Hey everyone. In this particular chapter, I've experimented with trying to say more with less words. I'm not sure how it worked out. Something about the way I narrated the main battle seems...skimpy. Anyway, decide for yourselves if my quality really suffered.
RULER
Damnit…I hope some of these are taking damage…
Mack thought of that as he hung a sharp left, firing off two more missiles. They rocketed forward and embedded in the sides of another destroyer, one that already had one blast in it. After that, he quickly leveled himself out before his Bismark ran into the flames. He adjusted his jet ski into moving into the alley between boats soon after, and took off again. His wingman was right on his tail, still managing to hold out through all of this chaos.
And there was chaos indeed. He saw another Bismark dart in front of him. Hot on its heels was one of the black gyros, firing away at it. The transports and destroyers around them were firing away as well, but once more found themselves powerless to use their deck guns from this range. Fire from above rained down periodically, covering the area with another salvo from the Sierra. Eruptions went off as well every now and then, as more transports blew up. But for all the chaos that was going on…the Bismarks weren't holding.
Mack had heard the transmission, but it was hopeless. The Sierra couldn't cover them all. And the fleet had nearly stopped at this point. Mack could tell it by his lack of needing to compensate for the enemy ships moving. They were keeping them right here…right until their little friends finished them all off. And they were doing well. Almost all of the new pilots were gone. The veterans were still swinging, but even in this maze they would go out every so often… They were slowly being picked off. They had to get out of here…
"Bismark 2!" Mack called on his radio. "Get ready! When we come up on this next destroyer, I want a delta attack on the prow!"
"We only have two ships in our squadron…"
"Then a beta attack! Whatever! Just do it!"
Mack quickly reached down and armed two more of his missiles. He knew that his wingman was doing the same. Then, he looked up ahead. Through the fire and bullets that were shooting at him, he saw a break. Another destroyer was looming. He also checked his radar, and confirmed that his path was clear. He had to make sure to take one that was wide enough. Even if he could squeeze through, there was no telling if his wingman could. And even if so…then the waves or sides could easily flip them on a turn. He continued to close for a few moments more, coming to the break between ships. Then, he reached it.
Immediately, the commander swung his ship around in front of the destroyer, firing a pair of missiles as he did. At the same time, the Bismark with him fired off another two. All four of them sailed forward and struck at approximately the same time on the same point. The combination of firepower was too much for the hull to take. As Mack went by, he noticed the newer and powerful missiles combining and blasting a rather sizable hole into the front of it. A dip appeared as water immediately began to rush in.
Mack felt some relief from that. At least they had taken out another one. Even if the ship stayed afloat, moving forward would only shove more water into it and sink it faster. They had to…
Mack's train of thought was cut off as he suddenly felt himself flung forward violently. An eruption from behind had suddenly shoved him forward with a snap. Gaping at this, Mack looked down to his radar. He was just in time to see Bismark 2's light flash a few times before going out forever. In its place…an indicator of one of the black gyros remained. Mack risked a look behind him. Through the window…he could see a cruel black metal claw emerge from the fiery wreckage of Bismark 2. It was attached to the flying device overhead. It hesitated only long enough to release its kill, and then picked up speed and shot after Mack.
The commander grit his teeth in rage.
"You want me?" He yelled at it. "Come and get me!"
With that, Mack abruptly changed his paths. Instead of taking the wider route, he spun the ship around and drove it into a more narrow channel. The black device brandished its claws and went after him, hot on his heels. However, as Mack went between ships, it soon found itself struggling to stay steady and not hit the sides, unable to shoot at the bogey. By the time it established a target lock…Mack found another narrow space horizontally, and he quickly pitched his ship into a sharp turn and went into it. He banged the side of a boat as he did so, but then took off into the channel. The device swung after him, but once again was disturbed.
Mack continued to do this deadly dance, weaving his way through all the narrow channels he could muster. He smacked himself around violently, running into one ship hull after another, but he managed to keep going. The black gyro was maneuverable, but even it could barely keep up with this. It narrowly missed death several times as it tried to come forward. As the movements went on, it began to fire again. But its shots were erratic, and it began to shoot the hulls of the surrounding ships instead. It tried to reach down and snatch Mack…but it was no use. It raked the sides of its own ships instead.
