Thank you to everyone for being patient! What with the holidays and family and such, I didn't get this chapter finished as quickly as I would've liked. But I did get it finished before 2010! Happy New Year, by the way! ^^

Huge thanks must go out to: RealityInABottle, bliss, Nekotsubasa, ChaosGarden, Clockwork Phoenix, chibi heishi, Shinimegami7, Cracked Plastic Crown, Aindel S. Druida, shebajay, AnAntiqueHeart, xHanako, Hi Kitsune, ooXloveXoo582, Dragi, ramen-is-my-goddess, Lucia-luce, Caithdean, MadeInHolland, LoneBoy7, Love-in-the-Stars, nearcreature, The Hollow Fairy Wolf, SUFFERINGLOSTSOUL, , StephanieHatesUtoo, Bane-Dane, DeNiSaY60, SlippingSanity, suberXxXduperXxXfun machine, and a-chan!! You dudes rock, and are my heroes! ^^

O

Chapter 17

Glancing back, Squall swore as he saw colored reflections of police lights in the darkened windowpanes down the hall. "You'd better have an escape plan to go along with that distraction."

Riku pursed his lips as he put the last block of C-4 in place before looking up at him with a smirk. There was nothing but confidence in his eyes, save for a gleam of anticipation. "I'm working on it. First thing's first though; let's light this firecracker."

Squall stood up as Riku pulled a charge out of his jacket pocket, the silver-haired man speaking as he began to set it up with practiced ease, "We don't have a timer or any of that fancy shit, so this will be really simple. We're going to have about thirty seconds to clear the area before this thing goes off."

"That means that we'll only have half a minute to get to a different floor. There's no way I'm going to risk staying up here."

"Well then, good thing we're both fast runners, huh?"

Shouldering his half of the loot, Squall let out a small huff. He was never the fastest runner, either in high school or in SeeD, but he was going to have to make due. He just hoped that Riku knew the fastest route out of this labyrinth of corridors. "Let's just get this over with, we're running out of time."

"—Actually, you are out of time. A group of men just stormed into the building.—"

"Wow. Way to cheer on the team, Zexion."

Ignoring Riku's sarcastic quip, Squall pressed a hand to his headset to try and hear it better over the sirens as Riku put the final touches on the pile of explosives, "Are they Dark City Police?"

"—Worse. The DCPD seems to be hanging back. Unless all the men who just entered the building are plainclothes officers, which I highly doubt, they are probably more of the Organization's men. They do not look like they intend to take prisoners.—"

"Fine by me. I say let them come, especially since we're about to go! Charge is set Leon, we have thirty seconds starting…now!"

Squall paled a bit in surprise, having expected more of a warning from Riku, before beginning to run. Following on the other man's heels, He stopped worrying about breathing and focused solely on keeping up. Luckily, Riku did indeed seem to have some idea of where they were going, weaving through the maze of hallways as if he had it memorized. Maybe he did. The only concern Squall had right now was the time he could hear ticking down in his head.

Twenty-two…twenty-one. Every second seemed to pass faster than the last. Keeping pace with Riku was proving to be a challenge, the leaner man was admittedly faster and more agile. Vaulting over the fallen body of a guard who they had brought down only minutes earlier, Squall finally allowed himself to exhale as the door to the stairwell came into view.

Sixteen seconds left. Fifteen…fourteen…thirteen. Heart flying up into his throat, Squall watched as Riku skidded to a halt to open the door, the first signs of nervousness Squall had seen all night settling into the man's features as the door remained stuck. "Damn it, the door's not opening!"

"—It appears that the DCPD have put the building on lockdown. All the security codes have been overridden and locked up. I can see if I can break through the programming from here, but it will take a minute—"

"We don't have a minute! We have ten seconds!"

Even though they had put some distance between themselves and the C-4, Squall knew that the damage from the explosion could easily reach where they were standing. They needed out now, and, since the police were already here, there really was no problem with doing things the old-fashioned way. "Stand back, Riku!"

His accomplice moved away from the door and Squall lifted his rifle, aiming not at the keycode device, but at the expensive wood paneling on the door itself. Letting off a few rounds, he weakened the door right around the lock then took a few steps back before ramming it with his shoulder. He grunted at the impact, but was rewarded by the sound of wood cracking. Five seconds left. Jumping back, Squall ran at the door again, using his full weight to slam against it, this time hearing a loud snap as the door broke away from the frame and swung on its hinges.

