Hey guys, I hope you are all well ^^ And ready for the next installment, which I had fun with :)
Thank you to everyone who has read this fic and supported me so far, I don't think I could keep going without you ^^
Disclaimer: I do not own any original final fantasy VII characters, places or story lines. They are property of Square Enix and this is a work of fandom, not for profit. all I own is Meia and my own OC's.
Chapter 28
It was now November, the calendar having eased into the first week several days ago. This winter was shaping up to be the harshest yet; severe weather warnings had been issued for Midgar, warning her citizens to be wary of ice and high winds on the highways. Down in the slums, however, things were slightly more favorable. Who would have though the giant metal plates above them actually eased the living conditions? Albeit only very slightly…
Meia picked her way carefully through a pile of rubbish and rubble, trying to ignore the looks of contempt being thrown her way by the less fortunate inhabitants of the city. She sighed, it couldn't be helped. They probably suspected her of stealing some of their rightfully owned rubbish, although what she'd possibly do with it was beyond her…
"Sir! I think I found something…oof" A small crash of metal punctuated her companions sentence and she hopped across a minuscule crevasse of junk to get to him. She rolled her eyes and helped the green third class up by his elbow,
"Try and be more careful, Renji. I don't want to have to admit you to the hospital when we get back"
Renji adjusted his helmet and nodded, "Sorry Sir, I'll watch my footing"
"Good idea. Now, what did you find?"
Her tall companion looked around a bit before locating his area of interest with a triumphant 'ah ha!' and crouched down to lift a few scraps of metal off the heap they were on. Meia crouched as well and smiled. Finally, they had found what Lazard had sent them down here for three days ago. Carefully they cleared their quarry free of the scrap pile it was embedded in. Renji stopped to catch his breath and stretch his back a little,
"Why are we doing this, sir? Isn't this a job for infantry or the weapons dept.?"
Meia sighed and continued clearing, "Logically, yes. But recently…we'll just say Shinra hasn't been too kind to the people of the slums…"
"What did they do?"
"Who knows? But were down here for two reasons; One, we are strong enough to clear this thing out of here without any specialist gear…"
"…which might get stolen…"
"Yes, that and we can take care of ourselves in case…well, in case anyone tries to kick us out" Meia concluded with a grunt, in the process of lifting a particularly large plate of metal off of what was now in plain sight; one of the weapon departments toys. Stolen while the guard assigned to it was being careless, no doubt. She stood up and wiped the grime and grease off her hands unceremoniously on her pants.
"We don't have to lift it back…do we?" Renji asked nervously. Meia chuckled and fished her phone out her pocket…
Shin-ra building, 51st floor – Director Lazards office
"Lazard…Ah, good afternoon Meia, one moment;…that's better, you have good news I hope…?"
Yes Sir. We have finally located the stolen weapon…
"Thank goodness. Is it in one piece?"
We believe so, we'll know more once we dig it out properly, shouldn't take us long
"Very good. I'll send the weapons department down there to pick it up"
Best sent an escort Sir, with at least one SOLDIER. Things are getting twitchy down here…
"Noted. Hang tight and good job"
Thank you Sir *click*
Lazard leaned forward and pushed the 'speaker' button on his phone to hang up, before lacing his fingers together and facing his monitor once more,
"I thought you might appreciate hearing her voice again" He said with a small grin. The silver framed face on the monitor pursed his lips in an effort to contain his own smile, before clearing his throat,
"As I was saying…things are going smoothly here, Sir. Minimal Shinra casualties and no fatalities so far. The enemy haven't been so lucky…" Sephiroth reported, no hint of remorse on his face at his last statement. Lazard nodded,
"And the uprising?"
"Quelled, Sir. We are in the process of clearing up" He paused, "Though…"
"Hmmm?"
"The way the Wutai behaved…masses upon masses throwing themselves at us…almost as if they were merely doing it to keep us busy"
"What do you think?"
"I think there might be something else happening elsewhere that we're not meant to know about…"
"And this small scuffle is meant to keep SOLDIER…you…out of the way…" Lazard pressed his mouth to his fingers, deep in thought.