Mack grit his teeth and continued to push, weaving this way and that through the ships. The black device tried its hardest to keep up, but as it did it made bigger and bigger mistakes. It nearly dashed itself against the sides of ships several times. And it couldn't get a lock. Finally…Mack saw something on his radar ahead. One of the transports had been sunk. A destroyer was moving in to fill in the spot, actually coming forward. It was rapidly closing the space between ships…but Mack didn't care. He kept pushing and made for it. He actually straightened out and went straight for a few moments, coming to a break in the ships that precluded the destroyer. He was en route to exit a horizontal "alley" before sweeping in front of it. However, it was a straight shot, and gave the black gyro time to finally lock in on the target.
But moments before it could fire, Mack shot out into the empty space. Again, he made the sharpest left turn he could muster, actually flinging his Bismark sideways yet letting it skim the water ahead a moment before getting enough thrust to move forward. It finally did…and shot away just as the black device came out and opened fire. However…whoever was driving lacked foresight, for the destroyer came forward a moment later, headed straight for it. When the thing tried to round the corner, it had less room than it calculated…
Mack turned behind again, and watched as the machine dinged into the side of the hull of the giant ship. One of the propellers was smacked off, and debris was sent into another, ruining it. The one remaining propeller yanked it to one side, spiraling out of control. It was too late for the pilot to stabilize it. It shot through the air a moment before smashing into the side of another destroyer. The impact was hard…and at the speed it was going, violent. A moment later, the ship erupted into flame.
That was for my wingman. Mack sneered at it mentally, before turning forward again. However, he ruefully realized that his revenge might be short lived. He had survived that one, but there were plenty still out there, and they were still picking all of the Bismarks off one by one. He was still in trouble. They had to somehow get them off of them…but how? The Bismarks couldn't fight back. Missiles were useless to lock on. Mack couldn't very well go out there and get each one of them to follow him one by one, then trick them into colliding like that last one…
Wait a minute…
Then again…maybe I can.
A reckless idea formed in Mack's head. It was probably suicide. He was putting a lot of faith in his piloting abilities in doing this. And he might be risking the lives of everyone still alive. Then again…staying here was suicide. He had to try something. And this was all he could think of.
With that in mind, Mack sighed…and decided to go with it. It was the only thing they had left. He only hoped it was good enough.
Mack looked back down at his radar. He enlarged the scope slightly, so that he could see more of the fleet. What was left of the Bismarks was still worming its way in between the ranks. The black gyros were everywhere. He quickly found the nearest one, however, and plotted a course for it. As he turned and made his way to the enemy, he fired up his radio again.
"Captain Cid?"
"What do ya' want, Bismark Leader?"
"I want you to plot my position and monitor me." Mack answered. "When I move out from the fleet…get ready to fire."
"Huh?"
"Just trust me, and save one last salvo for that."
Mack cut off the radio before Cid could protest anymore. After that, he inhaled and exhaled a few times to calm down. He was sweating like a hog, and his stomach was turning. He didn't want to die… He said a prayer before he gunned the engine on, and made his way closer to the black gyro.
It took only a few moments before Mack was approaching the location. He turned one corner, and found himself in an alleyway between ships. Hovering there…waiting for someone like him to come along…were two of the black gyros. On seeing him, they quickly took aim and fired. But Mack was too good to get picked off by that. He shot forward a bit further, and then did a sharp sweep to avoid their fire. He made a turn soon after, moving into another space between ships. He looked back, and smiled at the result. The two black gyros took off and followed after him.
No turning back now…
Mack looked back down to his radar. Bismark 58 was up ahead, the last member of the final squadron. It was trying to shake a black gyro itself. Quickly, Mack planned an intercept course. He kept his craft going full speed, to avoid the two machines on his tail. He weaved his way through a few ships, unable to shake the enemy, but keeping them from catching up to him either. He kept an eye on the radar, plotting his route out. Finally…he reached a critical junction point. He made a turn, went in front of a transport, which quickly cut off its fire to avoid hitting the black devices chasing Mack, and then spun back out into another "lane". Just as expected, his timing was right. He pulled out and alongside Bismark 58.
Luckily, this bought some time. The pursuing black gyros nearly crashed into their partner, and all were forced to slow down for a moment to collect themselves. Meanwhile, a puzzled call came on the radio.
