Chapter 3: Off to See the President
"Sorry we're late, but it's such a pain in the ass to get around this place in the middle of the night. And we figured we'd give you enough time for all of ya to get here. Going across the world can be quite the trip." Reno was grinning, in his typical manner, seemingly oblivious to the looks he was getting. Not hostile, but not looked upon with great warmth. At last, with the sound of Rude clearing his throat, he noticed.
"What? Nothing for us? You were all buddy-buddy with each other a few seconds ago, but when we show up, suddenly it's blowing a cold wind around here. Sheesh. What's a guy gotta do?"
"For one thing," Barret answered, scowling all the while, his voice escalating in volume, "Ya can tell us what the hell we're all doin' out here in the middle of the goddamn night!"
"Whoa whoa," Reno lifted his hands, trying to get Barret to chill out, "Not so loud, there are people trying sleep around here." Rude stepped up, one hand straying to his tie, pulling at it, and straightening it. "We were sent here to direct you to the meeting. We'll take you, just as soon as you are ready."
"We're already ready," Cid bawled, looking nearly as pissed as Barret, "I got other things I still need ta do today, so quit yer lollygaggin' and show us where ya boss is, so we can hear what this is about!"
"Very well," Rude answered, the outburst having seemingly no effect on his disposition, "Let's go. Reno?" At the mere mention of his name, Reno stepped up again, his grin once more appearing. Despite the somewhat temperamental mood around him, he just couldn't keep his sarcastically cheerful expression off his mouth.
"Alright, boys and girls, follow the leader…" And the two Turks turned, and walked directly to the hanging ladder off of the airship. "Well…come on," he called back, as they started to climb, "I thought you were all in such a rush, but you're just standing there."
"Where the hell do you think yer goin'?" Cid exploded, waving his fists at the two ascending into his ship.
"Well hey," Reno answered back, balancing precariously on the railing, "When I called and asked if you could pick up a few people, you sounded okay with it. Now you know that it includes us. Besides, I don't know any faster way to get there."
"What is this shit?!" Cid looked only seconds away from tearing up the ladder himself, and personally ejecting the smart ass and the mute out of his ship. Before he could, Cloud stepped up, most likely the one on the best sort of terms with the duo.
"Let me talk to them, see I can't get some straight answers." Cid growled, glaring up, his hands clenched into fists. With a nimble leap, Cloud bypassed the ladder, and landed right up next to Rude, who was standing rather nonchalantly. Reno was still on the railing, leaning back against a support column. "What's this really about?" Cloud asked them, straight and to the point, as was his style.
"Wish I could tell ya," Reno apologized half-heartedly, "We don't really know. All I do know is that the boss sounded pretty antsy, and wanted to see you all."
"By boss, do you mean Tseng…or Rufus?"
"Mr. Shinra," Rude replied.
"So, you're telling me that you don't know what Rufus wants to see us for?"
"That's right," Rude answered, "And while we had you all gather here, as it is the most convenient rendezvous point, our base of operations is out of the range of walking. So, unless you happen to have a bus lying around…" He trailed off, leaving the floor open to his partner.
"Yeah, and while we'd love to fly you ourselves, we don't have a chopper handy right at the moment. So, we need to hitch a ride from your pal down there. I guess he's pissed 'cause I didn't give him the fine print over the phone, that in addition to you guys, he'd have to take us with him. You'd think he'd be more understanding…"
"Don't worry; I'll take care of it." Cloud stepped to the railing, and waved his hands. "Come on," he called down, "Let's go." Everyone exchanged looks, and started either climbing or leaping up, to join Cloud and the Turks.
"Alright," Cid grumbled, "But in the future, I'd appreciate gettin' the notice of who I'm gonna be haulin' around. Else I'll end up flyin' with a giant Shinra dinner party, or some damn thing, and wouldn't that be cute? And you'd best remember, that while ya'll are on my ship, you'd best behave yerselves, lest I toss you over the side. Now, which way am I headed?"
"Junon," Rude answered, before falling silent again, heading inside, seemingly oblivious to Cid's threat.
"You'll have to excuse him," Reno told them with a grin, "Not really the big talker."
"Unlike you," Cid muttered, following Rude inside, and began bawling through the corridor at the pilot to set the new course. Reno's eyes watched him as he passed.
"I get the feeling that he doesn't like me very much..."
