Again...I don't know if it's me, but this chapter seems to be the sloppiest one yet. But seeing as no one has complained about it, hopefully it's alright.
This is another chapter I would traditionally describe as "filler"...
71 Hours, 43 Minutes Until The Firing Of The Gauntlet Of Zeus
Red XIII could keep his emotions far more in check than most people. And he knew better than to panic in a crisis situation. As such…as the blip of static occurred that cut off Admiral Ashiah's transmission, his face changed to show upsetness, but not too much alarm. He turned instead to the general afterward.
Ragnar, however, was far less capable of holding in his emotion. His face was frozen in shock and with good reason. All estimates before now had been saying that they had another three weeks on the Gauntlet of Zeus at least. This contingency had not been planned out for. They were in full scale preliminary preparations…not preparations themselves. They weren't prepared to make a decent offensive in a week, let alone three days. Of course…that wouldn't matter. That was when the weapon would fire. It would take a couple days of fighting to even get far enough to have a chance of stopping it. They had no time whatsoever left. They weren't ready.
"General?" Red XIII finally asked.
Ragnar didn't react. He continued to stare.
"…Your orders, general?"
The youth didn't respond. He stayed silent for what amounted to a full minute. The whole time, he just stared out and thought.
Finally, he tightened his jaw and swallowed. He turned to his phone next, picked it up, and dialed a number. He held it to his head a moment later, and waited for it to ring a few times before someone picked up. The voice on the other end was a bit hesitant.
"…Communications Control, sir."
"Commander…a message just lit up my radio as well as Colonel Nanaki's. Did you just hear it?"
"…Everyone heard it, sir. It was broadcast on ten different channels throughout Midgar."
Red XIII raised his head slightly. With his superior hearing, he could pick up on the voice of the person on the other end of the line. Ragnar himself stiffened a moment. So…they had wanted them to know about this. At least Ashiah did. That was foolishness on their part, perhaps. Their army had no idea that this was going to happen before just now. So that meant that this amounted to a dare. They were poising to kill them, and daring them to do something about it.
"Commander, patch me into the emergency alert channel."
"Yes sir."
Ragnar swallowed again as he waited, until he heard the clicking over on the phone onto the appropriate station. A moment later, and a beep went out on his phone to signify his transfer. Not only that, but throughout the rest of the PPA bases and the cities of Edge and Midgar, a loud beep went out to call any personnel who were listening to attention. Ragnar waited a few moments for everyone to turn and listen…and swallowed one last time before he spoke.
"…All units and personnel…this is General Ragnar. The time is now 1220 hours. Begin full scale preparations for the Operation Dragon invasion. We depart at 0000 hours. All higher officers are to report in for further instruction."
Ragnar hung up the phone after that, and turned back to Red XIII. The beast stared calmly back at him.
The youth hesitated a moment, but then gave a halfhearted chuckle.
"Aren't you going to point out the problems with my plan?"
"It wouldn't really matter at this point." Red XIII calmly answered. "This is our only option now. Although I'll tell you right now that we cannot muster our full force in just eleven hours and forty minutes. However, some of our best decisions in the past have been made 'on the wing', so to speak. And I am pledged underneath you."
"Then we need to start moving right now." Ragnar answered as he began to stand.
"Need I remind you that we have not even briefed the minor officers on Operation Dragon?"
"That's your first job." Ragnar answered. "Contact the Wutai Gold Navy and see if we can get another one of those meeting halls. We'll do it there. I've got to start delegating out responsibilities and try to get a call for volunteers in the surrounding cities. Our crews can't load this stuff alone."
Tifa kept looking down to her radio for a moment longer. Her mind was now officially reeling after hearing the two reports. First, she had heard that they had three days before the Gauntlet of Zeus fired. Now they had only twelve hours before they were going to launch that invasion. This was crazy. She didn't even know what she was supposed to do in that invasion. She had just been preparing to have a normal day, and suddenly they were going to war.
Tifa looked back up and toward the others in the main restaurant of the Seventh Heaven. Aerith was seated at the table, along with Denzel and Marlene. A board game had been halfway set up, but was forgotten the moment that Ashiah's crazy voice came over the other end of it. Aerith was looking tense, but staying calm for the children. Marlene's face began to grow worried. Denzel himself looked more anxious than normal, although he seemed to hold it better than the others. He seemed to be more concerned with something else…maybe even nervous about that…
At last, the woman drew herself up and spoke.
