TOMB OF LIFE
CHAPTER 13
Lara awoke the following morning with an ache in her neck. Apparently sleeping on a jet was as uncomfortable as it sounded. She glanced around and found Sephiroth sitting in the seat next to her. She was almost certain he wasn't there when she had fallen asleep the previous night.
"Morning, we'll be in Wutai in another two hours," Sephiroth greeted her.
"Mmm, anything to get off of this jet," Lara murmured, rubbing her neck.
"You know – you still never told me what Tifa wanted," Sephiroth reminded her.
"Oh, apparently Cloud is missing," Lara replied.
"And she brought this to you?" Sephiroth was not happy. "I knew I shouldn't have let her in."
"She's only worried about him," Lara said, before turning tired eyes on the General. She was surprised to find him looking so well rested, but suspected it had something to do with his S genes.
"What about you? Are you worried about him?" Sephiroth wanted to know.
"Apparently not enough as far as Tifa is concerned because I wouldn't delay my mission to go search for him instead."
"Where does she get off…" Sephiroth could care less what happened to Cloud. He suspected that Lara would be drawn into this whole mess but since she apparently didn't believe in shirking her responsibility, she was here with him instead of off Shiva knows where looking for Cloud.
"Don't worry," Lara said, reaching out and touching his shoulder gently. "I'm here because I know I need to be, and Cloud will simply have to take care of himself for the time being." She was indeed worried about the young blond, but she couldn't let it affect her emotions or the state of this mission.
Sephiroth smiled before leaning forward and caressing her cheek with his own. He believed her, and that is what was most important.
Cissnei sat in the back of the jet well out of earshot of the cuddling couple, glaring daggers at them. She couldn't see what they were doing from this angle, but was almost pretty sure it was something that ShinRa SOLDIERS shouldn't partake of while enroute to a mission. She heard the distinct sound of a catcall close to her ear and looked sideways to see Reno sitting in the chair beside her making faces and issuing the offensive caterwauling. Cissnei gave him a hard pinch which sobered the red-head instantly. "You are such an idiot," She said through clenched teeth.
Reno winced. Apparently, Cissnei still wasn't over the fact that his plan to drive a wedge between Sephiroth and Lara had failed miserably. She basically hadn't been talking to him since, but now they were on this mission together it would be difficult for her to ignore him. He just didn't expect outright hatred from her. "I'm sorry, give me a break will you?" At the vengeful look on Cissnei's face he continued. "Not that kind of a break," He chuckled nervously.
Cissnei abruptly stood up and walked past her annoying fellow Turk, making sure to cuff him in the head as she moved. She headed to the rest room and slammed the door shut behind her. It was loud enough to awaken anyone else on the team who may have still been asleep.
--
After they landed at the secluded air strip there was a chopper awaiting them primed to take them to the first abandoned village. It took another thirty minutes before they finally arrived at their destination.
The village looked much like the pictures Lara had seen minus the blood, a ShinRa clean up crew had already been on site. They were there to sift through any clues that might be left behind and possibly to search and discover the perpetrators.
Tseng flipped his phone closed and turned to his team. "Weiss's group is not far from here – they think they may have found something."
Sephiroth instructed Reno, Rude and Genesis to remain at the village while the rest of them headed in the direction of Weiss's team. The area was apparently too thickly forested for the chopper to land, so they opted to go on foot. The group kept their weapons at the ready for wild animals were known to stalk these woods. Sephiroth took the lead with Lara at his side, Tseng and Cissnei rounded out their flank.
Suddenly, the bushes and trees just ahead of them began rustling. Sephiroth signaled for quiet while drawing on the Masamune. All four crouched low and waited – soon enough a pair of chocobos burst into view running at a frantic pace. They just barely avoided the team as they continued at their breakneck pace until they were out of sight.
"Something has them running scared," Tseng commented.
Sephiroth resumed their journey at a faster pace. It wasn't long until they came upon a clearing and found Weiss and his team there.
"Took you long enough," Weiss said with a smirk on his face as he turned around to greet them. With him was his brother Nero – a lanky man with pale skin and dark hair, and Azul, a hulking brute of a man with deeply tanned skin and a mane of bluish colored hair.
"What did you find?" Sephiroth asked, his lips narrowing into a thin line. He certainly didn't miss Weiss' cocky attitude.