Squall tumbled through to the ground, managing to regain his footing just as Riku ran by him. Cursing again, he pushed himself up and towards the staircase, his boots pounding against the concrete. But his footsteps weren't the only ones echoing through the stairwell. Riku gripped the banister, "Shit. They're coming up the stairs!"

Two seconds. "Just get down to the fourth floor!"

Perhaps sensing the panic in Squall's voice, Riku only nodded. As he began to take the stairs two at a time, Squall risked a glance over the railing. Men were indeed storming up from the first floor, guns clearly clutched in their hands. His view was suddenly cut off as Riku rushed by, having apparently wanted to speed things up and jumped on the banister. Watching him slide down towards the next floor, Squall only had time to blink before he realized that there time was up.

And it seemed that the charge Riku set was punctual.

Squall had just stepped down onto the landing of the staircase when he felt a tingle on the back of his neck. That was the only warning that he got before the roar of an explosion from behind filled his ears, a wave of hot air and energy slamming into his back. He let out a shout as he was thrown off of his feet and into the stairwell wall, blacking out for a short moment as his head made contact with the concrete. Regaining consciousness before he could even fall to the ground, Squall felt a hand grab his wrist and pull him to the side. "Come on, Leon, snap out of it!"

He stumbled as Riku gave a harsh tug on his arm, Squall's ringing ears able to pick up the sound of cries of alarm echoing up from beneath them. Trying to refocus, he let Riku continue to pull him along, the silver-haired man running straight for the door that gave access to the offices on the fourth floor. This door was not nearly as protected as the one on the fifth floor and Riku was able to break in with a few quick kicks, the wood snapping under the heel of his boot on his third try.

By now, Squall had regained most of his senses and hurried in on his own, the two not even bothering to close the door behind them. It's not like it would have slowed down their pursuers any. Squall's eyes flashed around for anything that they could use to escape as the sound of the explosion's destruction continued from upstairs. He could see smoke coming from near the middle of the building, right underneath where they set up the C-4. The ceiling, or the floor of the fifth story, had probably been blown out. But the rest of the fourth floor looked just like ordinary offices. "What now? I don't think we're going to find anything up here to help us, and I doubt that explosion will keep the Organization away for long."

Turning to Riku, he saw the man searching as well, "We need to get back downstairs."

"The Organization is blocking the stairs."

"—It also appears that more Organization cronies and a few members of the Dark City Police Department have just entered the lobby. It seems that the explosion has startled them into action. At this point, I believe that it is fair to say that you have gotten yourselves stuck on the fourth floor.—"

"Great." Scowling, Squall checked his guns. He had some ammo left but there was no way that he was going to be able to take out all of the Organization's extra guys plus the Dark City police.

Riku ran over to the window to check outside, the man apparently not happy with what he saw. Turning back with a tight frown on his face, he growled into the headset, "I don't suppose you have any, I dunno, constructive information?"

"—Let me see…I have just managed to tap into the DCPD's radio signal. It seems as they are calling for back up troops and the fire station is sending men over to deal with the explosion.—"

"Thanks, thanks a lot. How about you do something actually useful?"

"—Do not blame me for the results of your mistakes. If it had been up to me, we would not have deviated from the original plan.—"

Squall's pulse quickened as, over the din of the chaos upstairs and the blaring alarms, he managed to distinguish the renewed sound of footsteps rushing up the stairs. "We have bigger problems to worry about right now."

Clearly not in a good mood, Riku whipped out his pistols, the flashing police lights outside silhouetting his form as he stood with his back to the window, "They won't be a problem for long."

Walking over to stand next to him, there wasn't much more Squall could do than draw his own weapons. He was almost out of ammunition in his rifle so he was going to have to go with his handgun as well. That didn't exactly help to soothe his anxiety any. "And what're we going to do after this?"

"How the hell should I know?!" Squall sensed Riku tense up to his left as they heard the Organization beginning to climb up the last flight of stairs to get up to the fourth floor. Their pace had slowed, probably both due to the sight of the damage to the floor above them and to the fact that they knew their suspects were nearby.

And Riku was ready for them. As soon as the top of the first man's head came into view, he lined up a shot, Riku's finger tightening on the trigger. There was a loud bang and the Organization member had a bullet in his forehead before his eyes had even appeared above the steps.

