Cloud eyed the information displayed on his PHS and stepped over unconscious Turks. He fought the urge to kick Reno in the head just to see what would happen. The man could take more beatings than just about anyone he'd ever seen. The redhead lasted longer than any of the other Turks that tried to ambush them on the way out. Tseng, however, was still nowhere to be seen.
"Looks like reinforcements have arrived."
Vincent and Nanaki turned their attention to him.
"The Gelnika is landing on top."
"We've already got what we came here for Cloud," Vincent said, clearly seeing something in his expression the gunman didn't like. "Are you willing to tempt these reinforcements?"
"There are things on the Gelnika that Shinra shouldn't have. I didn't expect them to bring the airplane here."
"This changes everything then?" Nanaki inquired.
He nodded.
"What?" Vincent asked, visibly unhappy, Cloud mentally noted in amusement, with the decision to prolong the fight.
"The next most powerful sword after the Apocalypse, the most powerful shuriken type weapon currently in existence, the gun with power beaten only by your Death Penalty, at least until you start building your own guns, a couple other high level weapons, another's ultimate Limit, the Double-Cut materia, and the summon Hades."
Disbelieving, Vincent said, "All those things are on that plane?"
Quirking a smile, he said, "They're using it as a storage facility while they repair the damaged areas of Midgar and Junon after the mass desertions and subsequent attacks."
"And they brought it here?" Nanaki asked.
"From the speed of the communications, it seems Rufus Shinra dropped everything the second Tseng reported our raid. I don't know if he even knows all that equipment is there." His smile morphed into a smirk. "I wonder if they're using it as a mutated monster storage facility yet."
He started for the open air. The three of them could bypass the stairs and jump straight up Junon from level to level.
"Pay attention," he said as they walked. "I expect to keep Rufus' guards tied up while you two get all the equipment so I'm going to tell you approximately where all of it is. With all the experience you've gained you shouldn't have a problem even if they've got mutations onboard."
Tseng was waiting on the airport pad when he jumped out. Kunsel remained close to Vice President Shinra's side, eyes alert. The Turk didn't even wait for prompting before speaking.
"Everything in the reactor has gone quiet. All the troops and my Turks must be unconscious. It's not safe here Vice President. There's no telling where the terrorists are."
Something stirred in him, the overwhelming sensation of presence, and a pickling sensation tingling his skin and making the tiny hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. His eyes turned to the edge of the structure, the edge that would overlook the ocean. His skin tingled at the sight of those three figures, a giant cat, a dark haired man in red, and a black hooded swordsman, arms bare and gloved hands free of weapons. Any of the four hilts of those giant weapons would be easily reached.
"Sure there is," he whispered to the rest and pointed. "The bad guys came to play."
Kunsel and Tseng both moved in front of Shinra, each pointing their guns at the intruders. Zack wasn't sure how much guns would help if these intruders had already taken down the rest of the Turks. But Tseng's secondary weapon was a helicopter with missiles and Kunsel's small broadsword wouldn't be as useful as Zack's Buster Sword. A sword which Zack drew slowly, not wanting to provoke a sudden reaction. But the three intruders didn't move toward their weapons, though he supposed the cat didn't have to ready a headdress to make it accessible.
"What the hell do you want?" Zack shouted across the air pad, finding himself somewhat unnerved by the lack of a declaration of intentions.
No response.
Zack searched the visible features of the swordsman like his life depended on it. Had Cloud's arms been that muscular? Would his profile look like that beneath a hood?
The swordsman slowly reached up and over his head to draw the widest blade in his arsenal. He gave it a quick, exploratory rotation and a spin, like he was testing an unfamiliar weight.
In an instant, the swordsman went from standing casually to charging, moving so quickly his image blurred.
Zack swung his sword to meet the charge and the swordsman made as though to connect their blades when suddenly he was flying through the air over his head. The black hooded man landed behind Shinra and the others, and his blade whipped out lightning quick.