"Alright…" She started, very calm and controlled. "Aerith…take Denzel and Marlene upstairs and have them start getting their things together. I've got to report in."
As expected, the deck of the Juggernaut only remained silent and unchanged for a few brief minutes after giving that report. Most of the crew thought it was crazy for Ashiah to have done such a thing, but she looked rather self-satisfied and so no one dared dispute her. Yet they weren't alone…and that radio transmission had been heard by more than just the PPA. Not long after, the communications console went off.
The officer turned and looked over it a moment, reading out what type of message was incoming. She swallowed a moment later, and then turned slightly behind to the Admiral.
"Incoming vocal message from General Leers, madame."
Ashiah, who still looked casual, calm, and perhaps a bit happy about her latest turn of events, gestured with her finger. "Put it on speakers, ensign."
The officer swallowed again, and then turned back and carried out the order. A moment later, and the sound in the room clicked once to signify signing over onto the speaker channel. The other officers hunkered down and prepared for a rather severe conversation to follow.
"Admiral Ashiah here."
"Admiral, I am sending a helicopter to the Juggernaut this instant. On arrival, your first mate will relieve you of command and you are to come to see me immediately."
Ashiah's smile faded a bit here.
"...We're in a war situation, General. And this is my ship and my fleet. I can't allow a changeover of command so easily. I'm too integral to the functioning."
"Should I take this as you disobeying my orders a second time, Admiral?" Leers' voice snapped back. "So this is no longer a court martial…it's now mutiny? Or treason? I did not call to argue with you or have you contradict me. If you're smart, you'll remember your place in the New Shinra, say 'aye sir', and end this conversation now."
Ashiah narrowed her gaze. Those nearby saw her seem to sneer or snarl at this. It wasn't out of mere anger. It was more like…irritation…like she hated having to have the General talk to her or order her around at all…
"Sir, I fail to understand what the problem is."
"The problem is that you disobeyed a direct order, and that to stroke your own damn ego your breached security!" Leers retorted, now fully breaking official technique and letting his anger come out. "Do you understand what 'classified transmission' means, Admiral? Or did they not teach you that in the military academy?"
Ashiah's snarl grew more pronounced. Her eyes seemed to get a dark look in them for a moment before she answered.
"...I don't think I care for your insulting tone, General."
There was a pause…during which all of the crew on board hunkered down and awaited the eruption.
"Just who the hell do you think you are?! Am I the superior officer here, or you?! You may now consider yourself relieved of command indefinitely, Admiral! And if you lip off to me one more time I will order your first mate to have you arrested! Is that understood?!"
Ashiah nearly growled at this. Her eyes were burning with anger and hate as her teeth clenched. However, she had enough sanity to realize she was digging herself a bigger hole. She darted her eyes around her quickly, giving her murderous look to her crew. A few had been dumb enough to be staring, but they quickly turned away and went back to their work. Here, paranoia worked against her. She firmly believed she was being plotted against by all around her. If the General gave them the 'go ahead' to arrest her…she had a feeling that her crew would snap on her in an instant and shoot her dead. With this, her cockiness was somewhat arrested. Although her face still looked angry, she spoke in a more pleasant, meeker tone.
"My apologies, sir. I was simply overjoyed at the news, and for a moment lost myself. I meant no offense or trouble to our army or navy. On hearing that the Gauntlet of Zeus was nearly complete, I thought it might be a useful tactic to actually make our enemy aware of it. Such a move might cause widespread panic among their ranks, and cause a loss of will in many of their troops. They might have even surrendered. I would have informed you of this idea, but I had a lapse in judgment. I'm so used to being the head authority in the sea that I forget about back at the Dome."
"I would hate to be such a nuisance to your totalitarian command." Leers sneered back sarcastically, obviously not that impressed with this apology. "I'm not as blind or stupid as you think, Admiral. I planned to announce this news to the Planet Protector Army myself in three days, on completion of the weapon. Then they would have known that we could have obliterated them the moment they tried to start an offensive. However, now, thanks to you…they have three more days in which to counter us."
Ashiah shrugged in her seat. "What could they possibly do in three days, sir?"