The kill was a good shot but it triggered a very negative response. Seeing their comrade fall, the other Organization members rushed up the rest of the stairs and began to open fire. It was clear that they couldn't see exactly where their target was, the room still nearly pitch black, but they solved that problem by covering the entire room in a shower of bullets. Swearing, Squall dove behind a desk, Riku following after him while returning fire. In a quick movement Squall kicked the desk over to form a more functional barricade, crouching down behind the thick wood as another volley of ammunition was fired at them.

Peeking over just enough to aim his gun, Squall fired off a few rounds, ducking down after seeing two of the men fall to the ground. "We aren't going to last long like this!"

Riku's scowl deepened, taking a moment to take out a few more men before responding, "I know that!"

"We need to find a way out, before the cops come up!"

"I know!" Riku snapped back. Seeing the man so tense only made Squall realize just how dire their situation really was. Looking around though, it was hard to mistake the gravity of the situation. With the Organization's men blocking the doorway and slowly pushing their way into the room, there was no way to get to the stairwell. There was no way that the elevator was going to be working; the police undoubtedly shut it down first thing. Every second it seemed like more and more men were flooding in towards the door. He and Riku were both skilled gunman, nearly every single bullet a fatal wound, but even as the bodies piled up, two more men seemed to replace them. It seemed like it was never going to end. And as far as he knew, there was no other way out of the building.

As he ducked back down behind the desk, Riku's sharp teal eyes desperately scanned the room. "Alright, let me think! Let me think. There has to be another way out of this damn building!"

Squall heaved a breath as he changed the clip in his gun. If only. Suddenly Riku straightened up, a new gleam in his eye. "I might've come up with something. Cover me."

"Cover you? Wait, don't just--!" It was way too late to stop Riku though. The silver-haired man had jumped up from their hiding spot and it was all Squall could do to distract the Organization while Riku made himself an open target. Gritting his teeth, Squall kept his finger down on the trigger, round after round flying towards the door as Riku darted back farther into the office building.

Pretty soon Squall lost visual contact of his accomplice, his attention understandably diverted elsewhere. Now that he was by himself, he was getting the full brunt of the Organization's attack. In a few breaths, he was unable to poke so much as a hair above the top of the desk without having fifteen bullets shot at him.

He was just about to suspect that Riku had abandoned him when his headset crackled to life over the sounds of the melee, "—Hey, Leon, you still alive?—"

"Riku? Where the hell are you?"

"—Finding our way out.—"

Squall tried to quell the hope rising in his chest. "And how do you figure we'll do that?"

"—Come to the rear side of the building. Hey Zex, there's no police at the back of the tower, are there?—"

There was a pause before Zexion's voice came on, "—I see five police officers watching the back of the building. It seems the DCPD is covering all of their bases.—"

"—Oh well, we'll figure that one out later. Anyway, get your ass over here Leon. We've overstayed our welcome.—"

"Yeah, and whose fault is that?" Squall snarled into the microphone. To say that he was unhappy with the situation would be an understatement. Riku wanted him to cross over to the opposite side of the fourth floor. Sure, the hitman may have been able to do it, but that was probably because Squall had kept the Organizations' eyes off of him while he was running. There was no one left to provide the same sort of cover for the SeeD. And the bullets were continuing relentlessly; if he made any visible movement away from the desk he had no doubt that he would be filled full of lead in seconds. "Shit…"

"—Having trouble?—"

"Shut the hell up Riku, they've got me pinned down!"

"—Perhaps I may be of some assistance.—"

"—Oh yeah? What are you going to do, Zex? Send them angry text messages on their cell phones?—"

"—Hilarious. No, to the contrary, I offer a suggestion. From my position I call tell that the damage from the explosive was extensive, to say the least. The floor of the fifth story has undoubtedly weakened by the incident. Specifically of interest, I can see that a small fire has broken out near the stairwell on the floor above you. If you were to weaken the ceiling of the fourth floor further with a few well placed bullets, you may be able to come up with the necessary disturbance.—"

Blinking, Squall looked up, just able to make out the ceiling panels that Zexion had mentioned. The man was right; he could tell that the panels were weakening even from where he was sitting. Zexion's plan was a good one, but he still had a problem, "There's no way I'd be able to take the shot without getting shot up myself."