"Can you really blame him?" Yuffie inquired, "A couple of years ago, you guys were nothing but pains in our ass, getting in our way while we were trying to save everyone. I'd probably be a little more pissed, if you hadn't saved me." Reno gave her a grin, his eyes starting at her feet, and leisurely working their way up.
"You're welcome for that by the way, though I wasn't just saving you. But if you ever want to thank me for the rescue, you know where to find me."
"Please," Yuffie snorted, before brushing past him, "You can keep that little fantasy to yourself."
Reno snickered at that, and called, "Whatever you say!" Then he turned back to everyone. "Yeah, she wants me." Everyone else on the deck, save Barret, who was still glowering, gave a grin.
"Hah hah," Reeve laughed, clapping Reno on the arm. "Still haven't changed I see. How's the president doing these days?"
"Ah, he's cool. A little spooked about something, but he hasn't said a word to me."
"Doesn't really sound like him. Though I think it will be interesting to see him, and the rest of the Turks again."
"Oh yeah, it'll be a blast to see everyone face to face again. A real warm get-together." Reeve gave another chuckle, as he was heading inside. "Like I said, you haven't changed at all."
"Of course not, I never change."
"Hmm," Barret humphed, as he past him, "Too bad. Ya should try ta be more like ya partner, and keep ya trap shut more!" He entered the ship, Red XIII right behind, not having any comment to make at that moment. Reno watched them go by too. "Guess I'm not a big fan around here. Hey, where'd the vampire go?"
Somewhere along the line, without anyone's knowledge, Vincent too had exited the scene, most likely to find a quiet secluded corner of the ship, to brood upon the kind of things that Vincent usually brooded upon. That just left Reno, Cloud, and Tifa.
"Man Cloud, you guys are just bursting with love huh? Speaking of which, I'll think I'll be going inside now." He gave that coy Turk smile, before casually strolling off deck. Cloud at once was quite aware of him being all by his lonesome on the deck with Tifa. At once, he felt fidgety on the inside, and nervous on the outside, rather self-conscious about all of this.
Why am I freaking out about this, he asked himself, it's not as if I've never been alone with Tifa before. So why am I feeling anxious now? He really knew the answer. Ever since everything had been resolved, since Cloud had made his peace, and finally finished his dilly-dallying, he seemed to think of Tifa in a whole new light.
"So," came her voice, effectively snapping Cloud back to the here and now, "Reno and Rude don't know anything either. Do you think this is something that only Rufus is aware of?" Cloud shrugged, trying to suppress his nervousness.
"Probably, though he's not the kind of guy to keep things to himself. He likes to advertise exactly what he's doing, and what's on his mind. I still think something doesn't feel right, but I guess all we can do right now is wait." Tifa shrugged, and gave that sweet smile of hers, the kind that could make a man's legs melt.
Cloud himself, despite being rather unemotional about…well about anything at all; even he felt a little something.
"So," she inquired lightly, "What now?" This left a lot of possible answers open, but before Cloud could make use of the time, a speaker nearby squealed to life.
"Alright everyone," Cid bellowed, getting everyone in the ship's attention, "We've fixin' ta take off, so kindly grab a seat, and hang on to ya hats! We're movin' out!"
Whereupon, the airship began to shudder, the dormant engines kicking to life once again, building up power, as the ship gradually began to rise. After gaining a decent altitude, the airship hovered, the insides running at full capacity, before taking off, heading in a southwest direction, straight for Junon.
"We'd probably should get inside," Cloud told Tifa, as the wind on the deck was picking up rapidly. Suddenly, the speaker flared to life again.
"An' Cloud, get yer sorry hide up here pronto! Need ta talk to ya! Move it!" The two traded glances. "Come on," he motioned. They fought against the increasing wind, and got inside. At once, they passed upon Vincent, who was hanging near the rear of the ship. He nodded at their passing, but didn't say anything.
Further on, was a well known and completely expected sight. Yuffie was leaning against the walls, cradling her arms, her face having a slightly green tint to it, once more a victim of her air sickness. However, Reno was standing next to her.
"You know," he was saying, "I've heard a good relief for motion sickness is a good massage. You know, getting your shoulders rubbed? Feels good, and gets it out of your system. If you want, I know how to do those." Instead of responding with a dry comment, Yuffie turned her head, and tried to force herself to throw up all over Reno. She couldn't, but it wasn't without effect. He saw this, and leapt back.