"I think your history of bungled invasions should have made that more than clear, Admiral. It took them only days to mobilize defenses and their first naval force against us. These bastards are far more resourceful than we've given them credit for."
"If they try to attack us now, we'll simply-"
"Blow them out of the water, correct?" Leers cut off. "That's your problem, Admiral. You can't ever see an enemy beyond the end of your own gun barrels. I believe this was the true reason you declared this information to them. You wanted an opportunity to kill more of them. I've seen how you've recklessly endangered our fleet time and time again so that you could satisfy your own bloodlusts. I heard that transmission, Admiral. And let me assure you…I will decide when, where, and if the Gauntlet of Zeus will be used. Not you. And if…by some chance…they do counter attack us and so much as one soldier in my army dies for it…they'll be hell to pay, and it will be your skin. You have twelve hours to be back in this Dome. You are dismissed. End transmission."
The speakers cut off a moment later. The crew members that were standing in the room risked a glance back at Ashiah to see how she reacted. They knew full well that, on this ship, she felt god-like compared to everyone else. What more, the slightest thing that seemed to contradict her was met with violence. Now they saw that she hated to be contradicted by anyone, including her superior. They now wanted to see how she would react to this.
She was a fearsome creature indeed. She was curled slightly in her chair, grasping with an iron grip the edge of the railing. Her eyes were narrow and her lips still curled. She looked absolutely insane. It seemed as if she'd do anything at that moment. She even looked like she'd be ready to turn the Juggernaut around and have it begin firing on their own soil simply to try and get to General Leers. It was clear now that her hate was totally focused on him.
But in the end, she inhaled sharply through her nose. Some sanity was left in her, and kept her calm as she stiffly rose from her chair and stood erect. She took a brief moment to smooth out her uniform afterward, and appeared very proper and official. Then she made her announcement.
"Captain Deleaur…you have the comm."
70 Hours, 57 Minutes Until The Firing Of The Gauntlet Of Zeus
"What the hell is this?"
The technician looked up from the assortment of parts around him, and the half "dissected" skeleton of the modified Phoenix fighter in front of him. He glanced around in confusion for a moment, but then gave a helpless shrug to the commander.
"How the hell was I supposed to know we were going to be launching the invasion today?"
Mack was still furious. "Well why aren't you putting the damn thing back together?"
"I am putting the damn thing back together!"
"Hurry up! We can't do this operation without it! And the damn thing better fly!"
Mack spun around…and then quickly leapt back as he was about to walk forward. A forklift loaded with missiles and moving far too fast for his comfort went rushing by. As it passed, it revealed technicians and mechanics covering the interior of the hanger, moving as fast as they possibly could to get everything ready. An oily batch of them in one corner was giving every Phoenix the fastest tuneups they had ever performed. They hadn't expected to need to start doing this for another week. As soon as they were done, the next crew began to quickly oil them and fuel them, before shipping them off to get armed. One final group was working especially hard to try and find places to store these fighters. They were supposed to be able to take off from the fleet this time so they'd have enough fuel to fight further inland.
The rest were running around weapons, fuel, and supplies as fast as they could. Mack wished they would slow down a bit with this part. All they needed was some guy to accidentally tap the head of a missile wrong and this whole hanger would go up in flames from the chain reaction. But there was little time to be careful. There was only about eleven hours left at this point.
Mack moved through the hanger quickly, dodging people coming by with tools and fighters on special lifts. He made his way toward the other end of the building. There, sitting in dock, were the two airships they had in their fleet: the Highwind B and the Sierra A. The latter of the two ships had been completed only three days ago, and had only two days of field testing under its belt. The bugs were only partially ironed out, and parts of it were still incomplete. Now they could only try to remove the bugs as quickly as possible without having a real launch, and try to slap together the rest of it as quickly as they could.
However, who Mack was really looking for as he searched the ships wasn't there. He expected Cid to be running all over, trying to make the ariships better than flight ready in the shortest time possible. Well…considering what he was going through, perhaps only walking all over the ships. Yet he didn't see him anywhere. He continued to approach both aircraft, and looked up and over them as he worked his way around them. But he saw nothing. All of the main techies were out, but no sign of Cid. He didn't look everywhere, but he knew he didn't have to. All he had to do was listen for the yelling and cursing, or look for the telltale cigarette smoke. He saw neither.