He frowned as he heard Riku heave a long sigh, "—Alright, fine, I'll give you a hand. Hold on.—"

Cursing as a bullet hit the edge of the desk he was crouching behind, sending a piece of wooden shrapnel flying, Squall shook his head. "I'm holding on as well as I can! Hurry up!"

Riku must have still been feeling a little anxious about their escape because instead of sending back a snarky reply, Squall was answered a few moments later with the sharp, distinctive discharge of Riku's sniper rifle. Squall knew that the round must have found its target as a dull creaking filled the room, a few of the Organization members turning their eyes upward at the noise before the panels above their heads suddenly gave way. There was a series of screams as broken debris and burning embers suddenly rained down on them.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Squall rolled out from behind the desk. He only came under the fire from a few of their guns as he moved, keeping low and doing less running than crawling. Finally, he spotted a flash of silver hair, releasing a breath as he found that he had arrived at the rear of the building without dying. "Riku! You'd better have a damn good idea for all the trouble you just put me through!"

Riku glanced over his shoulder, "I helped you out, didn't I?"

"Only after you left me to fend for myself!" Checking back behind him, Squall closed his eyes. Although the Organization flunkies had been momentarily caught off guard, they were now regaining control of themselves and Squall could hear them fanning out to search the darkened space. "Whatever, we don't have time for this. How are we getting out of here?"

His question brought a smirk to Riku's face. The man now seemed completely unconcerned by the fact that the Organization was closing in on them, his typical cockiness having returned in droves. Tapping the window pane with the muzzle of his handgun, his grin widened, "How do you feel about dumpster diving?"

"What?"

Something caught Riku's eyes over Squall's shoulder, "Looks like our hosts have figured out where we went off to so there's not really time to explain. Just follow my lead, alright?"

"Wait, I still don't--! Riku!" Squall scowled as Riku flat out ignored him. Jumping back as he saw Riku raise his gun, he had just enough time to shield his eyes before Riku let off a round straight into the floor to ceiling window. There was a huge crash, instantly attracting the attention of the Organization as the glass shattered, translucent shards falling around them like hailstones. Squall winced as he felt their sharp edges grazing his skin, making sure to keep his face covered until the last piece hit the ground. He already had one scar too many on his face.

He heard Riku chuckle a bit as they both heard footsteps racing towards them, "Come on, let's get out of here."

"And go where exactly? Hey!" Squall stumbled as Riku grabbed his arm and tugged him towards the broken window. Before he could even wrap his mind about what exactly Riku was planning, Riku gave his arm one more sharp tug and jumped. Squall's heart felt like it stopped beating as he tumbled out after Riku. They were on the fourth floor after all, and the concrete pavement below was unforgiving. Then he caught a glimpse of the ground beneath them and realized that Riku's target was actually the dumpster pressed up against the back wall.

Dumpster diving. Riku, that bastard!

He had just enough time to try and get his body into a better position before he and Riku landed roughly in the dumpster. Luckily, because the dumpster was for the skyscraper, it was filled mostly with recyclables like packaging material and paper. Unluckily, paper and Styrofoam still felt a lot like much harder substances after a four story drop; more like hardwood, or stone, or sheets of metal.

Moaning, Squall pushed the bag of money he had carried down with him off of his head and sat up. He knew this wasn't over with. Zexion said that there were cops on this side of the building and they had to have noticed him and Riku freefalling from the window. If they radioed in about it now, he and Riku would never be able to make it to the van before being caught. Feeling Riku moving beside him, he knew that he had to pull himself together. Pushing himself up with a grunt, Squall pulled his handgun out from its holster, heaved himself up onto the rim of the dumpster, and immediately began to shoot at the figures standing in the shadow of the tower.

He heard Riku clamoring up onto the side beside him, Squall took out a second, than a third police officer, Riku taking out the remaining two. Those deaths weighed more on his conscience than any other, the police officers were just doing their job. But if he wanted to escape without risking being identified later, it had to be done. His only consolation was that they were probably working for the Organization anyway. It was the first time in his life that he ever hoped that a cop was dirty.

Once the last man fell, Riku and Squall wasted no time in getting themselves out of the dumpster. Flipping one leg out and then the other, Squall let himself fall to the ground, Riku following shortly after. Not waiting around for the rest of the DCPD to come check on their men, the two sprinted towards the alleyway where they knew Zexion and the van was waiting for them.