"Exactly, Sir"
Neither man spoke for a while, Lazard deep in thought, Sephiroth riffling through reports just out of view of the camera. Eventually Lazard sat up and straightened his suit out,
"Well, tie up everything there and hurry home"
"Yes Sir" Sephiroth responded sharply and cut the connection. Lazard sighed and went back to his musings.
Sephiroth, now free from prying eyes, carried on sorting his reports with a gentle smile clearly on his lips. Hearing Meia's voice was just what he needed right now, being assigned anywhere without her was beginning to get tough. He began noticing more and more the absence of the calm she brought him. He realised this was how he used to feel all the time. Restless, disturbed, his mind thinking about hundreds of things at once in an effort to block everything else out. Her absence was starting to leave gaping holes in his existence and he wondered what it would have been like if she hadn't come to him. If they'd never met…
He held a hand to his head and let out a long sigh; he'd been fighting all day and by all rights, even though he was far stronger than normal SOLDIER's, he should be exhausted. But he wasn't, not physically anyway. Ever since they had returned home a month ago, Sephiroth found activities that usually would fatigue him no longer had the same impact. He could do things, see things, and hear things…much better than before. He didn't feel it was possible, but somehow he'd become stronger.
Sephiroth piled his now sorted reports neatly, ready to be packed away. As he sat down on a pile of metal supply crates, he retrieved his phone from his pocket and began poking away at it with his thumb. He wasn't calling Meia; they had decided never to contact each other via phone unless it was for official business, as all calls could be traced. He would not be surprised if the science department resorted to sorting through billing history in their searches. Finally he found what he was looking for and he allowed himself a moment to relax, leaning back against the crates and exhaling slowly. Only a few more days…and I can get some sleep…He thought to himself, smiling down at the picture taken in front of the waterfall five months ago…
Back in Midgar the following morning, Meia was called to a meeting by Lazard. She yawned as the lift pinged to a halt at the 49th floor and the doors slid open. She and Renji had been in the slums for the best part of the night trying to retrieve the weapon they had found. By the time the heavies arrived to cart it away, they were dealing with a minor riot. No one was hurt, thankfully, but things were quite tense…
"Sir! Good morning"
She blinked several times before her fogged mind comprehended who had greeted her, as well as trying to recall the short journey from the lifts to the meeting room. She sat down and raked a hand through her ever rebellious locks,
"Morning, Renji. You been called too?" She managed to get out through a yawn,
"Yes Sir, two in a row. I must be doing something right" The third chirped cheerfully. Good for him, Meia thought. A few minutes went by before they were joined by Zack, happily bounding in through the glass door and seating himself next to her,
"Morning, Mei!"
"Morning…" Why was everyone so energetic at this Gaia forsaken hour?
Zack hunched forward and engaged Renji in conversation, which Meia listened too. Maybe it would wake her up. After another several minutes listening to typical male banter, they all stood to attention as Lazard arrived, flanked by the large frame of Callo, currently the only First class on base in Midgar. Lazard smiled and motioned for them all to be seated before he addressed them,
"Good morning Gentlemen, Meia, I have a small mission for all of you" He announced, calling up a map as well as a few reports and schematics on the large screen at the end of the conference table. They all turned to observe as Lazard continued,
"This is a standard mission, so we're not anticipating any problems" He enlarged several pictures of what appeared to be a small island surrounded by the sea before carrying on, "This is an uncharted island found by a survey not too long ago. Our scientists and engineers are interested in it due to reports of high lifestream concentration in the area. Judging by the amount of vegetation, the island itself is the likely hotspot" He finished, pushing his glasses up his nose.
"So what's our job, Sir?" Zack piped up. He just couldn't help himself…Lazard contained a smirk before cycling through a few more photo's,
"Your job is to check the area for any potentially harmful wildlife and exterminate them before the scientists and engineers go there to start work, if it's a viable site"
Meia let out a sigh. Same old Shinra…
"Now, there is a slight problem in that the island itself is a natural fortress. High cliffs and rocky reefs on all sides prevent access by ship and the winter weather won't allow us to fly in. The only access is via submarine, through an underwater crack in the cliff face…here" He pointed to a photo with a laser pen, "Callo will be leading you, you will be flown to Junon while the weather here is still borderline acceptable where you will be taken to the site via sub. Everything you need to know is in your mission briefs and as usual, give nothing but your best, questions?"