"Bismark Leader? What are-"
"Follow my movements as best you can, Bismark 58." Mack answered. "Keep up with me and don't fall back."
Immediately, Mack gunned his engine back up to full speed. Bismark 58 hesitated only a moment before following. Both managed to get some ground before the black gyros, now three of them, recovered and took off after them. They were too far out of range to lock on, and Mack intended to keep it that way. He turned his head down to his radar, and quickly picked out another Bismark. This one too was being chased by two black gyros, and it wasn't far. Quickly, Mack led Bismark 58 through a few narrow channels, and made his way over to the left, passing through lanes as he did. After cutting across through a few ships, both of them emerged into another long "alleyway". On entering, he immediately saw the two black gyros trying to shoot down Bismark 25.
Mack gave an order immediately, and sharply. "Bismark 25! Drop speed! Now!"
Luckily, the Bismarks trusted Mack. The pilot, without questioning, did as he was told. The pursuing black gyros were caught off guard as Bismark 25 suddenly went underneath them. Both of them stopped in midair, and hesitated a moment. As they did, Bismark 1 and Bismark 58 quickly caught up with Bismark 25. On passing them, Mack gave out the order.
"Back to full throttle! Now!"
Bismark 25 responded…and soon, that jet ski was taking off along with the others. As for the pursuing three black gyros…they nearly crashed into their motionless counterparts. Again, the enemy found itself distracted as it was forced to brake and adjust itself before it was too late. Mack, now having a new squadron, tore on ahead, and put more space between him and the gyros. But in the end, the enemy once again took off, and came forward as fast as it could, hot in pursuit of their escaped quarry.
"Bismark 25…" Mack went on. "Match us in speed, stay close, and don't fall behind."
This chain soon repeated itself. Mack was weaving his way through the fleet, matching himself up with every Bismark. Every time he did, he gained another partner, and a few more bogies on his rear. They kept nearly colliding. It was odd… It was like they weren't getting the hint of what he was doing, and watching themselves. It was almost as if the pilots couldn't interact… At any rate, Mack didn't care. He continued to accumulate more and more bogies. And as his group grew, they began to attract the attention of other gyros. They soon began to try and ambush them. But against so many targets, they were unable to lock onto a particular one. Soon, they were all being left in the dust, being forced to join the group in back. As a result, Mack soon had all the remaining members of his wing with him, while all of the enemy tailed them from behind.
Mack took one more look at his radar. A few of the enemy gyros were still standing their ground, but they no longer mattered. The far majority were on his tail. The fifteen remaining Bismarks…only 25 percent of the original total…were behind him. It frustrated him that they had taken such losses…but there was still one final chance to get even and save who was left.
It was getting hard to maneuver. The enemy had taken up shooting erratically. With so many targets and guns, random chance made a hit more than likely. With this in mind, and knowing that the enemy was recovering from the latest trick he had put them through, Mack turned to his radio as he plotted a course for a west exit.
"Captain! You still out there?"
"I see you, commander. And I think I get what you're thinking…"
"Then get ready! I'm coming out now!"
With that, Mack made another sharp turn and led his wing out. The gyros stayed hot on their heels. The pilot kept them going. The other pilots couldn't keep up as well, but they made do as he continued to weave one way and another out of the area. He was glad for them. They kept up well and followed close. It kept them alive, and it would keep them alive just a bit longer. He kept an eye on the radar, and finally made his way into the last "alley". Ahead of him, he saw a wide break between ships. On the other side, there was freedom and the open sea. With that in mind, he brought himself up to that location, made one final sharp left turn, and then headed out for the ocean, moving as fast as he could to outstrip the guns. The rest of his wing fell in behind him.
A mass of black gyros stayed on their tails. They were eager now. They thought they had somehow finally flushed their quarry out into the opening. But like an inexperienced chess player, they focused so much on thinking they finally put their opponent into making a wrong move…while the whole time not paying attention to what the opponent was doing. The black gyros turned the corner en masse. They saw their quarry ahead of them, racing out on the open ocean…and picked up speed to give chase.
They never suspected a thing…until the massive form of the Sierra suddenly dropped down right in front of them, with missile bays open.