When it came into view, Squall could tell just how much faith the other man had in them. He was already in the driver's seat, the engine running and ready to take off at the slightest sign of mission failure. Leaping into the back of the van, Squall didn't even mind as he tripped over the empty C-4 box and tumbled to the ground. Riku seemed equally desperate to get inside, the hitman barely getting his feet in before he whipped around and slammed the back door of the van shut. "Gun it, Zex! We're in!"

"—It took you long enough. Hang on to something.—" Squall didn't even bother, letting himself slide back and slam into Riku as Zexion stepped on the gas. "—I will have to go around the block to avoid the suspicious eyes of the police department, but no matter. Good job, by the way. I was not particularly expecting you to succeed after all of that nonsense.—"

Leaning back against van doors, Riku ignored Squall sliding into him, having just enough energy for sarcasm, "Thanks…Just get us home." Riku glanced down at the duffle bag clutched in his hands, a grin slipping across his face, a bit of the money peeking out from the inside. "I love my job…"

Pulling his rental car up to the front of the tower, Cloud jumped out, Axel hot on his heels. One glance around the area pretty much told him all he needed to know. There were no less than a dozen DCPD squad cars surrounding the front of the skyscraper, police officer squatting behind their open car doors with their guns drawn as if waiting for an ambush. Nearly every single pair of eyes was on the tower, the world lit up by their vehicles' flashing lights. Following their gaze, Cloud looked up to the fifth floor of the building, the row of windows shining brightly in the darkness. Even from where he was standing he could hear the alarms going off inside.

"Looks like they got themselves into quite the fix this time, huh?"

Glancing over at Axel, Cloud let out an annoyed sigh, "Yeah. We'd better find out what the situation is."

The redhead glanced up at the tower, a mirthless grin on his face, "I think the situation is pretty clear. They're up on the fifth floor. I don't know what the hell they're doing, but I don't think that they're gonna to come out."

"Why's that?"

Axel didn't reply verbally, just pointed instead, and Cloud's gaze zeroed in on a large group which appeared to be SWAT team, or some other kind of elite tactical unit. They were dressed mostly in black, wearing Kevlar vests, and were toting a variety of weapon types. Long story short, they looked like they meant business. "That was quick. Usually it takes SWAT a few minutes to arrive at a location."

"That's not SWAT, Cloud."

The blonde detective took another look at them, eyes narrowing as half of the group began to enter the building, "Then who the hell are they, and why are they going in without proper authorization?"

Leaning back against their car, Axel crossed his arms, his green eyes sharp as he watched the scene unfold before him, "Think about it for a minute, will you? Who do you think they are?"

It took Cloud less than a second to realize what his partner meant, "They're working for the Organization?"

"Huh, looks like you're not completely oblivious after all."

Cloud ignored Axel's jab, currently much too enraged over the situation. "What the hell do they think they're doing?

"I'm gonna say that they're probably thinking that they're going to kill our perps. Can't say they don't deserve it after that little disappearing act of theirs."

Rounding on the redhead, Cloud gave the man a fierce scowl, "For the last time, it's not about whether they deserve it or not! It's about the principles of the matter! Leon, and Zexion and Riku, need to be arrested and taken to trial, not, not executed in cold blood! That's what separates us from them! Now get your ass off that car and help me find out who's in charge here, or so help me, I'll report you for conspiracy!"

There was a pause as the tension seemed to build between them, Axel's green eyes staring straight back into Cloud's blue. Finally, Axel looked back up towards the tower with a shrug, "Fine." Pushing himself off of the car, he brushed off his coat, "We'll do it your way for now. But someday you're going to figure out that there are things that are bigger than your 'principles'."

Cloud narrowed his eyes again, trying to read Axel's expression. He could tell that his partner was putting up a wall and didn't like it. Leon's words about an informant in the Twilight Town Police Department kept bouncing around his head and he had a sickening feeling that Axel was involved. Every single space in his heart hoped that it wasn't true, but every single part of his brain told him that Axel was becoming more and more suspicious. The instincts he had developed as a detective were working against him.