"Right this way ladies and gentlemen," Weiss said, gesturing towards a shallow cave in the base of a nearby mountain. He gave Lara a flirtatious wink as she walked by him.
They could clearly make out a trail of blood that led to the crevice, so none of the newcomers should have been surprised to see the pieces of severed human limbs that littered the mouth of the cave. It seemed everyone there had a strong stomach for such scenes – only Cissnei pinched her nose at the foul scent.
"So, have we got wild animals on the rampage or is there something else we should be worrying about?" Tseng spoke up. "What have you found out?"
"Nothing yet," Weiss replied
"Isn't that what you were supposed to be doing here?" Tseng retorted.
"Actually our original mission was only to keep an eye on the Wutai," Weiss pointed out.
"So now what?" Lara asked, not certain she could stomach the bickering between the two much longer.
"If not a wild animal – what could have done this? Could it be someone with Nero's abilities?" Cissnei asked.
"My darkness leaves no traces behind," Nero spoke up. "So I rather doubt it."
Lara glanced at the slender man with the long spiky black hair and the crimson colored eyes. It was the first time she had heard him speak since they had arrived. She had read a report on the quiet SOLDIER. He had been experimented on at birth, which accounted for his awesome powers of darkness called oblivion that consumed anyone it touched. Before Grimore Valentine had been killed in an experiment gone awry he had been working on stagnation of the Lifestream, his research had produced Nero as a result. Lara's only thought was that she was grateful he was on their side, to think of that ability in the hands of a madman was too scary to comprehend.
Suddenly Tseng's phone began ringing. The dark haired man flipped it open. "Tseng speaking," There was silence on his end for a few moments before he rounded the conversation off with an, "Understood." The others were looking at him expectantly once he had flipped his phone closed. "We're being recalled. Apparently Avalanche has launched an attack on ShinRa. This means the Wutai will become violent and it's no longer safe to be here."
"Avalanche, are you certain?" Lara asked, the confusion masking her beautiful features was evident.
"Yes, some of their members have already been detained but there are others at large who may be causing havoc," Tseng stated.
Lara glanced at Sephiroth but there was an inscrutable expression on his face. She wondered what he thought about all this, for something about it didn't sit well with the gunwoman. She was silent as Tseng contacted Reno and Rude to come get them with the chopper.
--
Tifa paced back and forth inside one of the ShinRa prison cells she was currently locked in. Cid occupied to cell adjacent to her. "Why did he wait – why didn't he just arrest us while we were at his stupid party?" Tifa spat.
"How am I supposed to know? The ShinRa boss is as slick as they come," Cid replied, in an annoyed tone of voice.
"Barret and Red XIII will have their hands full trying to rescue us, if they even can. And Yuffie returned to Wutai but her hands are strapped as well – I don't think ShinRa is after Wutai yet, but if she jumps into this that could all change," Tifa sighed. "I suppose it's a good thing Cloud wasn't there when the ShinRa troops stormed my bar. He'd be in here right along with us, or worse, dead if he resisted arrest as he most likely would have."
"That is not exactly reassuring," Cid snapped back. "'Cause he's off Shiva knows where and he probably doesn't even know we need him."
"Well there is still Vincent, and Reeve has helped us in the past," Tifa stated.
"Vincent is about as unreliable as Cloud when Lil spiky gets in his moods. And don't think that ShinRa isn't aware of what Reeve has done in the past – he will be watched like a hawk."
"Then what do you suggest we do, simply give up?"
"Nah, just be ready to fight when rescue comes," Cid replied with a grin.
Tifa sighed, so he still believed they were going to be rescued though he had just shot most of their rescue options to hell. Cid could be a pain to talk to at times. Tifa closed her eyes and fervently hoped that Cloud would indeed come to their rescue.
--
Upon their return to Midgar the following day, Lara and Sephiroth met with Zack in Sephiroth's ShinRa office before going to see the president.
"I wanted to talk to you first, tell me truthfully what's been going on," Sephiroth said, his emerald eyes pinning the spiky haired man with an intense gaze.
"I got back from Kalm and was about to start the search for Cloud, when Rufus puts the base on alert and informs us that Avalanche has launched an attack on one of the Mako reactors. Search teams were sent out and Tifa and Cid were apprehended," Zack explained. "I haven't been able to get to the prison ward to question them."