Mack gave one last turn back, wanting to see the gyros pay for what they did to his division. And he did. The Sierra opened fire with one last salvo. The enemy froze in mid-flight, and jerked around to make one last panic move for it. But all they ended up doing was colliding with one another, crashing into each other's propellers and starting the damage earlier. Moments later, the swarm was struck by the missiles. Those that had a direct hit immediately erupted into fireballs and turned to scrap. Many of these had their propellers break off and shatter when this happened…scattering debris everywhere in a projectile fashion. The blades pierced into their comrades, and they were either critically damaged or erupted, furthering the destruction. They realized too late…they were led into a slaughterhouse. They were set up to be knocked over like ten pins.
The Sierra pulled off a moment later, and turned around to cover the Bismarks that were left. The deck guns of the enemy ships tried to fire, but they were quickly getting out of range now. Their shots were ineffective. Out of the mass of black gyros that had tailed the enemy, only thirteen had been spared, four of which were heavily damaged and moments from falling. With that…they realized they were beaten. Their total victory had been snatched from them. They hovered there a moment, watching their prey escape. But in the end, they were forced to turn and retreat back to their guardian.
Mack sighed and turned back. They had survived…but only at great cost. It filled him with anger. However, there was nothing left to do about it now. They had done all they could. Now they had to get back home…and keep praying.
RULER
Ragnar clenched and released his fist again. He calmed down slightly. At least there was some good news now…
"All remaining Bismarks are out of the fleet's firing range." One officer explained. "The new attackers appear to be reentering the hull of the aircraft carrier. The enemy fleet is picking up speed once again."
The youth raised a hand to his brow and wiped his forehead. "…How much damage did we manage to do to them?"
"Nine transports…and two destroyers have been disabled."
Ragnar felt like cursing again. That was a negligible dent. It was up to the shore defenses now, and he knew they wouldn't be able to keep much away. They wouldn't be able to make a mark on that new one…and, typically, it was taking the lead. It would let everything uselessly hit it, and defend the others. In the end, it would pull up front, and it could sweep away all of the shore defenses by itself. The RPGs didn't have any defenses at all. The cannons would be much the same. Only the pill boxes and trenches would have a hope, but they couldn't do much alone. They couldn't do anything against it, save try to pin it down… And they didn't have the firepower for that.
…Is this why it told me to fall back?
Because standing my ground would only be a massacre?
Ragnar held and thought a moment, bringing a hand to his mouth and thinking. He hated doing this…but he might not have a choice here. If they did this, they'd lose much more than they intended. This was the only place left to stop them. They'd be unable to control them after this. The fight would more than likely make it to Midgar…which, hazardous as it was, and fatal as it was to human life, was also the best place they could hold off the enemy.
Ragnar cursed to himself once again, and finally spoke up.
"Give the order for all shore defenses to pull back."
Every officer in the room froze at that, and turned around to the general. They gaped at him in astonishment.
The youth sighed and went on. "Tell them to start loading up as many weapons as they can that were dragged out there, and then get moving."
One of the officers spoke up. "Sir, you want to surrender the shore without a fight?"
"It's that or have it taken from us after a one-sided massacre." Ragnar ruefully answered. "Tell them to pull back into the plains area. We'll have to make our stand there."
The officers hesitated, and looked to one another. Luckily, they seemed to get Ragnar's rationale. It didn't mean they liked it any more than him, however. Reluctantly, they turned back to their consoles and began to spread the word.
The general stood up from his chair during this, and began to undo his cape. He hoped he again hadn't made a terrible decision, but he had no choice. The least he could do now was get out there and help the fight. If this was their best place to make a stand, then he'd be there to help it.
RULER
The enemy was relentless. As they pulled into the bay, it didn't matter that there was no longer any resistance. Their flagship opened fire none the less and proceeded to destroy every battery. Not satisfied with that, it began to blast at the pill boxes, trying to destroy them as well. That effectively dashed one hope of the army…that the New Shinra would leave their weapons alone so that if and when they reclaimed the shore they could use them again. But it was hopeless. The aircraft carrier destroyed everything it could, and the other destroyers joined in the carnage as they landed.