The commander frowned. Why wasn't he here? He should have been jumping around more than any of them. He would have been kicking them up into higher gear before they would have even thought of carrying out the order. He continued to look around for a moment or so longer, still trying to find him. At last, however, his eyes fell on the door to his office. It was closed.
Mack paused for a moment, but then began to approach it. He soon reached the doorway and halted. He turned and looked around, making sure no one was watching. Once that was clear, he turned back to the door and gave a knock. If there was any answer from within, it was impossible to hear over the din of the people outside. He waited a few seconds just in case Cid was trying to hide anything, but then opened the door and stepped inside.
The commander gave a quick glance around the room. Everything still seemed messy and technical as always. The desk was empty and the couch was blank. He could see Cid's breathing apparatus nearby on it. However, what really distracted him was a hoarse cough he suddenly heard spill out. When he heard it, his eyes wheeled around to the source. An unpleasant surprise awaited him.
Cid was collapsed face down on the ground of his office, hacking his lungs out.
Mack gaped for a moment, but then quickly went into action. Knowing that he would be furious if he knew anyone saw him like this, the commander quickly turned and pushed the door shut behind him. After that, he spun back around and rushed up to the fallen man. He went down to his side and quickly put his arms underneath him to try and help him up. He continued to cough as he did so, and he was stubborn at first. But he soon got his arms underneath him and began to push up. He let out one last mighty cough as he did so. Mack was looking at his head at the time.
He stiffened again at what he saw. A wad of blood came out…and joined a small puddle already on the floor.
"Damn it all…" He croaked as Mack yanked him up.
"Cid, what happened?" Mack immediately asked as he got him into a sitting position.
The pilot gasped a bit longer before answering as he leaned back a bit against the couch. He looked like he was totally out of breath. He eventually was able to grimace angrily.
"I heard that damn message…tried to get up…tried to start callin' and yellin' at people to come in…start gettin' things done…" He gasped again after this, as if saying that had left him totally winded. He reached up and wiped the corner of his mouth, which had blood on the edge of it. "Took me ten minutes to get to my feet… I made three calls before I had to rest… Then I tried runnin' out to the hanger…" He breathed again deep and fast. "I blacked out…wasn't gettin' enough air to my brain…and my lungs got pissed at how much I was breathin'…"
Cid stopped here and coughed again. Mack winced as he saw another few drops of blood come out with it. The commander looked the man over here…and only now began to see just how weak-looking he was. He had diminished quite a bit from the gruff, impregnable man he had seen earlier. Now he was barely able to move. He winced and writhed so much that it looked like he was in constant pain, and he breathed so hard and deep it seemed like he was decades older. Before, what he had seen with Cid had been easy to deal with. But now…the young man realized just how far gone he was. It was getting beyond serious. It was getting into its final stages.
"…I'm a mess, commander." Cid finally managed to exhale. "I'm a genuine, bona fide piece of sh't…"
The younger pilot silently looked back at him with anxiety painting his expression.
"You need to check yourself in, Cid." Mack warned. "You can't keep on like this."
"I told you already, you idiot…" He grouched in reply. "It's too late for that. I'm dead any way you look at it."
"Then you need to call your wife. You-"
"Who the hell do you think I called first?" Cid hacked back, cutting Mack off. "Now she's tryin' to prep the damn Horizon to come over here… But I'll be gone before she gets here."
Mack's eyes widened a bit. "What are you talking about? You can't go on this operation like this."
"Like hell I can't. And like hell I won't. This is the last damn operation of the war. I ain't gonna spend it lying in some hospital bed waitin' for my last breath. If I'm gonna give out, it's gonna be flyin' into the throat of the New Shinra Navy."
Mack continued to look anxious. "Cid…"
The pilot turned and looked to Mack here, cutting him off. His look wasn't gruff or angry though. It had changed. To Mack…it looked almost imploring. Maybe even pleading with him. A fire was in his eyes that begged not to be put out.
"Mack…" He said, his voice quieter and addressing Mack by his own name for once. "The air has been my life since before you could walk. I loved the feeling I got from it, and I still do. I love feeling the wind beneath the sails and riding on the clouds. It's the kind of freedom I've never been able to get on the ground. I feel almost like a new man up there. I feel alive. And I know that Shera knows that too, but I don't have time to explain it to her. She'll understand some day.