"So we have no idea what is really going on here?" Sephiroth asked.
"Right," Zack said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Sorry I couldn't be of more help."
"It's ok, Lara let's go see Rufus but I'm going to have to ask a favor of you first," Sephiroth said turning to the gunwoman.
"Go on," Lara encouraged him.
"No matter what we learn in that office, don't say a word. Rufus is not beyond throwing his own employees into prison for insubordination. If we're to get to the bottom of this, we need to remain free to gather all the facts," Sephiroth explained.
Lara was troubled by his words but nodded her understanding. She recalled that conversation she had with the General a while back, concerning whether or not Rufus was a good man – it seemed that now she was about to find out. Zack left the room with the couple but they parted ways just before they reached the president's office. Zack was going to find a way in to see the Avalanche prisoners.
Tseng was present in Rufus's office when the couple arrived. He glanced at the newcomers then back at the president – as usual his facial expression was unreadable.
"Welcome back," Rufus began, standing to walk around his desk in greeting. "I'm sorry you had to be recalled under such dire circumstances."
"What happened?" Sephiroth asked calmly.
"The terrorists we have in custody were caught planting explosive devices around one of the Mako reactors. We were able to capture them and thwart their plans. However, we at ShinRa must defend ourselves, so I have put out a warrant for the arrest of the remainder of Avalanche," Rufus began. "But fear not Sephiroth, as long as your father doesn't get in the way we will not pursue him. I am fairly certain only the other members of Avalanche enacted this plan."
Sephiroth stared at Rufus unsmiling. He was almost certain that the only reason ShinRa would leave Vincent alone is due to the fact that the powerful Ex-Turk would prove too troublesome to capture. It most likely would involve severe loss of life on ShinRa's part. "Very well, we'll join the search immediately."
"Good, and don't worry about the disappearances in Wutai, that will have to take a backseat with such pressing problems that are closer to home," Rufus stated.
Lara left the office with Sephiroth and no sooner had they made it into the hallway, the General's phone rang. Lara listened as he answered it – the conversation was mostly one sided for all she heard him say was, "Will be there shortly." He turned to Lara and tilted his head forward which told the gunwoman that they needed to keep what they were about under wraps, so she remained silent, storing her questions for later.
They had taken the elevators to the basement levels of the main ShinRa building, Lara had never been to this section before and she soon found out why. It was the dungeon area where criminals rightfully or wrongly accused as the case may be, were sentenced. They strode boldly down the well lighted hallway and met with no opposition. Finally they made it to a cell door a ways from the elevator and found Zack there.
"They're inside," Zack began. "I'm relieving the guard here for a short break. You should have at least a few minutes to find out what's going on," Zack said as he opened the door and allowed them to walk through.
Lara immediately saw Tifa Lockhart and Cid Highwind – the pilot she had met briefly at the ShinRa party, locked behind iron cell bars. "Are you both alright?"
Tifa was stunned by Lara's question. Her opinion of the gunslinger had been deteriorating after she had shown so little consideration for Cloud's welfare a couple days ago. But now here she was coming to their aid with Sephiroth? It didn't make any sense. "We're alive, but we're locked in a jail," Tifa replied, hoping that the newcomers planned to do something about it. Sephiroth dashed those hopes.
"We can't free you, this room is monitored by surveillance cameras, but I need you to tell me exactly what happened," Sephiroth stated.
"If you didn't come here to free us then why did you come?" Cid asked with an annoyed tone in his voice.
"Maybe there is another way we can help," Lara offered.
"You want to know what happened?" Tifa began, placing her hands on her hips. "Cid and I were at my bar when ShinRa troops busted in and arrested us. We were no where near a Mako reactor like Rufus claims. He orchestrated this whole thing. He must have been planning this for some time."
Lara glanced at Sephiroth who was silent as he infused this new information. The look in his jade eyes told Lara that he believed there was a distinct possibility that the captives spoke the truth. "Well what would be the basis for this plan?"
"It's obvious doll face," Cid spoke up, his eyes roving over Lara's hour glass figure. "He wants us out of the picture so he can go back to Mako production levels of yesteryear."
