I don't own Final Fantasy VII or it's characters. Please dont sue me.. I am poor.
Tifa was bringing in the last food that was still there. About the half was already stolen.
"Where did you get the money for all that food from?" she asked Gina who was just walking down the stairs.
"He gave me the money" she answered and took out the wallet that was still in her pocket.
"He is a strange guy huh?" the girl asked.
"What do you mean? He seems to me like an ordinary young man" Gina said in reply.
"If you ask me he is not the Rufus I have seen before" Tifa answered. "Not so cold and distant. And his eyes are totally different compared to the last time I have seen him. His eyes were cold like ice then".
"And how does he look now?" Gina asked while she opened the wallet to take a look at the picture of the shin-ra ID card.
Tifa thought for a moment.
"He looks… tired," she answered.
"Anyway… I'll start to make dinner. I guess you are hungry and he will be hungry too when he wakes up again" the woman meant and went into the kitchen.
"No.. is ok! I will make it!" Tifa said and looked in the direction of the stairs.
"Why is he still alive?" she thought.
"Start the tape once more!" Reeve said and watched at the screen. He rubbed his eyes. Reno pressed the play button and looked at the other turks.
Elena was shocked as she watched at the scene. They have been watching it over and over again but it was still unbelievable. The room was dark and they were watching at the bright screen for about an hour now.
"And that was the only camera that survived the disaster? Only the one at the door?" Heidegger asked.
Reno nodded and watched at the screen again.
"We have no other angle," he meant.
They all watched the scene again.
Rufus stood in front of the desk and watched out of the window. He did not even move a metre and then came the massive explosion. They watched at the destruction.
"There he is!" Reno said and pointed at a point on the screen that could be a hand under the huge desk of the president's office.
"Now comes no reaction for about the next two hours" he said and pushed the forward button.
"But now look at this" he pressed the play button again.
The group leaned forward and looked at the single tiny point. It moved.
"That is not possible!" Elena breathed.
"If you are amazed of this then wait what comes now!" Reeve meant and continued to watch.
The huge desk moved and they could clearly see a body under it.
"Nobody is that strong!" Reno meant.
"Oh my.. Look at him!" the female turk said as she saw the burned face and the blood around him.
"Ok… that is it. From now on comes no reaction for the next 30 minutes" Reno said and pressed forward again.
"No! Wait! Let me look at this!" Reeve meant and pressed the play button again.
They leaned forward again.
"Can't we get that bigger and more clearly?" he said annoyed.
The door opened and Scarlet came in followed by a man.
"I've found a video technician, Kyah" She said and switched on the light.
The others in the room all blinked suddenly, rubbed protesting their eyes and turned then their gazes at the man next to Scarlet.
The technician gulped and made a step back.
"Can you enlarge this area here on the screen?" Reeve asked and pointed on the screen.
The technician smiled suddenly.
"Are you kidding? This is the most progressive video system of the planet!" he answered and stepped next to Reno.
"May I?" he asked.
"Sure!" the turk said and stood up.
The technician sat town and pressed a button next to the keyboard and a few panels appeared in front of them.
"Finally a man who knows how to do his job, Kyah!" Scarlet sneered and looked at the other men. They looked embarrassed to the ground.
The man pressed a few buttons and the picture of Rufus was now big and clear.
Heidegger stepped next to the man.
"All what you see now is highly confidential" he told him and the technician pressed the play button again.
They all leaned forward again. Elena raised her hands to her face and looked at the screen with wide eyes.
"His face…" she breathed in shock. "That cannot be President Rufus!"
The even features of his face had turned into deep scars and burn marks and the wounds seemed to disappear except a deep wound on his forehead. Suddenly he opened his eyes and pushed the huge desk off his body after a second try.
"No way!" Reeve meant. "His body should be crushed from the weight of the desk!"
"To whom is he talking to?" Rude asked.
They all turned his faces to him.
"His lips are moving like he is talking to somebody" he meant and pointed at the screen.