"If it's my time to die…then the last thing I want to feel is my body already soaring in the air before I even leave it. I'm asking you…if you respect me…if you think of me as a friend…you'll help me do this."
Mack stared back silently. Never before had Cid addressed him like this. Never before had he seemed so vulnerable and so in need of help. This was a side that few had ever seen of the pilot. It wasn't his proudest moment, but he knew it was what he had to do. And Mack did have great respect for this man. He owed him for helping to get him in the air in the first place and introducing him to the joys of flight as well. With that in mind…knowing this was his last request…Mack couldn't say no.
The young man sighed.
"Alright…but even if you can get on board that ship, you could give out at any time." He warned. "What if we're in the middle of battle and the strain gets too much?"
Cid smiled a bit now, realizing that Mack was going to let him do it. He was a bit more casual as he leaned back. "That's where my second big favor I've gotta ask of you comes in. I need you to not lead the fighter's assault on the Northern Continent. I need you to copilot the Sierra A."
Now Mack truly became surprised.
"Captain, I can't do that!"
"You mean to tell me those fighters of yours don't have enough sense to go into a fight without you?" Cid grumbled in response. "Or that you can't lead them from radio contact alone?"
"I'm leading the charge!"
"Well, that'll change. The Sierra A will lead the charge instead. Besides, you ain't the one piloting the Leviathan, and you ain't flying the Palidor either. Those are the big ones."
Mack hesitated a moment, opening and shutting his mouth silently for a few seconds.
"Well…don't you have any other pilots?"
Cid frowned and waved at him. "I've got pilots that fly that thing with the mindset of flying an airship. I fly the Sierra with the mindset of flying a smaller plane…the Tiny Bronco. And you've learned to fly on a Phoenix. I want that kind of mind to push her to the limits. It's the only way she'll make it through without being shot to hell."
"I've never even taken off in an airship!"
"You did in those simulations." Cid answered. "From what I hear, you were pretty damn good. And I built those damn simulations, so I should be the judge of how good you are based on how you do. You're my man, commander. Will you do it or not?"
Mack opened his mouth again, but then shut it. He exhaled and looked anxious. In his mind, he never had to make such a hard choice before. He was the only Ace pilot other than Cid in the entire army. He really didn't think it was such a good idea to unite them both on one craft when they could do double damage apart. And Cid had been refusing to let him even take off in the Sierra A since he finished training. However…as he looked back now, he saw that Cid had that imploring look in his eyes again. It was clear that he really wanted him to do this. Where before, he might have not wanted him to fly the airship due to a fear of imperfection…now he was dead serious. It became clear to him that he was the only one Cid trusted with his airship.
With that in mind, Mack frowned a bit.
"…Alright, I'll do it."
69 Hours Until The Firing Of The Gauntlet Of Zeus
"Why didn't you wake me up and tell me this earlier?"
"…Because every time I did, you say the same thing you always say when I try and wake you up. 'I'm sleeping in. Go away.'"
Reno paused for a moment in the middle of running a comb through his air, thinking back to see if he remembered, vaguely in his dreams, if Elena had been trying to wake him up. He did recall something to that effect, and let out a bit of a laugh.
"Oh yeah…that's right. Nevermind."
Elena frowned and crossed her arms just the same. Rude, silent and stoic as always, stayed waiting near the doorway for when they were going to move out. However, it was a certain thing that they'd be going out today. Now they had some big business that concerned them. Besides…if that cannon really was going to fire on Midgar, they sure as hell weren't going to be here when it happened.
It had been an uneventful three months for the Turks, ever since being thrashed by Aleron. The first month was mostly just recovery. Elena and Rude were back on their feet soon enough, but Reno was comatose for four weeks. When he finally did crack his eyes open moaning something about a huge hangover, he had atrifuted and needed time to build his muscles back up. Because of that, the three Turks had been pretty much confined to the Planet Protector Army.
General Ragnar had exploited their situation well. In order to keep receiving care, they essentially had to play by his rules. They couldn't very well walk away bleeding and hurt, and so they soon found themselves confined to certain areas of the military district, just like real operatives or soldiers for the PPA would be, and being forced to follow their procedures. Until now, the Turks had somewhat been playing both sides, but now they found themselves, especially after their situation, shoved totally onto the end that had Cloud and his gang.