Trying to move on, Cloud looked around and put his hands into his trench coat pockets, "Let's figure out who's running this show…"

Axel nodded, following after Cloud as the blonde headed further into the crowd of police officers. Glancing from face to face, he tried to pinpoint someone who looked like they were calling the shots. Finally, he caught sight of a familiar face, although it didn't improve his mood any. "Detective Downes!"

Luxord looked around at the sound of his name being called. He was one of the few lawmen not ducked down behind any sort of shield, the Dark City detective calmly leaning against a police cruiser as a smoked a cigarette. Blowing out a bit of smoke, Luxord smiled dryly, "Ah, Detective Strife, Detective Flynn. You made good time."

Axel nodded, eyeing the cigarette curiously, "Well thanks for the call. I didn't know you smoked."

"I occasionally find the need."

"Well pass me one, will you?"

As Luxord passed Axel a cigarette, Cloud frowned up at the other blonde. "Feeling a bit stressed out lately?"

Luxord rolled his eyes and turned his attention back up towards the tower, "You don't know that half of it."

"Let me make your day a little better then. I want to know who authorized those gang members to go into the building!"

Raising a brow, Luxord let out a long, smoke filled breath, "Do you? I hope you don't take too hard to disappointment then."

Cloud's jaw tightened. Luxord was acting like this was a game! Grabbing the lapel of the man's jacket, Cloud shoved him back up against the car, his voice a dangerous growl, "Listen, you cocky bastard, you better send your men in to legally take control of the situation! My suspects are in there and you can bet that if any of them end up so much as grazed by an Organization bullet, we're going to have a really big problem."

Luxord only looked slightly amused as he smoothly reached up and pried Cloud's hands off of his suit. "Now, now, lad, no need for violence. I—"

He was cut off as an ear-shattering boom suddenly split the air, Cloud whipping around to see the fifth floor explode, all of the windows simultaneously blowing out in a burst of flame and pulverized debris. Cloud could hear car alarms going off from the sound wave that had been generated, his thoughts going blank. Beside him, he saw Axel's mouth drop open, the redhead's newly lit cigarette falling to the sidewalk.

Even Luxord looked shocked, the man's eyes wide as he stared up at the smoldering building before snapping into action. Jumping into the front seat of his police car, Luxord grabbed his radio and called into Dark City dispatch, "This is Detective Downes. I need the fire department here now." Looking back at Cloud and Axel, Luxord was about to say something when the sound of gunfire erupted from the skyscraper.

Swearing, Cloud and Axel dove behind Luxord's car door, not knowing who was being shot at. Cloud felt Axel wrap an arm around him as both of them reached for their handguns, the lanky man almost protecting him as they tried to figure out where the bullets were going. Pulling a pistol out of his glove compartment, Luxord leaned out over them as the gun shots continued, "I believe those shots are coming from above. Sounds like your boys ran into the Organization's team. And there go the rest of them." Cloud wrestled his head off of Axel shoulder in time to spot the rest of the Organization's tactical team run into the building.

"Shit! Come on, Ax!" Scrambling to his feet, Cloud kept his handgun out and ran towards the entrance.

Axel pushed himself up and traded an exasperated look with Luxord, "Aren't you going to try and stop him?"

Luxord shrugged, "If Cloud wants to get himself in trouble, I'm not one to take that from him. If you want to save his life, I suggest that you bring him back."

Letting out a sigh, Axel nodded and chased after his partner. Reaching Cloud as the blonde detective made it to the front doors to the tower, Axel made sure his gun was fully loaded, "What exactly are you planning for us to do?"

Cloud paused as he watched the second group of Organization lackeys' heels disappear up the building's staircase. He could still hear gunfire echoing out from above them. At least that meant that Leon and the others were still alive and fighting back. "I don't know. I don't have a plan."

Leaning his head back against the glass doors, Axel looked up, "You realize that you're risking getting shot at for a guy that you want to put in prison for life, right?" The blonde flat out ignored Axel and instead pushed the doors open, both men keeping their guns out as they ran for the stairs. "Seriously, think about it for a minute!"

Finally, Cloud snapped back as he bounded up the first few steps, "I have thought about it! I can't stop thinking about it! Go back if you're worried about it!"

Axel frowned as he began to follow the man up, "It's you I'm worried about! This isn't like you Cloud! Are you so, so in love with this guy that you can't think straight?"

"I'm not in love with Leon, dammit—!"