The transports began to flood the shores. Some were too reckless and ran afoul of the booby traps that the enemy had left in their wake. But in the end, all it really did was slow them down. They began to cut through the wire almost immediately, and the engineers began to bring out platforms to cover over the abandoned trenches. They were delayed for a few hours in making the path clear and checking out every pill box and trench, expecting surprise assaults. After all, the Planet Protector Army had been very good at that in the past. Yet nothing happened, and their intelligence soon reported that the enemy was up ahead. With that in mind, they began to bring their tanks across and form a line, planning to roll across the field and iron them out like wrinkles. The infantry fell in behind, and they waited for more transports to land to put more power behind them. Once they were satisfied that they had enough strength…they began to move forward.
However, the PPA had not left all of their anti-tank weaponry at the front, as the New Shinra was about to discover. As they rolled onto the field beyond, long, flat, and open, phantom shots began to come out from behind earth walls and detonated the tanks. Eight were burning before the New Shinra was able to return fire. After that…things went to chaos. The tanks began to roll forward much faster, targeting the earth walls that had fired on them. It took time to reload the guns, and before they could the PPA's side of the battlefield was being bombarded by shells, and many casualities were amounting.
Yet their own weapons continued to fire, and their machine guns went to work on the New Shinra infantry. They weren't dug in or protected, and soon they realized the penalty for charging. Only a half dozen foxholes were overrun before the enemy realized that they weren't doing well. Instead…they fell back, and implemented harder to defeat countermeasures. Sweepers began to charge the field. With flat land between them and the enemy, it was easy for them to charge forward and open fire. Their armor kept them from being taken out from anything less than a grenade. Next came the Cromwells, far more mobile and heavily armed with bombs and mini-canisters of gas to flush out the PPA into the open. If that wasn't enough, the few New Shinra that had managed to make their way into PPA foxholes began to implement their Weasels, using them to blow up foxholes from within.
Before this could get worse, however…the generals of the PPA made an appearance. Brandishing swords as big as they were, General Cloud and General Ragnar gave a call to charge on the enemy. Then, leading the front, they came out and overran the spotty and unprotected tanks that had already been deployed. They pushed beyond and made it to the infantry, who were still unprotected and caught between the battleground and the shore. They soon began to inflict more losses onto them, and nearly routed them from the field…
That was…until the New Shinra sprung its second wave.
The PPA was in the midst of attacking when they saw something horrible. Only half of the tanks had been used on the initial charge. Now, with the PPA out and in the open, a second line of them began to roll forward to smash them out. If that wasn't enough…the New Shinra began to implement their aircraft carrier again. Gelinkas were soon carpet bombing the few defenses left of the Planet Protector Army, scattering them and breaking them up. Another wave of infantry, just as large as the first, appeared and charged forward, with even more forming ranks on the shore behind. The PPA was swamped. They were nearly surrounded, and crushed out one by one…
But they still had an ace up their own sleeves.
The heads of New Shinra soldiers turned in confusion as they heard a unified, choral "wark". They turned to the east, and saw something that had not been implemented in war in over fifty years…cavalry.
With weapons running low, the general had invested some effort in creating a new branch using this archaic method. There were some 500 cavalry units mounted on the backs of chocobos, and they proceeded to sweep the field. Some were armed with basic weapons, but others carried anti-tank rifles. As a result, they were able to inflict damage on every member of the enemy forces. Some caused trample damage as well. The main utility, however, was in the harassment of the enemy, causing them to lose their focus and be attacked by a new and confusing trooper. With this, the circles broke down one by one, and soon the PPA began to reunify and strike back. They were not able to take the field, but they were able to halt the enemy's charge and force a temporary withdrawal.
As the day turned to afternoon, the New Shinra Army sent in its last wave to fight back. The New Shinra's superior numbers gave them the advantage of having fresh troops even now. However, the Planet Protector Army didn't stand their ground. The cavalry earned them a break in the battle, and they used it to fall back to Midgar…
RULER
"Damnit…I feel like an idiot."
Even though he was sweating and tired, and struggling to keep running after having slashed his way through his share of tanks, Cloud managed to turn his head to the side. He saw Ragnar, still keeping up with him, but looking angry. He was surprised. He thought his own stamina was pushing it, even with his Jenova cells. But Ragnar was doing it just with his own natural flesh and blood. That was amazing to him. However, Ragnar too showed signs of wear and tear. His uniform was torn, and he had his share of gashes and scrapes from shrapnel. What he really noticed, however, was his furious face as the two generals charged forward.