It wasn't too bad, actually. It was boring due to a lack of work, but they had use of the exercise facilities and could walk around Midgar and Edge fairly freely. Most people luckily didn't know who they were in the city proper, and aside from a few periodic soldiers they noticed with binoculars or dressed inconspicuously eyeing them among crowds of people, they were able to interact with the local stores and restaraunts fairly easily. They hadn't really had a need to go far though, what with Reno putting himself back together again. It gave them a lot of time to think about what had happened that one night three months ago…and a lot of time to notice that the sky had stayed dark and bleak since that time. To them…there was little doubt that Aleron was somehow doing it. She wasn't just making everything around her dark and dead. She was doing it to the whole sky now… It reminded them a lot of Meteor…
At the moment, they were in a designated large apartment for the three of them. It originally had space for four…as it had obviously been set aside in advance for them…but that wasn't a concern now. It was fine. The Turks had stayed in junkier places than it back when Midgar was still under Shinra. It wasn't the classiest or newest place in the world. The pipes were exposed in some places. It was painted white except for peeling in a few spots. But it wasn't rat infested and it was warm enough.
"Leaving us behind to risk annihilation if they screw up, I see…" Reno muttered to himself, before speaking out loud again as he kept working while facing a mirror on the wall. "So they're going to go forward with whatever ship they can on this invasion? I didn't think the general was that stupid…"
"Might work." Rude threw out.
"The NSN isn't exactly doing that great itself." Elena reminded him. "If all they need are guns, then it might be possible."
"Well Chauncie and Margo's Summer Yacht isn't going to hold up against the Defense Grid." Reno chided as he finished. He turned away from the mirror next and went for his suitcoat hanging on a chair. "And the Juggernaut could probably take a third of their fleet before it overheated, which for all I know is the only way to slow the thing down. They have any plans to deal with those? Their last invasion didn't do so hot against them."
In response, Rude went to his side. Elena gestured back to him. "We've got something that might show what they're planning. Rude's picked up a higher level transmission on his modified radio. They're bringing the one destroyer around to an isolated pier. This is separate from the transport docks. Based on how secretive they're being, they might be planning something."
Reno perked up a bit at this as he adjusted his coat collar before giving a smile to his larger partner. Rude had come through for them again. While they might have been restricted from sensitive areas in the military sector, it was child's play for Reno to pilfer a radio off of some passing guard. After that, Rude was able to modify it to look in on unlisted channels only using conventional parts. This allowed them to keep an eye on whatever secrets the PPA was planning, even if they hadn't much use for it at the time.
A moment later, and Rude pulled up the radio in question from his side pocket. It did look a bit "bigger" than traditional radios, as a bunch of exposed machinery and parts were bulging off the side of it. Reno turned his full attention to this.
"Channel 34 had it." Rude mentioned as he switched the radio on again and turned to the appropriate designation. There were a few moments of loud static…which was louder than normal since Rude had boosted the speaker capability so that everyone could listen to it at once. However, he soon had it down, and aimed it out at the people in the room. There was silence for a few seconds afterward. This wasn't due to the equipment malfunctioning, but rather due to no new information being broadcast. That was why it had been turned off in the first place. However, the three Turks waited a bit longer to see for sure.
And sure enough, after a short while, someone spoke up.
"This is Port Authority 56, requesting clearance for several large pieces of cargo out of Warehouse 198."
There was a pause on the other end. The Turks waited for a response patiently, however. After a while…a person sighed on the other end, and tiredly, and seemingly ruefully, spoke back.
"…This is General Ragnar Vice, Confirmation Code Alpha Alpha Epsilon Charlie Bravo Tango Tango Alpha Indigo. You are to follow and comply with all directions presented by Lieutenant Selena Maritza."
"…Yes sir."
The Turks' eyes appeared to bulge from their sockets as they gaped at the radio.
"Did…I just hear…what I thought I heard?" Elena remarked incredulously.
"I don't believe it…" Reno murmured out loud as he continued to stare.
The three Turks stared silently at the radio for a few seconds, realizing the name they had just picked up...a name they had all thought to have long since been dead. No one moved. Elena finally broke the silence with a shrug.