Callo cleared his throat, "Sir, with all due respect I'm perfectly well now. Why not send another second to lead so I can join my colleagues in Wutai?"
Lazard fixed the grizzly man with his blue eyes, "I appreciate your concerns, Callo, but you have been out of action for a while. This is a perfect mission to ease you back into the fray, as it were…and might I remind you, the occupants of this room are also your colleagues" He finished, still watching Callo with his steady gaze. The big man eventually sighed and stood, asking them all to be ready to go as soon as possible, before leaving. Meia frowned and found herself wondering why he had been out of action for a while. Why was she getting a bad feeling all of a sudden…? Perhaps she was simply hungry and she left the briefing room, heading for the food court.
The flight to Junon wasn't dull, to say the least. Lazard hadn't been joking when he said the weather was borderline acceptable. Zack didn't mind the turbulence at all; in fact he was quite enjoying himself. Meia had suffered, and actually piloted, through worse so she just found it slightly irksome as she attempted to read her mission brief again. Renji on the other hand was looking positively green around the gills and Callo hadn't said a word since he left the briefing room in the morning.
Meia had finished her reading and stowed her personal pad away in her bag, before stretching her cramped limbs. She risked a glance at their commander, who was firmly staring out of the choppers window. She got the impression he really didn't want to be leading them on this mission, which would let morale down badly. Maybe that's why Zack was assigned to this one as well, to balance it out. But something else was nagging her, Callo wasn't just being distant, he was downright anti-social. Even Sephiroth wasn't this quiet when he led missions. On good days he was even quite chatty, for him anyway. Most SOLDIER's had to admit that even though Sephiroth wasn't exactly the commanding officer you'd ask out for a drink later on, you certainly learned a lot on missions with him. But Callo was doing his best to pretend he wasn't leading anyone and he was alone on this one. She hoped he wouldn't affect the mood too much…
"Oh no…you have got to be joking me" Meia muttered under her breath as she and her fellow SOLDIER's approached the Shinra sub in the underwater dock at Junon, having headed straight there from the helipad. The two men standing waiting for them were the last people she wanted to see…
"Hey there big guy, this all that's comin'?" A horridly familiar, drawling voice piped up suddenly. Meia cringed and stepped into line behind Zack, finding herself wishing for the first time in a long time that she still used a helmet…
"Yes, Reno…"
"Ooooooh, I see, I see. Well! Me an' my buddy Rude here will be your tour guides, so you better all behave, y'know?"
"They are my responsibility, Reno, don't push your luck"
The skinny red head held his hands up in defence to Callo as he marched past him to the docked sub. The rest of the SOLDIER's began to follow after until, unable to hide anymore, Meia was spotted…
"Oh ho hoo! What have we here?" Reno leered, bending down and leaning towards her. She sighed and looked up at him with a roll of her eyes,
"Hello Reno…how lovely to see you" She said flatly. He scoffed in her face and stood to his full height again,
"Hey! You better watch it now, Y'know?…we're your superiors this time, right Rude?"
"Hmm" The dark skinned man said sharply. Meia cocked an eyebrow,
"You made it to full agent? They must be desperate…"
"Hey! Mind your pretty tongue, lady, or we'll do you for insubordination!"
"My apologies, sir…" Meia stated sharply before heading into the sub after her companions. This would be a long trip…
The island itself was quite a way west from Junon, almost right in the middle of the body of water that separated the two continents. As well as the flying conditions being treacherous, apparently some kind of natural phenomena prevented instruments from working properly as well. It would be several more hours before the sub was due to arrive at their destination. The bulky metal casing of the sub was also far too large to enter the underwater cavern, so they would be swimming in. Meia leant on the railings overlooking the metal beast's engines, casually chatting with Zack and Renji. Callo was nowhere to be found.