They were back to Midgar by now. They and the other soldiers that were fleeing the battle were entering through the giant gutted gates that had once sealed Midgar off from the rest of the world, built into the huge thick wall that surrounded the entire city. Here, they were going to have to make their last stand. On the surface, it looked bad. They had lost the bay, the shore, and now the plains. They were being pushed back into the heart of their own defenses. And yet, this was also their strongest point. Here they had the territory and the advantage of cover. Here, they knew the area. They had inflicted more damage on the ground troops of the New Shinra than they had expected. While the New Shinra had made gains in naval combat, in ground combat they had barely changed. And they didn't have any saboteurs to thwart their defenses this time around. The PPA had held up surprisingly well, and it was only through a lot of blood and damage that the New Shinra Army was able to keep pushing. Now, they were going to fight against the hardest obstacle of all.
"Why is that?" Cloud called out.
"The gates!" Ragnar yelled back in indignation. "We have a bottleneck right here! We could have worn them down right at this point!" He cursed aloud after saying this.
"You need to watch your mouth. You're getting more profane." Cloud responded.
"Damnit…if we would have set up our weaponry here, they would have burned themselves out trying to get through!" Ragnar yelled in anger. Afterward, however, Cloud noticed that he bowed his head, and muttered something else…
"…I should have listened to that voice…"
Cloud raised an eyebrow. "What was that?"
"Nothing."
Not long after crossing the gates, Ragnar and Cloud both broke out of the main road. They began to run to one of the ruined buildings on the sides instead. This part of the city was still very wrecked, and large pieces of debris were everywhere as well as ruins of homes. Cloud saw that the PPA soldiers that were left were moving right in. One platoon was taking position behind a large steel girder. Another five were setting up a heavy machine gun and piling bricks in front of it. Still another dragged a wheelbarrow of RPG shells. The buildings were also filling up, and the snipers were taking places at the windows as well as the bazookas. Ragnar and Cloud themselves headed to one which had six PPA members looking out. They soon passed through the doorway of this one and into the darkened interior.
"All we have to do is stop this next assault." Cloud answered back. "After that, they'll be stopped cold."
"Yeah, but they'll be practically on our doorstep." Ragnar replied nervously. "If we hadn't brought out everyone, if we had any reserves, I would have called for a counterattack the moment we repel them."
The two men continued to run in. Already, dirty and torn PPA soldiers had filled up the first level of this building. They were quickly erecting another stronghold. While gunners were taking the windows, field doctors were moving the wounded into the more guarded rooms. Others were preparing a new weapons check or moving upstairs. Cloud saw that there was a communication officer there, setting up his equipment against a table-sized piece of debris. On seeing this, Ragnar immediately ran over. The ex-mercenary followed behind.
"Have you got any word from the Sierra?" Ragnar asked as he ran up to the man.
The officer had the radio against his head, but he managed to look up to Ragnar as he continued to fiddle with dials. "Yeah. Captain Cid said that they need another hour."
"Tell them to launch now." Ragnar answered back. "If they're able to bomb us, these buildings will be tombs, not shelters. Anyone who has a weapon with anti-aircraft capability needs to get to the roof and use it to keep any Gelinkas off of us."
"Aye, sir." The man answered, and began to go about his work.
That conversation, however, struck a note within Cloud. He had forgotten… Denzel and Marlene were in this city. If it got bombed…there was a chance that some of those bombs would hit Edge. They'd be in danger along with every other civilian. Ragnar was right…they had been pushed too far inland. Even if they could hold here and secure it against the enemy, there was still that aircraft carrier… While fending off the ground forces, they had to try and take down the enemy aircraft as well.
Cloud swallowed at the thought of that. He hoped that his "family" was in a safe spot…
RULER
"Are you sure that this location is safe?"
Cait Sith merely waved a paw at that. "Sure, sure. There's no way the New Shinra will get this far. We'll stop them cold."
Aerith wished she could share that sentiment, but she felt nervous just being here. The Seventh Heaven lacked a basement, so there was nowhere they could hide if any bombers made it to Edge and attacked the area. Alone, she might trust Cait Sith implicitly. But with kids in the house, she didn't feel too well.