"—Hey!" Cloud was interrupted as they were spotted by one of the Organization members farther up the stairwell near the second story. "There's more of 'em down there!"

Cloud's eyes widened as he saw the man turn his gun on them, "Wait, Twilight Town PD!" Holding up his own handgun, Cloud narrowed his eyes, "Drop your weapon and put your hands up!"

"I don't think that's going to work, you idiot!"

As the Organization member pulled the trigger, Axel grabbed a hold of Cloud and pulled them back against the wall. Cloud shook him off, the blonde fuming, "Hey! You're under arrest for attempted murder of a law enforcement officer! Drop your weapon now!"

He was answered with three more bullets, each one closer to its mark. Jumping back as the last one nearly hit his boot, Cloud looked up before firing off a few rounds back, he and the Organization member entering into a kind of duel. Their antics attracted the attention of more Organization cronies, Axel running up beside Cloud to help.

Cloud braced himself as he aimed his gun up, feeling completely exposed as the Organization fired down at him from the third floor. Heart pounding in his chest, Cloud aimed for the non-vitals: the legs, the hands, the arms, anything that would make them drop their guns. A mortal shot would get the job done as well but as a police officer it could be a career killer, especially since he was technically out of his jurisdiction and the media was undoubtedly on their way. Nevertheless, he was prepared to do what he had to do to get out alive, including taking out a few gangbangers.

However, he quickly realized that they were becoming overwhelmed. Beginning to shoot to kill, Cloud took a step back as he reached onto his belt for another clip as Axel continued to unload round after round at them. No matter how many guys he took out, another seemed to replace him.

As he reloaded his gun, Cloud couldn't help but notice that Axel didn't really seem to be landing any hits himself. That was strange, since Axel was just as good a shot as he was at the gun range. In fact, it looked like the redhead was purposefully aiming high and missing on purpose. Brows furrowing, Cloud was about to ask about it when a sharp pain suddenly pierced through his arm. Letting out a cry of pain, Cloud grit his teeth as he watched blood blossom up through his trench coat, "Ah, Ax…!"

The redhead's eyes widened at the sight of the red stain, "Shit! Cloud!" Grabbing a hold of the blonde, Axel pulled him back under the stairwell.

Cloud sucked in a breath of air as Axel examined the wound. The good news was that the bullet had missed bone, passing straight through the softer tissues of his bicep. The bad news was that he had been shot in the arm he used to grip his gun and right now his hand was shaking so bad, his fingers so weak, that his handgun clattered to the ground. "We, we should get out!"

Axel winced as a bullet flew dangerously close to the place where they were taking cover. "Hell yes we should! You're spurting blood like a fountain! But we're not going anywhere until they stop firing at us! Dammit, I told you that this was a stupid idea."

"Sh-shut up!" Biting his lip, Cloud dug around his jacket with his good hand until he found his handkerchief. He quickly pulled it out and wrapped it around his arm, "Ugh, tie this for me!"

Axel quickly did as he was told, pulling the handkerchief tight to put pressure on the wounds before he deftly tied the fabric into a knot to keep it in place. "We need to get you to an ambulance." He reached out and picked Cloud's gun up off of the floor, slipping it back into his partner's holster. "But, unless something changes, I don't think that that's gonna happen anytime soo—"

They both started as there was a sudden crash from further up the stairwell, above the group of Organization members they were fighting with. A cloud of smoke billowed out from what looked like the fourth floor, and for a second Cloud thought it might have been another explosion until he realized that it sounded more like part of the building had caved in. Whatever it was, it was the chance that he and Axel needed, the Organization members above them completely distracted.

Scrambling up onto their feet, the two detectives ran out from underneath their cover and down the few stairs they had manage to climb toward the lobby. Cloud was equally annoyed and grateful as he felt Axel wrap an arm around his shoulder to steady him as they sprinted towards the exit. The shock from being wounded coupled with the blood loss was making him a little dizzy, as much as he hated to admit it, and Axel's support kept him from tripping over his own feet.

As soon as they burst through the double glass doors, Axel started calling for medical assistance, his voice tense, "Officer down! Get a doctor over here now!"

Cloud blinked up as Luxord suddenly appeared by their side, the detective looking calm but with a small spark of worry in his eyes, "Follow me, the ambulance is right over here. What happened then? Run into your boys?"