Apparently, so Zack had heard, the big man experienced some kind of breakdown on a mission while she and Sephiroth were absent for five weeks. Meia frowned and scuffed the deck with her boot. Mental instability wasn't good for SOLDIER's. In fact, she was surprised Lazard had let him lead the mission. Still, it was clear from the man's words in the briefing room that he would rather be in Wutai fighting alongside the other First classes. Maybe Lazard knew what he was doing by sending him here. But Meia couldn't help but feel uneasy, and what was more it was usually the un-ease she felt sometimes when she was with Sephiroth…
"So, what do you think, Sir?" The sentence flitted in on the edges of her attention and she blinked. Apparently, Zack was trying to speak to her…
"Sorry, what? And call me Meia you two, please…" She said, straightening and turning around to face them. Zack scratched his head,
"Do you think this mission will be easy or what?" He repeated. Meia leant against the railing and sighed through her nose,
"Relatively, yes. But that's no reason to treat it as a walk in the park, either. Plus we have the whole island to comb…"
"The whole island?" Renji piped up suddenly, "But we're going in via the ocean…we don't have any supplies with us"
Meia smiled and fixed him with her frosty eyes, "Did you read the mission report, Renji?"
The young rookie started mumbling something about skimming over it while they were in the chopper from Midgar. Zack laughed and shook him by the shoulder. Meia carried on,
"When the island was discovered late summer, a few supply crates were airdropped on the northeast area. But, due to several delays and worsening weather, plus the reports of potentially hostile locals, the teams of engineers and scientists never made it on the island to make use of said supplies. We, however, will be"
A look of dawning came over Renji's face and he promised he would take greater care next time he had a report to read.
Just over an hour later, Callo ordered the trio to suit up and prepare for insertion. Meia was actually astonished to find a second class suit waiting for her that was actually made to fit a woman and was currently squeezing into it. The suits themselves were designed to be used out of water also, so there would be no need to carry a change of uniform. As the water was fairly shallow, plus the estimated swim time being quite small, full tanks were deemed unnecessary. They were to wear masks with small oxygen canisters attached to them instead. The only other gear they were carrying with them was their weapons and glow sticks, secured by various harnesses and straps. Meia of course didn't neglect her tanto. Callo went over the mission brief once more with them before they fitted their oxygen masks and headed out.
As they swam the short distance to the islands submerged edge, Meia made sure she made the most of the experience. She loved to swim and it had been a while since she got to go diving, the last favourable time being Sephiroth's birthday. She ignored the planet diving experience…She glanced down as she swam, and saw tiny cracks in the sea bed through which glowing lifestream could be seen. It was a beautiful sight; fish swam in and out of the wispy, smoke like traces of the glowing ichor as they mingled with the water and she smiled. It was too bad this was only a short dive. She glanced behind her but the sub had already turned tail to leave, its ghostly silhouette now barely discernable through the water. Typical Reno and Rude; they were probably dreaming about being passed out in a bar somewhere by now.
Eventually they left the open sea behind and began their encroachment into the cave. Meia couldn't help but notice in the gloom that shapes below her didn't seem quite right. Renji, who was in front of her, rounded and communicated that he'd seen something below them. She frowned as she looked; there were soft shapes in the gloom, when by all rights all they should be seeing was jagged rocks. She fished a glow tube from the straps about her thigh and cracked it, activating the luminescent chemicals inside. This caught the attention of the other two members and they stopped to swim back. Renji did the same and they both dropped their tubes, letting them float to the floor beneath them. What they illuminated caused Renji to gag on his air…
Body bags…poorly sealed body bags.
No one made a move, save for more tubes being cracked and thrown in various locations. The story was the same with the immediate area and eventually, Meia swam down to inspect them. The bodies were human, just about. Scavenging sea creatures flitted away as Meia inspected the bags, rotting flesh floating all around her. Although no where nearly as mutated, the scene reminded her of the reactor at Clydia and the grizzly contents contained within. She swam back to the group and indicated they should carry on and surface, doing just that not more than ten minutes later.