"Hey hey, watch the shoes!"
They encounter no one else until the reached the bridge. Cid was standing behind a young man, who was manning the wheel, and whom Cid was berating to no ends, about telemetry and wind speed. Barret was sulking by the window, sitting his large self in one of the seats, having scared a frightened crew member off. Rude was leaning against the wall, not taking his sunglasses off, even though it was nighttime, and they were inside the ship. Reeve was next to him, but wasn't talking. He had learned a long time ago that talking with Rude wasn't something you could just force.
Red XIII was sitting up with Cid, watching the pilot getting chewed out.
"Oh finally," Cid leaned down, watching Cloud and Tifa walk in, "Took yer sweet ass time. Tell me something Cloud, as you seem ta have ya head screwed on right; you really believe that all this is gonna be somethin' as big as we think? It goes without sayin' that we all feel a bit uneasy 'bout somethin', but we don't know what. Are we bein' paranoid, or just careful?"
"Is that really what you wanted to ask me," Cloud questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Don't be a smart-ass," Cid hollered down, "Course it is. That an' I need ta keep an eye on all you kids. Can't havin' you all doin' crazy shit on ma ship!"
"Then you might want to talk to Reno," Tifa advised with a smile, nodding back out the door, "He's out there with Yuffie still."
"Why that son of a bitch, I told him ta behave! That does it, I'm gonna go out there…" Before he could move though, the pilot began to panic.
"Please don't leave Captain; I'm still not sure how to maintain the altitude of this craft while in motion!" Cid paused, before grumbling. "Fine, but ya tell him that I got my eye on him." Cloud nodded.
"I'll do that. And to answer your question; I don't know. I'd like to think that it isn't anything too major, but Rufus isn't a fool. Calling us in for some small threat wouldn't make any sense, even for him. So, to answer, I think we're just being careful. After everything we've gone through and seen, that's probably the right choice."
"Whatever ya say. Alright, now get outta here, I got ta teach this moron how ta fly!" He shooed them off, and continued to slate the stressed pilot.
Tifa stepped around, and crouched by Red XIII, joining him in watching the show. Cloud, knowing that he had once again blown his chance, meandered off, eventually making his way to the front of the ship. He stood by the large window silently, staring out into the darkness, trying to push away the bad feelings that were gradually creeping up on him.
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Later…
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The flight was rather quick, the distance between Edge and Junon, when moving in a straight line, and at impressively fast speeds, is rather quick, only about an hour or so. At their approach, Cid called for everyone to get their asses to the bridge. Junon wasn't hard to spot. Even though Shinra Inc. was no more, Rufus still had quite a number of people on staff, what with him still being the wealthiest person in the world. This included mechanics, technicians, maintenance staff, and what-have-you.
Junon was jumping and alive, although many things had changed. A good number of the weapon placements that had been literally built into the city itself had been dismantled and decommissioned. Of course, it wasn't without its defenses, though sadly lacking the once imposing Sister Ray, the Shinra's greatest weapon. With perhaps the exception of Sephiroth. The damage that had been inflicted by the attack of Weapon had long since been repaired, and now the city had become a major docking station for large ships, and submersible crafts. Even though it was indeed late at night, the city was still brightly lit with lights.
"Things are running around here almost twenty-four seven," Reno commented, "The boss likes to keep everyone moving forward." He then glanced back at Cid, and motioned to the landing pad. "You already have clearance to land, so just set it down right there." After some careful coordination, and several outbursts from Cid, threatening to whap the pilot a couple of times, the Shera touched down. They had arrived.
"Follow us," Rude instructed, and exited the bridge. Reno was right behind him, casting grins back over his shoulder. Cid ordered the crew to stay sharp, and await their return. Everyone quickly disembarked, looking around. They were standing on the same platform that the Highwind had been parked on years back.
That being the case, most of them already knew their way around the city, having been there several times before. As they descended off the landing strip, there was a small vehicle, a shuttle, ready to drive them across the city. It was a tight fit; the transportation unit was really only designed for six or so. "They've really changed things around here," Tifa commented, watching the scenery going by.
"Yup, we've all been busy down here, fixing the place up, and modifying it. What about you guys? You all feeling a little emotional being back here? Bringing up some old memories?" This was harmless banter, but naturally, Barret had to squash it.