Zack bellowed an attack cry and charged forward but the swordsman already connected and all three, Soldier, Turk, and vice president, flew sideways. The indignant grunts of surprise startled him into hesitation and his eyes widened at his fellows on the ground some distance off to the side. The swordsman had used the flat of his blade to push them out of the way. Tseng looked like he might have broken an arm, from the way he was cradling it in combination with the wavering way he held the gun aimed at his attacker.
A rush of air on Zack's opposite side warned him moments too late that the other two attackers rushed past him to join the swordsman and immediately disappear into the airplane. He jerked to go after them but the swordsman darted into his path. Clearly, the man wouldn't allow him to pursue without a fight.
One shot rang clear through the air. Zack didn't even see the swordsman move but his blade was suddenly a shield between him and Tseng's gun, ricocheting the bullet uselessly into the air. His invisible gaze, however remained on Zack. The swordsman's free hand rose to clasp a second hilt.
The sword he drew was breathtaking. A deep red and black with gold near the hilt. The somewhat triangular shape made the weapon look unwieldy but with the ease the swordsman handled it he knew the blade would sail effortlessly through the air. Also, if the large groves scooped out of the blade edges caught his own beloved Buster Sword, the metal could snap. He trusted his own weapon but he couldn't even tell what his opponent's blade was made of. If it was one of the legendary ultimate weapons then he was in a great deal of trouble.
"Zack." Tseng's voice sounded slightly strained.
Zack didn't take his eyes from the swordsman, but used his peripheral vision to note the other three still standing. Tseng seemed slightly dazed, and the vice president's glare was murderous. Kunsel had his sword drawn and stood half in front of the vice president. From the grim set of the Second Class Soldier's mouth, he must have known he probably wouldn't have stood a chance against this swordsman.
"Don't worry about us," Tseng said. "Keep them from stealing the plane."
Zack didn't need any more indication that that. He charged the swordsman. He would take this guy out and get up to the cockpit before the other two could do anything. Such a small guy couldn't possibly stand up to a First Class Soldier, history of downed Shinra troops and Turks or not.
But then the wider blade was back in its sheath and the swordsman gripped the hilt of the second sword and set his whole weight behind the swing to meet Zack's weapon.
The impact rocked Zack so badly he almost dropped the Buster Sword. As it were, he was still thrown backwards through the air and hit the ground hard, rolling several times. He did release the hilt then.
"Gaia," Zack breathed. He lurched to his feet, expecting to have to dodge an attack. But the swordsman remained at his post at the opening of the Gelnika, blade at the ready, ignoring Shinra and the others, merely watching.
Zack grit his teeth. What an insult. The guy wasn't even going to come after him when he was down. He'd just stand there as sentinel until the other two incapacitated the pilots and crew and stole the airplane. Zack darted forward, scooped up the Buster Sword, and fired up his Power Attack materia.
He slammed into the swordsman, magic thrumming through his body. But the swordsman didn't stagger like he was supposed to, he didn't even flinch. In fact, he sent Zack flying across the air pad again, exactly as far as he had the first time, the only difference being that Zack wasn't quite so unprepared so he didn't drop his blade and rolled to his feet for his third charge.
Wielding Vital Slash, he prepared for the shock this time. The swordsman's stance didn't change but at least the power behind the strike meant the man didn't throw him through the air. But if Zack even unconsciously thought withstanding the man's first strike meant he'd won something, he was dismally wrong.
The swordsman's blade blurred along its path, near impossible to follow. It took everything Zack had to keep that glisteningly sharp edge from biting him. He thanked whatever deity made his opponent decide not to even try catching the Buster Sword with its wicked grooves.
A sudden kick to Zack's gut caught him off guard and he flew backward again. Only this time, he was in position to see the swordsman come after him. He could have laughed when the man caught up to him before he hit the ground. But he couldn't understand why that beautiful, dark sword had been resheathed.
Still too stunned to react, the swordsman had free reign to practically pluck Zack from the air and slam him face down into the ground. Zack's sword arm, still gripping the Buster Sword, was stepped on, the heavy boot digging into his bare arm. Another knee dug into his back, making breathing difficult. His free arm was twisted around behind his back.