The Cetra was sitting somewhat uneasily in the living room, on top of Ragnar's "bed", which she had made after coming back that one day. She was upset that he had yelled at her in such a way…but she was also scared that he was right. What if catching him off guard like that kept him from enacting a critical decision? What if he hadn't had time to do something important, and it had come back to hurt them now? From what she heard…the battle wasn't going too well. They were pushing their way all the way to Midgar. People outside were already beginning to panic, and a truck with a loudspeaker had rolled by advising people to take shelter and be listening for any air raid sirens.
Despite her own fears, and regrets that what Ragnar said was true, Aerith was afraid for the children. Tifa wasn't here. She was off leading her own unit. As a result…she felt responsible for the welfare of the three children that were still here. She felt it was her duty to protect them. Of course…she wasn't quite alone. After that one incident two months ago, she and the house were constantly under surveillance. After Cloud left, he had stationed two armed guards at the door. In addition, he had Cait Sith come around to help out. He wouldn't make much of a difference in the battle anyway. And lastly, to a bit of Aerith's surprise, Barret himself was here. Apparently, Cloud had wanted someone extra there. The whole group had, in fact, but they also wanted to fight the battle. Cloud was eventually able to get Barret to stay on the grounds that he also had to look out for his daughter. That was the only thing that could deflate Barret's undiminishing grudge against Shinra. Plus…the fact that Cait Sith was the other guardian, the robot that had once abducted Marlene and used her as a hostage, helped out in him getting there.
For now, Denzel and Azure were upstairs, playing in their room with Denzel's action figures. In a moment, Aerith wanted to call them down. It wasn't safe there, and the sirens might go off at any moment. As for Marlene, she had naturally been overjoyed to see her father. She had run off with him to catch up on things. Currently, they were in the restaurant portion of the Seventh Heaven, leaving Aerith and Cait Sith alone in the living room.
"I wish I could get out there and help." Aerith ruefully sighed after a moment.
Cait Sith hesitated a moment, but then shrugged. "…It's probably best that you stay here. That'll keep the others from being distracted."
Well meaning as that comment was, it only made Aerith feel worse. It was no secret that she was the most physically unfit of them all, and the most ill suited to combat. She hadn't the stamina or strength of any of the others. The way Cait made it sound, it was like she was just another civilian to be protected out there. That made her upset. She might still be the same build and strength, but she had her new powers, and she could control them now. She could do something besides just stand around and wait to be saved…
The door to the bar suddenly slammed open. Aerith and Cait Sith both jumped and looked around to it. Eyes filled with tears, anger painting her face, Marlene stood and fumed a moment in the doorway, before taking off for the stairs.
"You're lying about him!" Marlene cried. "Azure would never do that!"
A moment later, she began to run up them. She was almost to the top of the stairs when a much larger, darker figure came into the doorway. Barret, for once not looking angry, turned over to the stairs and called up them.
"Marlene!"
"Leave me alone!" The girl cried back before running into her room…which just happened to be Denzel's and Azure's as well. She quickly went in and slammed the door behind her.
Barret heard this, and stood in the doorway a moment. Afterward, however, he cursed and pounded his fist against the wall. "Damnit!" He added. "Now she's going to let him know what I told her! Damn that little bastard!"
It only took Aerith a moment to realize what had happened, based on the context. Her eyes widened. "…You told Marlene what we suspected about Azure?"
Barret clenched his jaw and fumed a moment. He stepped out of the doorway and put his hands to his sides, looking to the ground. In the end, he grunted and nodded. "…Yeah, I told her. I told her what I thought about 'im too…"
Aerith gaped. She immediately turned around and faced him. "We all agreed we weren't going to tell them!" She responded. "We-"
"I don't give a damn!" Barret retorted, looking up and snapping to Aerith. "I don't want that damn freak around her! I already lost too much of my family to being stupid! I'm not gonna let Marlene jus' walk around him like he's some normal kid! He's a damn Sephiroth clone!"
Aerith rolled her eyes and sighed. "Barret…we agreed that we were going to give him a chance. And for two months he hasn't-"
"Oh, come off that crap, Aerith!" Barret retorted. "Even if he behaved himself for two years, then what? He still could turn inta' a killer at any time! I stayed quiet for two months 'bout this…but I can't take it any longer! Treatin' him like he's some damn member of this family… If Marlene don't stay away from him, then I gotta pull her outta here! I ain't gonna take that risk!"