They pulled themselves out of the water onto the banks of the cave, illuminated faintly by daylight coming from a sloping path some way off. Renji pulled off his oxygen mask; he was clearly shaken by what he saw. Zack looked a little morose as he removed his, glancing at Meia with a grim expression as she removed her flippers,
"Sir…why is there bodies down there?" Renji asked Callo, his voice was trembling. The large SOLDIER stood up, not even bothering to look at the young man before replying,
"I know as much as you, SOLDIER, come on. We should be careful…"
Meia pursed her lips; charismatic this man wasn't. Though, as she cast her mind back to the gala…wasn't he much chirpier then? She was beginning to worry about her feelings of unease. The three SOLDIER's followed their commander out of the cave, being led by the daylight until they surfaced. The island was heavily forested and mercifully slightly warmer than the weather in Junon or Midgar. But there was another problem; the group couldn't help but notice the path they were walking had appeared to be cut by human hands…
"Sir, isn't this a bit strange? By all rights we should be the first people here but…well" Renji timidly volunteered. Callo ignored him. Meia frowned deeply; Renji was right, the bodies the path. There were signs everywhere that they indeed weren't the first people on the island. She placed a hand on her companions shoulder and gave him a reassuring nod. Something was wrong with their commander. And something was wrong with this island…
Meia checked her watch; it was mid-afternoon now and so far, the group had found nothing else that was suspicious. They were currently resting at Callo's order while he looked for higher ground. Zack and Renji approached Meia,
"Something is going on, isn't it?" Zack spoke to her in a hushed voice. She looked at him and then to Renji who was still looking unsettled,
"Yes, defiantly. The fact our commander isn't listening to us doesn't make matters any better" She whispered. A moment later, Callo came back and grunted for them to follow, but Meia by now was unsettled herself,
"Sir, do you really think that's a good idea? What we have seen so far suggests this isn't as routine as we first hoped, shouldn't we-"
"I don't remember asking your opinion, LeSait. Now, come with me" Callo snapped at her. Meia mumbled a low 'yes sir' before following behind, her other companions exchanging worried looks.
Their commander walked them until dusk without breaking or stopping to explain himself. When he finally did stop, Renji was exhausted, Zack was tiring and Meia was even more worried than she started. The anticipation and un-ease were growing inside her and unsettling her stomach and glanced nervously at Callo. He appeared to have a bad headache or something similar; he kept rubbing his head and glancing around anxiously, not unlike a man suffering from the onset of a panic attack. She approached him and decided to try again…
"Sir, with all due respect…you don't appear well…"She began quietly, so the other two couldn't hear, "And we should report back and standby for further orders. This isn't a standard sweep and clean anymore…" She finished, looking into his eyes, even though he was doing his best to avoid her gaze,
"You would like that, wouldn't you?"
"Excuse me sir?"
"You would like to make me look a fool, wouldn't you? I'm not your pet Sephiroth; I won't be swayed by you or anyone. We stay here and carry out our mission"
"I…I don't think that comment was appropriate, Sir, please…I'm worried about your health…" She stopped sharply as the big man stepped right up to her, standing toe to toe,
"My health… is perfectly fine LeSait, so I suggest you silence that wretched tongue of yours and follow my orders, understand?"