Lacking any sort of leverage, Zack grunted in frustration, wriggling around to get a better look at either Shinra and the others or the swordsman. Gloved fingers dug like steel into his wrist. He really couldn't imagine his little friend Cloud with this sort of strength.
His eyes widened as the implications fully set in. This swordsman manhandled a First Class mako enhanced Soldier like it was nothing. He hadn't even used any magic. He beat him with nothing but a kick ass sword. Zack hadn't even been this powerless against Genesis. Doubt stole through his mind about how well Sephiroth would fare against this swordsman.
Movement from the Gelnika caught his attention. The gunman and the giant cat leapt back outside, positioning themselves near the swordsman. The gunman was carrying a spear, a giant shuriken, and another gorgeous broadsword, of all things.
He took his chances and tried to get a better look at the three assailants. The cat wasn't just a cat. Tribal tattoos inked its fur in geometric patterns along the length of its back and the end of its tail appeared to be on fire. The gunman's eyes glowed a deep, blood red and not only was his prosthetic arm a giant claw, his boots had armor with pointed toes that would be just as bad as a bayonet if he ever chose to kick someone. His vantage point didn't afford him the best view of the swordsman and nothing about him seemed remarkable.
His skin within the confines of his hood shone faintly pale, a more natural pale than Sephiroth's stark white pale, but that could hardly be used to identify him.
"Are you Cloud?" he ground out despite his difficulty in breathing.
Those goggle-covered eyes regarded him silently, and the other two exchanged a glance. His question was ignored as the swordsman reached into a cargo pocket and withdrew a familiar looking envelope. He could just make out the script on the front. Rufus Shinra. He threw the letter shuriken style and it spun to a stop in front of the vice president.
"CS Delivery," he hissed.
At the momentary twitch of a mouth within the confines of that hood, his heart dropped. Could that expression really be shared by two people?
The swordsman's free hand lifted, the bangle on his wrist glowing red.
"Shit," he spat, renewing his efforts to get free. He had to stop the summon before it manifested.
Tseng's gun fired several shots and even Shinra pulled his own short-barreled rifle to attack, Kunsel dropping to one knee in front of him so he could aim properly. The air crystallized around them, the bullets stopping in their tracks, as the gunman had a hand raised and Physical Barrier erected.
It was too late. Flames licked through the sky as Ifrit dropped out of the air above them. The structure around them cracked under its weight. But then it didn't attack. It held out a hand. The gunman and the cat leapt from the ground into its open palm. In a flash, the swordsman released him and joined his cohorts. He twisted on the ground just in time to see the swordsman offer a mock salute from the giant, open palm of Ifrit.
Zack's jaw dropped as the summon leapt into the air, like it did before throwing molten lava balls at its targets. Inexplicably, once it reach the apex of its jump, it threw the people, like they were a ball of molten lava, east toward the mountains then disappeared with a crackle of magic.
He pointed in the direction the three had been thrown. "What the hell?" he demanded of the universe. "Ifrit threw them. How the hell are they going to survive?"
"I suspect," Shinra said behind him, closer than he'd expected, "they'll be just fine." He held the unopened letter in his hand.
Tseng said, "I've never heard of a summon used in that manner."
Shinra said, "That's because no one can control them that well. Not even Sephiroth has managed to force a summon to do anything but exactly what it wanted to do. Until now, I believed it impossible."
"Was that Strife?" Tseng asked.
He shrugged, shaking his head. "I don't know. At first I thought no. But then when I called him CS Delivery, he did this little quirky thing that Cloud always does. But that guy was ridiculously strong. I never had problems like that with Genesis."
Shinra asked, "Do you think that's because he caught you off guard?"
"I don't know."
He pushed to his feet, clutching his ribs. "Damn. I think he bruised my ribs."
Tseng shook his head. "With your healing, Zack, he probably broke your ribs and they're only bruised now. He did break my arm with the flat of his blade."