Aerith tried to stay as calm as possible in the face of this, and speak in the most normal tone that she could…but inside, she felt herself growing irritable.
"Barret…that's not only not being fair to Azure, that's not being fair to Marlene either. That's saying that she essentially can't use any good judgment of her own, and that you don't respect her wishes."
"She's only eight! She-"
"She is far more empathic and intuitive than you might realize, Barret." Aerith went on. "I know you're only doing what you think is right, but so is she. She lives with this boy every day. She sees how he reacts to things, how he plays, how he goes about all his daily activities…and she trusts what she sees rather than what she hears. Why can't you?"
Barret kept his mouth shut for a moment at that. He fumed, but unless he was truly angry it wasn't in his nature to yell back at another person's logic. He clenched both flesh and blood and metal into fists. He turned and looked like he would pound the door frame again…but he stopped himself. In the end, he bowed his head, and let out a long exhale. Aerith patiently waited, and when she did she saw him finally close his eyes and talk more softly.
"…I had heard all sorts of rumors 'bout what happened wit' the reactor in Nibelheim when Shinra came to Corel. And I heard about the crazy sh't they did in the war with Wutai." He began. "I didn' believe 'em, in the end. I was against it…'cause it meant losin' my livelihood…but I didn' believe what had happened. I thought…how could it happen? And if it did, it might have been anythin'. It could have been some malfunction. They got better reactors now. And they couldn' really have sent in troops there… I didn' think that some group…some damn company, for God's sake, that works to make customers happy…could do that…
"But I was wrong. I trusted them, and they turned around and bit me…bit us…in the ass but good. Since then…I ain't never trusted anyone wit' that kinda past…those kinda rumors. I lived my life thinkin'…a leopard don't change his spots.
"Look…" He kept going with a sigh. "Maybe this kid…is alright. But I can't take that chance. I ain't gonna risk what family I got left on it. I can't risk it."
The room was silent for a moment after that. Cait Sith, more suited to jokes than emotional matters, knew well enough to keep his tongue held and hold back for now. Aerith, on the other hand, looked concerned. It made more sense now. It wasn't just that Barret was being belligerent or overly cautious…it was because he had a personal stake in this.
"Barret…" Aerith began.
However, she was unable to say another word. All three were distracted as they heard a knock at the front door. Barret held in his down position for a moment, but when they knocked again he turned and looked to it. Cait Sith stood on tiptoes on the back of his moogle, and Aerith looked up from where she was seated as well. The rest of the house went silent, and a third knock went out from the door.
"…Now who the hell is that?" Barret finally asked. "If it were Tifa, Spiky, or Scrawny, they would have just come right in…" He turned his massive body, and began to walk to the doorway to answer it. Aerith rose from where she was as he did so, and Cait Sith took a few steps forward astride his giant moogle to get a better view of what was going on. The Cetra ended up walking all the way to the doorway, and standing in there to see the whole bar. Cait Sith moved in next to her and poked out from under her arm. As for Barret, he walked across and for the door itself, and as he neared he began to reach out his hand to open it…
However, he was never able to. A moment later…a powerful blow from the other side of the door struck it…making it crack and split in the middle. The power ripped it off of its hinges, and sent it flying forward into the big man. Huge as Barret was, the power still ripped him off of his feet and threw him back halfway across the room. The miner gave a yell as his body was thrown to the floor, and slid across it, farther from the doorway. Gritting his teeth in pain and anger, the man rolled up and glared at the front door at who had done this.
As for Aerith, looking forward as well…she could only gape in fear as she saw who the culprit was…
A massive hulk of a body…yet completely concealed in rags and old clothing…slowly made its way through the threshold, not caring, or noticing, that its huge shoulders snapped out part of the frame as it entered. Once inside, another one quickly fell in at its side. Yet beyond that…those gathered saw that there were many more waiting just outside the doorway...standing over the dead bodies of two Planet Protector Army guards.
"Hello." The second one said in a familiar wolfish voice. "We've come to take Aerith to her new home."
RULER
To be continued...