"Perfectly, Sir" Meia whispered, now slightly afraid of the man standing before her. He stepped away again and grunted a command at the group to follow him once more. While they marched behind, Meia tried to shake off the shock and unease, but it was no use. Something was defiantly wrong. With Callo that close, she could sense it, though…what she knew she was feeling didn't make any sense…But before Meia could settle down, they stopped suddenly at a silent hand signal issued by their leader. Quickly they dropped to their knees and carried on slowly. As they approached the edge of a cliff, previously unseen due to the foliage, they couldn't believe their eyes…
Below them a complex occupied a large hole gouged out of the island, not unlike a stone quarry. Soldier's and vehicles patrolled with dogs and rifles. It was clearly an enemy camp…But despite the presence of guards and soldiers, the base didn't appear to be that of a military one. They observed a large cavern that had been dug out of a cliff at the north end of the quarry and people dressed in bio suits and white coats could be seen flitting in and out of it…
"It looks like a scientific complex, Sir" Zack whispered, his statement actually directed at Meia but Callo hissed him quiet and in the next instance, began to act quite strange. Meia and her two companions backed off slightly as he began to talk to himself, appearing to have some kind of argument though none of them could quite make out what he was talking about. And what was worse, Meia sighted an enemy patrol as it appeared to set out on a path that would take them right to the group of SOLDIER's crouched on the cliff…
"Sir? Are you…?" Zack asked timidly, to which Callo only responded with several slaps to his own head…
"What's wrong with him, Meia?" Renji asked, clearly alarmed. She didn't blame him; the sight of your rather heavy set commander appearing to slowly be losing his marbles in front of them was indeed a disturbing sight. Meia looked down the path, the patrol would be on their position soon and she attempted to get through to Callo again…
"Shut up, woman…don't you see what's happening here…?" He answered her. Except, the voice wasn't quite his…it had taken on a metallic edge…
Meia's eyes widened in panic as she realised the cause of her increasing unease and she watched as Callo stood to his full height, leering down at her. Meia simply stared while the other two hissed at him to crouch again, but it was too late; a cry of alarm had gone up in the camp, punctuated with the distinctive cry of 'SOLDIER!'
"Meia, what do we do?" Zack said quickly, peering between two rocks. Enemy patrols were being sent up the cliff side, dogs and all, and some of the Wutai soldiers were carrying strange weapons that looked like small rifles, but not designed to fire any round she had ever seen…
"Meia?" Renji grabbed her by the arm and shook her, causing her to come round from her momentary seizure,
"Run, get away from here, head east across the island. Go, now!"
"But the commander…"
"I'll deal with him, just go!" She commanded, rounding on the young third with a stern glare. The two men hesitated before obeying her, tearing through foliage and trees and vanishing from sight.
Meia stood up and squared off against Callo, who had taken on a terrifying stance; he appeared bigger and every muscle was tensed as he beheld her with maddened eyes…
"Don't you remember me telling you I can control anyone with my influence inside them, Meia?"
"It can't be…"
"Oh but it is. I have decided…" The figure in front of her began to pace back and forth, "That if I can't control you, I may as well kill you. How fortunate this pathetic human isn't entirely stable in the head department…"
Meia drew her sword just in time to parry Jenova's first attack, but she had the full force of Callo's massive strength on her side and Meia was at a disadvantage. If she had time, she would simply avoid the advances and chip away at her target. But she didn't, the shouts of the patrols were getting louder and she faced a choice; try and overpower Jenova quickly, or run. If she ran…she would be vulnerable to a back attack by the deranged alien. But neither was she confident she could take the massive form of Callo down before the patrols were on her.
She did what she could but it was no use, she didn't have enough strength. For some reason, Callo's body had been given a massive boost and he was far more resilient to the attacks she managed to connect. She squeezed her jaws together in frustration; although she appeared to be vastly faster and able to react quicker since the lifestream incident, her strength hadn't improved and it wasn't enough to overpower Callo's body in time. As she deftly avoided another attack, the enemy burst through the bushes behind the Jenova controlled Callo and were initially stunned to find two comrades fighting each other. They soon recovered though and brought up not their usual weapons, but the strange one's she'd seen from the cliff. In the next instance, they made sense; One well-placed shot was fired into Callo's neck, penetrating the large vein that ran close to the surface. The big man slowed but before he even had time to react, he'd fallen to the ground. Meia's eyes widened as she beheld what looked like a tranquilizer dart sticking out of his neck, only it looked like it had enough dosage to take down a very large animal. Then the guns were aimed at her and she barely avoided a well-aimed shot at her own neck. Not daring too look back, she tore off in the same direction as Zack and Renji had, praying they hadn't been split up or found.