Suddenly Sephiroth's phone rang. All in the room were silent listening for clues as to what the phone call was about. Sephiroth's facial expression indicated nothing and when the conversation ended, he turned to look at the captives with an unreadable expression on his face. "It seems you are about to have company. Red XII and Barret were just captured." Turning to Lara he said, "We have to go, the guards' on the way back."
"Yea well thanks for nothing," Cid said irritably.
Lara spared Tifa one more glance and noticed the woman looked ready to break something. She shot an apologetic look at the prisoners before following Sephiroth out of the jail. They quickly made their way out of the dungeon and decided to head into Midgar, they could learn nothing more there.
They ended up at the 7th Heaven which was closed for the evening due to the circumstances surrounding the arrest of the owner. However, sitting outside on the porch steps were two children – one Lara recognized as Marlene. She walked up and kneeled beside them. "Are you alone?"
"No, Elmyra Gainsborough is inside," Marlene began, staring at the pretty woman wide eyed. "Denzel and I are going to wait here until Cloud and Tifa come back."
Lara turned her gaze to Denzel who regarded her with a somber look on his young face. She then glanced behind her at Sephiroth – he was standing there with an inscrutable expression on his face. She knew it was unlike him to show his emotions, but she suspected he did feel something. If Rufus ShinRa had his way, these children would become orphans again. "Come on, let's get you both inside, it's not safe to be out here." Lara spared Sephiroth one more glance before she disappeared inside the building with the children.
Sephiroth stood there staring at the door which closed behind them for several long moments. Although he had yet to admit it to anyone, he was almost certain that Cid and Tifa had been telling the truth. Now he was faced with a difficult dilemma – betray ShinRa and do the right thing, or remain a loyal SOLIDER even in the face of adversity. Sephiroth didn't know what to do but he was certain that before he made a decision he would ask Lara her opinion. She meant that much to him and he knew he could count on her to give him an objective answer.
Sephiroth was about to join them in the bar when he heard screaming coming from the streets all around him. He glanced around to see people running to and fro with looks of abject terror streaked across their faces. He heard the fierce growls before he finally saw what was causing the ruckus.
A beast reminiscent to a giant sized lion bounded onto the street – it had black fur and a shaggy mane around its face. Blood red eyes and long saber tooth-like teeth made for a frightening visage. Sephiroth's eyes narrowed as the beast swiped at two civilians with its huge clawed paw and grabbed a third between its powerful jaws.
The screams of the dying civilians echoed in his ears as Sephiroth vaulted towards the creature. He slashed the creature near the hind leg with the Masamune, the wound would have brought any other monster to its knees but this one was different. It turned on Sephiroth with an angered growl and attempted to swipe at the General who expertly back-flipped out of its reach.
Realizing he had to try another tactic – he agilely vaulted onto the creatures' back and sunk the Masamune into the base of its neck. The beast reared up knocked the General off its back. He expertly landed on both feet – sword out awaiting the monsters' next attack. When the attack came, he raised the Masamune but heard a bevy of gunfire shots ringing out just behind him. Sephiroth glanced over his shoulder to see Lara emptying a full clip into the beast. Eventually, the shaggy haired creature fell over and stilled its movements.
Sephiroth walked up to the beast and tapped it with his booted foot, determining that it was dead. It had taken a lot of effort to kill it which was unlike any other wild creature he had encountered before. He sensed Lara's presence and looked up at her. She still held her pistols trained on the dead animal. Before Sephiroth could ask if she was alright his phone began to ring. He answered it and listened intently to what Tseng had to say.
Lara had heard the screaming outside and had left the children with their babysitter while she went to investigate. She found Sephiroth doing battle with a huge shaggy beast. She had immediately assisted him in terminating it. However, the screams had yet to cease although the beast was now dead. Lara glanced around to see that people were still running around franticly. Something was definitely wrong.
"By Shiva," Sephiroth muttered under his breath after he hung up with Tseng. "It seems we have a problem."
"And I can guess what it is," Lara said, her gaze not on the General but on something she was looking at a distance behind him. "The creatures from the alter-realm universe are back."
"How did you know? Tseng just told me he began to get reports of them appearing all across Midgar," Sephiroth stated.
"Oh it wasn't too hard to figure that out," Lara said as she sheathed her pistols and drew Excalibur. "For here they come."