"You know…maybe it was just a person with the same name…"
Rude and Reno, however, weren't going for that. Rude gave a snort.
"She faked it. She got off the boat before they blew it up."
Again, there was silence between the three. They continued to stare at the radio as if it would suddenly spout out a heavenly prophecy. None of them moved. However, the amazement on Reno and Rude's faces generally began to die. Instead…Reno's eyes began to narrow as his fists began to clench.
"…Well why would she be here?" Elena finally ventured.
"I don't know and I don't care." Reno snapped back as he turned away from the radio and reached into his suitcoat pocket. A moment later, and he yanked out his nightstick. He quickly looked it over, making sure it was fully charged, and then dipped it back in. After that, he spun around and began to go for the door. "Let's go." He called behind him.
Rude looked up, but then began to put his radio back in his pocket as he followed after him. Elena, however, hung back, looking confused.
"I…I don't understand…"
"I'm going to give that bitch a piece of my mind and about 50,000 volts up her ass." Reno snorted as he reached the door and flung it open.
Elena blinked, but then began to hurry after the two of them as Reno began to pass through the door with Rude at his heels. "Wait! What's the big deal?"
"She knew about what was happening to Krystea from the start of all this." Reno answered. "She knew, but she let it happen because she wanted to see what would come up. She fed us crap for months as she kept turning into this thing. Maybe it could have been stopped earlier…but because of her it kept going until she turned into a monster. She better have some damn good convincing story by the time I reach her, or she's going to wish she had burned to death on that destroyer."
When Elena heard this…she remembered. The New Shinra had almost been forgotten in regards to Krystea and Aleron. After all, it was Hoeng who had done it, and what she had become now dominated their thoughts. But it was the New Shinra who stood by and covered it up until it had fully taken place. And it was Colonel Maritza who knew everything about what was happening and pretended that it was alright. When she thought of this, Elena began to feel her own anger growing as well. If that wasn't enough, she had changed sides. She could have killed them with whatever weapon she had and she wouldn't have cared. Reno was right...she had a lot to answer for.
With that, Elena was now with the others. She quickly fell in behind Rude and exited right after them. They didn't bother shutting the door behind them. Their sole focus was on finding where that warehouse was and getting there before Maritza moved.
67 Hours, 20 Minutes Until The Firing Of The Gauntlet Of Zeus
"I really appreciate you accommodating them, Reeve. We all do."
The man merely waved his hand. "It's nothing. I can understand given the situation. Besides, Cloud already thanked me before he charged out of here after he heard the announcement."
Aerith had made it to Isuzu Industries at last, along with Marlene and Denzel. Tifa had helped out as long as she could in getting them ready to move, but in the end, being a Commander herself, she needed to get her own division on board its transports. She had embraced both children and given them her goodbyes, encouraging them by saying the war would be over soon and that Cloud and her were going to get married after this was finished. Aerith could tell she was going to mention that Marlene would finally move back in with Barret…but she held her tongue. It wasn't just because it was a sad facet for her personally. Denzel didn't know about her moving out yet…and losing a second friend… Needless to say, Aerith had said nothing about it. But since she wasn't truly a full member of the PPA, she was free to help them finish packing and lead them over.
Now they were standing in the front entrance, where Reeve had come out to meet them. He'd be relieving Aerith now and leading the children up to where they'd be staying. However, Aerith noticed a rather large amount of discomfort among them. The kids had slowly gone about packing their things that morning, and they seemed to be extremely unhappy with the sudden departure. Yet there was really nothing for it. She just hoped their mood improved soon.
"Too bad Cait Sith isn't here." Aerith said ruefully. "I know he's a good entertainer."
Reeve looked a bit regretful himself. "Yes…but I thought he'd do better this time on the front line. He does have a lot of improvements and a battle instinct. To tell the truth…I think he wanted to go into battle himself. But I'm not sure I was that good with the artificial intelligence." After saying this, the man looked down to the two children. He tried to make a friendly smile. "But I'm sure we'll have plenty of fun none the less. And we can get ready to throw a great victory celebration when everyone comes back, can't we?"