Outrunning the patrol was easy. Far too easy, Meia wasn't even panting as she maintained a steady fast pace to get away from the cliff top. Her adrenaline was pumping through her veins as she pushed on, hoping to find Renji and Zack somewhere, praying she wouldn't suffer a fit of mako fatigue… She followed the crumpled vegetation, the broken plants until finally she could hear them running ahead of her. It wasn't long before she caught up and they stopped as they heard her approach,
"Meia! What happened back there, where is Callo?" Zack asked through massive gasps. She slowed and stopped, looking behind her instinctively,
"He's been captured by the enemy…"
"What? How!"
"They have some kind of anti-SOLDIER tranquilizers…one was enough to take Callo down in less than ten seconds. If we get hit, were as good as captured too" She explained, only needing a moment to catch her breath. Renji was doubled over trying to recover, but he lifted his head and looked at her,
"Meia…you're our commander now….what do we…do?"
Meia simply stood and stared. She was in charge. They were cut off and surrounded by the enemy, who were out looking for them. There was no way off the island save the cave they had come in and by now, enemy would be guarding it. And what was worse, they had weapons that could stop SOLDIER's. She didn't know what to do…what should she do? She looked at Zack and Renji, who were both observing her with uncertainty. They'd just watched their commanding First loose his mind and now, Meia felt like losing hers. She backed up a couple of paces before turning and walking off, clutching her sides. The weight and reality of the situation had dredged up old feelings of fear and hesitation and she struggled to see past them. They had no leader, she had no guidance. She was alone…What do I do?
She felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned to find Zack's blue eyes staring at her,
"Meia, what's wrong?" He asked her quietly. She shook her head, her eyes wide…
"I don't know what to do, Zack…" She answered timidly, unable to contain the panic she felt. Zack glanced behind him before turning back and grasping her other shoulder. He bent to her eye line and looked her dead in the eyes,
"You can do this, Meia, I have confidence in you" He said with a gentle shake, "Hell, I've admired you since day one, it takes a tough lady to sign up for SOLDIER"
But I didn't sign up! I was forced to join…I didn't want this! Meia squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to regain control.
He shook her again, forcing her to listen "You can do this, you can lead us. You used to be a Turk right? You must have lead missions in the past…this should be a cinch"
Zack was right. She had taken command in the past, as a Turk. Nothing had changed, except her profession. She was intelligent; she was resourceful and what's more she had the support of her comrades…
"…How is that a test of your abilities? How does that show me you're capable of taking care of yourself?"
She blinked as she recalled his voice…Sephiroth. He believed in her as well. She would show him she could take care of herself. She would make him proud.
Meia took a deep breath and nodded at Zack, who released her and stood to attention,
"Awaiting orders Sir"
It was now night time on the small island in the middle of nowhere and three figures crouched in the dark. The first thing they needed to do, Meia had instructed, was to get word to HQ that things had gone wrong. But when they pulled out their phones, as predicted, there was no signal. So they had to find some other way to send a message. Meia had set a steady pace that everyone could maintain and led them to the east side of the island, where they found the supply crates dropped by Shinra several months ago. Amazingly, the enemy hadn't discovered them or if they did, they had left them alone. But much to the SOLDIER's frustration, not one of the crates contained communications equipment…
Earlier…
"So what do we do? Dive off a cliff and swim for it?" Renji asked, still picking through what supplies they had. Meia scoffed gently and pulled out a large bag containing a tent,
"No, I doubt we'd make it…physical alterations or not" Correction, she doubted they would make it… "Plus we have a missing man and an opportunity to spy on the enemy"
"That's the Meia I know!" Zack piped up; wrestling with the framework he'd taken out the bag Meia found, "So what's our plan?"
She sighed, "Simple. Set up camp here and after dark, sneak into the enemy base and use their communications to send a message. Then we look for Callo" She concluded. Renji, who was now helping Zack set the tent up, chuckled,
"Just like that, eh Sir?"
"Please, Meia. And yes…just like that" She paused what she was doing and looked at them both, "Are you two going to be alright?"