Frowning, Cloud let out a small grunt as he spotted the ambulance, medics hurrying towards him as he drew closer, "No, we ran into your boys. I couldn't even get up the stairs without being shot down!"

As an EMT urged Cloud to sit down into the back of the ambulance, Luxord gave a tight smile, "Ah, so they were in the 'shoot first, ask questions later' frame of mind then."

Axel scowled darkly, "I don't know what the hell they were doing, shooting at the police like that. The morons didn't even listen when we said we were police."

"Well they were probably under the impression that anyone in the building was going to be working for the intruders. After all, the DCPD did have orders to remain out of the tower until they could 'clear' it. They probably thought no lawmen would be daft enough to go inside and that you were simply trying to create a cover story. Can't blame them really."

Cloud snorted then winced as the EMT began to treat his wound, "Watch me. Those guys had better have a good lawyer because I'm going to arrest all of them for attempted homicide and assault on an officer with a deadly weapon."

Luxord raised a brow, casually inspecting the wound as the medic worked on it, "You might as well not bother. No prosecutor will take the case in this town, and even if they do, no judge is going to convict them."

"This is ridiculous! I'm taking this up with my supervisor!"

At Cloud's exclamation, Luxord only blinked, "Oh yes, where is Dilan by the way? I called him right before I called you and figured he'd want to be here for this."

Axel sent the man a glare, Cloud's eyes sharpening at the redhead's expression, "Head Detective Fisher's probably on his way. It takes two hours to get here from Twilight Town after all."

"That's right. I suppose I forgot about that detail with the two of you showing up so quickly. What were you doing in this neighborhood anyway?"

"Working." Cloud snapped back, "Trying to dig through the evidence to convict our suspects. Which reminds me; if Leon doesn't make it out of there alive, and our whole case breaks down, I'm putting the whole DCPD in prison."

"Doubtful, lad. Though it is refreshing to see the concern you hold for your suspect. Now, I would love to stay and chat, but I should go make sure all of my officers are doing alright. Take care of yourself, Detective Strife; it is regrettable that you had to be injured in the course of all of this."

With that, Luxord turned and walked away, Cloud and Axel glaring at his retreating back. After a moment, Cloud turned his gaze back up to the tower, his mind reeling. He and Axel couldn't even make it up to the second floor, and Leon, Riku, and Zexion were stuck up near the fifth floor? All that gunfire he had heard told him that they were putting up a good fight, but those Organization guys were tough. He knew that first hand. And that was assuming that they had managed to escape that explosion. The more he thought about it, the more he realized how bad the situation really was for them. "Hey Ax…Do you think that they could've figured a way out?"

Axel blinked in surprised then looked over at the blonde, his face softening in understanding, "I don't know. I mean, it looks pretty hopeless, doesn't it?" Cloud gave a stiff nod. "But, on the other hand, those three are pretty much the toughest guys I've ever known, so if anyone could find a way out of this, it'd be them."

They both knew at this point that Axel was just trying to lift Cloud's spirits. That's not to say that Cloud didn't appreciate it but he always hated hollow promises. He was about to reply when he suddenly felt a vibration in his pocket. Jumping a little, Cloud fished his cell phone out of his trench coat with his left hand, his right arm currently still being treated by the EMT. Flipping it open, Cloud's blue eyes widened. He had gotten a text. From Leon.

"What is it?"

Cloud shook his head at Axel's question, clumsily pressing the buttons to open the message, "Text message."

"Oh yeah? From who? You looked like you just about wet yourself from excitement there."

Cloud shook his head again, his eyes quickly skimming over the words. If Leon had the time to write out a text, then maybe, maybe he was alright. Are you okay?

Ignoring Axel's continued questions, Cloud slowly typed out a reply, his pace slowed by only being able to use his left hand. Fine. Where are you?

He only had to wait about a minute before his phone vibrated again. Out. Saw you in the ambulance as we left, had to check.

That bastard! He was out of the building? Whipping his head around to check around them, Cloud didn't see anything that looked like Leon or a getaway vehicle; where did they get off to? How did they get out? Looking up at the tower, Cloud pursed his lips as he angrily typed a response.

What the hell happened?

Cloud held his breath as he waited for an answer, his eyes flashing back down to the screen the moment he felt a vibration.

Mission Success.