"We could hear what he is talking if the microphones were not destroyed by the explosion" Reno meant.
Silently they watched Rufus crawling to his shotgun.
"According to the trace of blood we found in the office he must have been bleeding much at this time" Elena said with a low voice. "All other evidences are destroyed since yesterday"
They continued watching how Rufus healed himself got on his feed again after a short time.
"Does anybody know the materia he used to have in his shotgun?" Reeve asked not moving his eyes from the screen.
"Standard healing and defence materia. Not stronger than the second stadium and we know the talent the president in using it" Rude answered.
"Not power enough to heal such kind of wounds and his talent in using it is at about zero," Reno concluded.
Reeve nodded in silence.
On the screen Rufus turned around and limped in direction of the camera and vanished in the lower corner of the screen.
"That is all what we have. The power supply in the corridor was destroyed. So there was no light and no cameras active. The lifts were also out of order. The trace of bloods leads down the stairs" Elena explained.
"Any clues where he did go?" Heidegger asked.
"No. The trace leads into the lobby and back to the staircase and then out through a back door" the female turk reported.
"At this time there were riots outside the building. It doesn't surprise me that he took the backdoor" Reno meant dry.
"But why didn't he go where he could be helped?" Elena asked. "He knew exactly the emergency protocol!"
"Who knows what is going on in that brat's head?" Heidegger sneered.
The turks looked at each other after the general's comment.
Scarlet tabbed on the shoulder of the technician shoulder.
"Thank you" she said. "You are dismissed".
The man nodded and left the room.
"Any clues if he has any contacts outside the building?" Reeve asked and turned around to face the group.
All shook their heads except Heidegger.
"I am not so sure about that," he grunted.
"You are still holding on your theory! Right?" Reeve said and waved with his right hand in the air.
"The ixion-case is still under investigation!" Heidegger answered in a short voice and left the room.
"What is the ixion-case?" Elena asked.
"Nothing… It is just a stupid idea of Heidegger!" Reno sneered and shrugged his shoulders shoving his hands into the pockets of his trousers.
"What you describe as nothing was a serious incident" Scarlet hissed. "It cost us two reactors and don't forget that you and Tseng are still under suspicion of having anything to do with this! Kya!"
Reno shrugged his shoulders and leaned against the wall behind him.
"There are still no proofs for these accusations Scarlet" Reeve meant calm.
Scarlet crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"This guy had luck that Rufus became president and the investigation was stopped!" she hissed. "You turks should do your job now and search for the president. He must be found or it is the end of the company! So do your job and find him! KYAH!"
She left the room and slammed the door shut behind her.
"I hope he is ok," Elena said worried.
"After what I have seen on the tape nothing could bring Rufus down", Reno said in a casual tune.
"Where do you want to search for him?" Reeve asked.
"We will have to start somewhere" the red-haired turk said and shrugged his shoulders. "I wish we could ask Tseng… Nobody knew Rufus better than him"
"Stop to talk about him like he is dead!" Elena shouted angry.
"He nearly is or not?" Reno said and shrugged his shoulders.
"Now stop that! We have to find President Shin-Ra" Reeve interfered. "You have one week! If we don't have a president till then the accounts will be frozen and this would be the end of the company!"
The door opened again and Heidegger entered.
"If you find him then cool him down with this!" he said and handed Reno a gun.
"You want us to shoot him?" Elena breathed.
"Of course not!" The general sneered. "It is a narcoticum! Now go and find him!"
"Do you really think that this will be necessary?" the female turk ask.
"You have seen what he is capable of" Reeve said calm. "So I guess this is only for your own security"
Reno put the gun into the holster under his jacket and went to the door.
"Where do you want to start?" Rude asked.
The red-haired turk did not answer and left the room. His colleagues followed him.
"What will you do now?" Heidegger asked Reeve.
"I have to make a statement public," he said.
"And what will be your statement?" the general asked.
"The truth of course!" was the answer. "The president is alive and everything is under control!"