Denzel was pretty unresponsive. Marlene herself continued to look downcast a bit longer before she gave a reluctant nod. Reeve's smile faded into an uneasy look. This wasn't starting off very well, Aerith noticed. The kids never liked it when the adults went off to battle. However, this was different. Now they'd actually be going across the ocean. Before they were always still in Midgar. They hadn't dealt with something like this before. Last time they got to go north with the rest of them. But not this time.
Aerith wasn't happy about this, but there wasn't much choice. And she couldn't afford to stay put much longer herself. She had a lot to get ready for. When she went north…she had something far greater in store for her than the New Shinra Army. She needed to get with Cloud and Ragnar. And so, she turned around and looked down to the kids herself. After that, she dropped down onto one knee in front of them, so that her head was more at their level. She tried to give them an encouraging smile.
"We'll be back soon." She assured them. "Until then, just try to have fun and not worry."
Both Denzel and Marlene were still uncomfortable looking.
"Do we have to stay?" Marlene asked. "We can stay on the boats. We won't go running off or anything…"
Aerith let out a regretful sigh and slowly shook her head. "I'm sorry, Marlene. That's not possible. The boats won't be safe. Nothing will be safe up there."
"That's why we want to go." Denzel protested. "Cloud and Tifa are always going away where they could get hurt or die. They'll be going after…" The boy hesitated here, but then spat out with a bit more venom. "…him…again. I'm afraid of what will happen to them. I want to help."
The Cetra focused on Denzel, and reached out a hand to his cheek, running it along it reassuringly. "I know, Denzel…and that's very brave of you. But Cloud and Tifa are worried about you too. And so am I. We won't be able to fight at our best if we're worried about you. But if we know you're safe, then we'll fight harder to make sure you stay safe. And there's going to be a lot of things when the fighting starts that we don't want you to have to see too. Do you understand?"
Denzel looked regretful and frowned. He bowed his head slightly and continued to look downcast. However, he offered no more dispute. Aerith took that as acquiescence. She wished she could have said more, but she didn't have anything else that would comfort him. And so, she turned her eyes to Marlene next instead. This one was still looking at her anxiously.
"Can't you at least stay behind with us?" She asked. "Last time you went away…"
Aerith really wished she could have reassured Marlene when she said this. However, she couldn't. She herself was aware of the fact that she might taste death again on this trip. And so…she did the only thing she could…the thing she always did. She smiled pleasantly, looking like death and pain were the farthest things on her mind. She reached out to Marlene next.
"Hey…don't worry." She said softly. "Everything will be alright. But I have to go, Marlene. I have to go if I want to keep my promise to you."
Aerith didn't mention exactly what she had promised. She was afraid that if Denzel knew, he'd want to come all the more eagerly. She also wasn't exactly sure how she was going to do it. If he did come and stayed safe, and yet she failed, then he'd be just as depressed and grim as ever. However, Marlene understood. She had remembered well what Aerith had said months ago. And when she heard this, she relaxed somewhat. A smile managed to form on her face.
"…Alright."
Aerith smiled wider. Keeping one hand on either child, she leaned forward and gave each of them a kiss on the forehead. Marlene hugged her back when she did. Denzel hesitated a moment, but then he did so as well. Once she had done this, she gave them both a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder, and then began to rise. Soon she was on her feet, and looking back down at them both.
"As soon as we land, I'll make sure to call you. And I'll remind Tifa and Cloud to call too, though I know they won't need me to. Both of you be good."
With that, Aerith gave them both one last look, and then turned and began to make for the front doorway. The two children were left with their backpacks stuffed with their things and looking after her regretfully. Their sadness immediately became apparent. Even if there wasn't so much danger involved, they would be fearful simply from losing one of the most familiar adult figures in their lives, and now being separated from them for an indefinite time. Marlene winced a bit and nearly seemed to cry, but she held it back. Denzel himself stayed grim, but showed nothing else. Both of them simply stood there looking.
Reeve looked out himself, realizing how sad the two children were. This would have been easier years ago. Marlene had never even fully realized she had been kidnapped back during the crisis with Sephiroth and Meteor. But now they were far more attached to the people in their life. He was sorry about this too, but there was nothing for it. And so…he stepped forward in between them. On doing so, both turned and looked up to him. He smiled back at them both, turning his head between the two.
"Alright…let's get upstairs and I'll show you to your rooms. We can't hang around down here. They're moving all the ammunition crates out to the shore."
To be continued...