"I'll say, as the last time we were here, your jackass boss tried ta execute me an' Tifa! That Rufus sure is a warmhearted fella!" No one responded to that, which was probably wise, else Barret might try to pick a fight, which would have ended with him shooting someone, as he had a tendency to do. After the ride, they reached a lift, that took the whole group up into the executive offices, the pinnacle of which no doubt belonged to Rufus.
"Even after his brush with death," Vincent noted, "He still likes to be on high and look down on everything. He hasn't learned anything."
"Yeah he likes it up there, but he's learned a few things. Like having several emergency exits installed. But I think he also likes the view." The final leg of the journey was made on foot, climbing several sets of stairs, leading past a number of familiar rooms.
"Alright," Reno announced, waving at the large wooden doors in front of them. "Here we are. I hope you guys remembered to wash up before you came here."
"Will you shut tha hell up," Barret growled, "An' just let us get in there!"
"Sheesh, no sense of humor on this guy…"
"Reno," Rude called, nodding at the door, one side of which he had already taken.
"Yeah, yeah." He joined his partner, and the two of them pushed the doors open. Inside, the room was well lit. There were several rows of work tables, set up with computers and software equipment. To the left side of the room, were large mainframes, processing systems for the computers. In addition, there was a large section for monitors, many rows of which, most likely being a closed circuit surveillance system.
At the far end, there was the big corporate desk, a highly expensive and decorated piece of furniture. On the right, there was a single door. The only person in the room was standing by the window which was behind the desk, looking out at the dark sea beyond. His hands were clasped behind his back, in a thoughtful passive manner. Reno and Rude stepped in, Cloud and Company entering too, steeling themselves for whatever was about to go down. Either good or bad, though with their normal luck, it would be bad in someway, shape, or form.
"You all made it," came the unmistakable suave and calculating voice, "I was almost thinking that some of you wouldn't be very happy about this, which I'm sure you aren't anyways, and wouldn't show up. But everyone's here. How about that?" As they got close, the man turned around. Rufus Shinra, still wearing that same trendy white suit, with his shock of dull orange hair, nicely combed down. His eyes were still as vital and clever as always, as he scanned their faces, a pleasant smile present on his face.
"What," Barret asked, surprisingly enough having a trace amount of humor, as well as, of course, anger in his voice, "You'd think we'd miss a chance ta see our old Shinra buddy again?"
"I do at that, as most of you have a certain disliking of me and my company, to which we do deserve. But, as you can see, I've been working, trying to undo some of the damages I have done to the world. In time, hopefully we can all put the old misgivings to rest." This was greeted by several skeptical looks, but no one, not even Barret decided to argue, or put in a smart ass comment.
"Of course, in light of certain circumstances, we may never get the chance to do that."
"What do you mean," Cloud pressed, sensing that the deeply speculated and debated matter was close to the point of revealing itself.
"Exactly that, I'm afraid. I'm rather glad that you are all here. We can get to the formal greetings later, as I won't keep you guessing as to why I called all of you here. You've no doubt realized that this is important. As you all seem to be the designated heroes and protectors of the world, I figured you should at least be present when I get into things. Understand though, I don't expect any of you to be able to do anything."
"Will you stop beatin' round the bush," Cid leaning out, and slapping his palms on the edge of the desk, "And just tell us what's goin' on?" Rufus looked at them carefully, before nodding. He punched a button of the intercom on his desk.
"Elena," he called, "Has Tseng returned with what I asked for yet? Everyone here is getting anxious." There was some silence, before the young woman's voice came through.
"Yes sir, he landed a few minutes ago. We're already on our way up."
"Good." He glanced back at everyone. "Before I go any further, as I can sense your anxiety, and no doubt you are all thinking the same thing, let me assure you that this has nothing to do with the events of six months ago. As far as we know, that incident is over. This is something else, though a bit more unpredictable." He sighed, and sat down in his chair, waving at the others around, motioning them to sit.
"I won't wait any longer, and I'll just tell you all straight up, and deliver the news. A little while ago, a team of astronomers found something amiss in their calculations. I don't know the details yet, but suffice to say, they had a hunch about something, and called us. Using our most powerful telescope, we've determined that there is an object out in space, a ways off, but heading towards us. Something…what everyone so far suspects to be a meteor…a real meteor this time…is going to crash into the planet."