The two men looked at each other and then at her, "Of course. We'll be fine now we have a stable leader…" Zack muttered. Meia decided to ignore that quip, but he had a point. Meia now knew why Callo was acting so strangely, though she had to admit it was a shock. She was under the impression she protected people from Jenova's influence, but clearly…that wasn't the case…she only protected Sephiroth…She wracked her brain; Why only him?
…because of what you are, woman, and what Shinra made you into…
What Shinra made her into? A SOLDIER? Was the SOLDIER treatment somehow responsible? But that wasn't right; all SOLDIER's received the same treatment. Logically, everyone would shield each other. There was something else going on, something that tied her to her dear friend and made it so she could shield him, but only him. It certainly was a slight inconvenience and she hoped there was no other mentally unstable SOLDIER's hanging around, or they would all be trying to kill her…
It didn't take the three of them long to establish a concealed camp and as Meia commanded, they headed off well after dark in search of some unfortunate enemy victims.
Now, still crouched on a different cliff top, a group of four Wutai soldiers were making their way towards their position. When they were close enough, Meia gave the signal and the hapless guards were jumped before they could react. Meia took on two, winding one with a brutal punch to his solar plexus and turning to kick the other in the head, with enough force to snap his neck. Renji and Zack each killed their own targets and dragged them into the bushes, covering their tracks as they went. Meia then busied herself by interrogating the man she had winded. As he spilled all the information he was squeezed for, and then some, Renji and Zack stripped the uniforms off the other three guards. When Meia was done, in a moment of mercy, she knocked him out cold, gagged him tight and then used the enemy's own restraints to attach him to his dead comrades, finishing up with an anti-SOLDIER tranquilizer to put him out for a very long time.
Thanks to the soldier, they had the location of the enemy's communication tower as well as the codes to the secure channel that bypassed the jamming signal the Wutai were sending out. Which explained the reason for haywire instruments…natural phenomena indeed, Meia thought. Whoever analysed that one should be shot…The three companions hurried and changed into the enemy's uniforms, Meia padding hers out at the waist to disguise her figure. Quickly they resumed the patrol pattern they'd observed the four man group following earlier.
Eventually, it took them right down into the enemy complex. It was late by now and activity was minimal. Confidently they strode past enemy soldiers and patrols, keeping out of the way of dog patrols. Meia had a hunch the animals would be able to smell the difference with them. Gradually they meandered their way to the tall communication tower, which had a single guard posted at the base of the access stairs. Carefully the three man group skulked into the shadows, Renji and Zack staying put while Meia caused a quiet distraction. As the guard came to investigate, joining Meia as she stared up at the tree's looming above, Zack jumped him from behind and broke his neck, dragging him behind the supply crates piled behind the tower.
There was a mere one guard in the tower itself so Meia posted Renji to replace the dead guard while she and Zack climbed up to the doorway. They walked in quickly and while the half asleep Wutain yawned and began babbling in his own language, they crossed the gap and dispatched him quickly. Zack found somewhere to stash the body while Meia sat in front of the communications terminal. It was all written in Wutain, but luckily she wasn't as useless as she was back in Clydia. Since returning to Midgar, Meia had enrolled to study the language and although she was nowhere near as able to speak it as confidently as Sephiroth, she at least had a basic grasp by now. She let out a slow breath as she donned the heavy headset and began to key in the access codes…
Junon – communications room, 00:46
"Hahaha! No way…no way! You didn't?"
"Hell yes I did…I even said to him…"
"Shh, wait…can you hear this?"
"Barely, boost the receiver's power…"
…Sait…c….an..one hear…e?
"A little more…"
I….peat, this is Meia LeSait…can anyone hear me?
"Uh, we hear you Miss, you're really quiet though…can you speak up?"
Oh thank Gaia, no can do. I need to speak to Director Lazard urgently; it's a matter of life or death…
I couldn't resist bringing Renji back xD
Next chapter - As the small unit of SOLDIER's uncover more of the enemies secrets, things take a turn for the worst as Meia protects her subordinates...meanwhile, the President panics and sends in the heavy guns. Or should that be gun...
Please review if you have a spare minute, I would apreciate it lots and lots! :)