Jessie said in a depressed tone. "There were Shinra troops in civilian clothing, and got the drop on us. They gave her a choice. Either she runs away, and they kill us all, or she turns herself in, and they let us and Marlene go." she looked on the ground in shame.
Barret balled his fist in anger. Not only did they threatened to kill his friends, but also Marlene too!
"But why is the Shinra's after Aerith." Cloud asked.
"Aerith is an Ancient. The sole survivor." Elmyra answered truthfully.
"But aren't you her real mother?" Barret asked in confusion.
After a moment of silence, Elmyra took a deep breath.
"...Not her real mother. It must have been around fifteen years ago.."
And with that Elmyra started to tell the group, how his husband went to the Wutai war, How one day she found Aerith and her mother in the station. How she told her that her husband returned to the planet. And how Shinra paid her a visit several times.
"...It's amazing how she avoided Shinra all these years." Cloud said after Elmyra told the story.
"The Shinra needs her alive, so I doubt they would harm her." said Elmyra.
"She also brought that little girl, here but as your friend already told you, Tsung gave her a cruel choice. I can assure you she doesn't blame any of you."
Barret stepped up. "I'm sorry but that little girl, Marlene is my daughter...I'm really sorry."
Elmyra was taken aback. "Your her father?" Barret nodded. And Elmyra angrily asked.
"How in the world could you leave alone a child like that!?"
"Please don't start with that," Barret asked. "I think about it all the time. What would happen to Marlene if I.." he shook his head refusing to finish the thought.
"But you gotta understand something. I don't have an answer. I wanna be with Marlene all the time, but I gotta fight. 'Cause if I'm not the planet's gonna die. So I'm gonna keep fighting!" Barret finished resolutely. Then continued in a lower voice.
"I'm really worried about her, and I wanna be with her all the time." he then threw his hands up. "See I'm going in circles now!" he said half jokingly.
Elmyra seemed to accept this. "I think I understand what you're saying. She's upstairs sleeping. Why don't you go and check on her?" Elmyra asked.
Barret doesn't needed to be told twice, and walked upstairs.
Cloud decided to go upstairs as well.
Tifa decided to talk with Jessie and Wedge. Blaise was also about to go upstairs to check on Marlene. After all he didn't really spoken to her since his arrival to Gaia.
But before he could Elmyra pulled him away.
"I'm sorry youngman but can I talk to you for a second?" she asked. Blaise raised an eyebrow as to why would she want to speak to her, but nonetheless he complied.
Blaise followed her to the kitchen where there only the two of them.
"Youngman I would like to ask you if you know, why you giving off a strange aura to Aerith?" Elmyra asked calmly and kindly, but also seriously.
Blaise blinked, "Strange...aura?" he asked confusedly.
Elmyra sighed. "I'm sorry, It's just that after Aerith wished you goodnight yesterday she came down to help me wash the dishes. She told me that you give off a strange aura, something that she couldn't really describe around you."
Blaise's gears were turning on his head. 'She knows!' Blaise thought frozen in place. But he quickly snapped out of it. 'No, she suspects at best that I'm not from this world. Otherwise she would have told her.' after composing himself Blaise had to resort to something he hated with passion.
He had to lie.
"No, I'm sorry, but I got no clue." Blaise lied while looking directly into her eyes.
Elmyra believed him. "I'm sure it's nothing, but just wanted to know if you know the reason why." Elmyra assured him. With that they both got out of the kitchen, and saw that the Trio of, Cloud,Barret and Tifa were waiting at the doorway.
"We are going to rescue Aerith." Cloud said to Blaise. "You coming?" Cloud asked, although he already knew the answer to that.
"I feel insulted by the question." Blaise told him, Cloud just smirked.
"Let's go to Wall Market." Cloud declared. "We might find a way to their HQ there."
Since they ain't got a better lead, they decided to follow Cloud there.
That's all folks!
In the next chapter I'll cover most, if not all of the remaining stuff from the Midgar section. I know this is shorter chapter compared to the last one, but I thought I finish it here.
See ya guys later!