"Seriously?" He lurched toward the Turk before he realized he couldn't do anything by standing closer. "What about everyone else?" He did not want to be held responsible for the vice president getting hurt.
"I took the brunt of it," Tseng said. "Bruises all around—"
"And ruined clothing," Shinra interjected sourly.
"—but he clearly didn't intend to actually harm any of us. Even you I think Zack."
Kunsel said, "That explains why there haven't been casualties yet. He's purposely trying to keep people alive."
"The letter," Zack blurted, trying to fully straighten and wincing while doing so, "what about the letter?"
Shinra's expression smoothed as he opened the envelope. The contents didn't produce laughter but they did draw another sly smirk.
"Rufus Shinra," he read. "No making fun this time. Just one question. Have you figured out what was in all the facilities I've visited? Signed, CS Delivery. P.S. You've got one chance left to stop me before the game begins." He shook his head. "Below that he's written something extra. Did you know the Gelnika is being used by Shinra Company for weapons and materia storage until all the damage to the interior of Shinra tower is repaired? Below that it says, Please keep the puppy in good health. I'd like to play with him again sometime."
His jaw dropped. CS Delivery mentioned him in one of his letters. How had the terrorist known he was coming? No, that wasn't right. He'd written all that below the main body of the letter. He hadn't expected that. CS Delivery penned the letter before the attack on the reactor. He hadn't known the Gelnika or Zack would be in Junon until later. But he'd known before they came up to meet the Gelnika.
"They raided the Gelnika storage units?" Kunsel sounded puzzled. "We wouldn't have been storing anything important in a plane would we?"
Shinra pulled out his PHS again and fired off a message. Only moments passed before he got a reply. "I had Sephiroth send me the plane's inventory." His eyebrows climbed halfway up his forehead. "A level twelve firearm, a level thirteen lance, a level fourteen shuriken, a level fourteen broadsword, command materia Double Cut, and summon Hades."
"Well shit," Kunsel muttered.
"It seems Heidegger requested that Scarlet move them as a safety precaution until repairs to a more secure facility are complete. He recommended the Gelnika and she approved."
Tseng said, "CS Delivery pointed out that he didn't need to made jabs at administration practices of various departments. His intelligence gathering capabilities are impressive. Very few people knew you were coming. Based on their behavior in the city and reactor, I would say they found out about the Gelnika and your arrival perhaps five minutes before you landed, no earlier."
Shinra's smile was somewhat chilling. "That leaves us with wondering if he has contacts in Junon who were watching, someone in the passengers on that ship, or someone in Shinra."
Tseng said, "Shinra has only been infiltrated on rare occasions but it's not entirely unheard of. I doubt they had someone among the passengers. As that ship came in, the long range surveillance flagged them as potential threats. They stood on deck watching Junon and didn't move from that one spot until making their break for the reactor. I've sent the video feeds back to information analysis to see if one of our lip readers can catch something of their conversation."
The vice president nodded.
Zack couldn't help that his thoughts wandered another direction. "Shouldn't you get your arm looked at Tseng?" He pointed lamely. "It's broken you know."
"There are more important matters to discuss."
Kunsel put a hand to the side of his helmet. "Looks like people are starting to regain consciousness down in the reactor. It seems CS Delivery didn't bother with status spells much this time. There are a lot of cracked heads, gunshot wounds, and disorientation, but no one has found any casualties yet." He paused. "Reno seems in the worst shape and he's swearing up a storm."
Tseng whipped out his PHS with the uninjured hand. After several moments of silence, he narrowed his eyes and called a different contact. "Send Reno and Rude up to the Gelnika. Direct everyone else to search the reactor. We can't chance that CS Delivery left any explosives." He paused. "I don't care if he's been shot in the leg. If he has the energy to curse over the com links he can come up to the air pad." He didn't wait for a reply before hanging up.
"Fair," Shinra started, "any thoughts on this letter?"
He didn't particularly like being the resident psychological expert on an unconventional terrorist. He massaged his smarting ribs while thinking.
"He stole something from all the places he's been, including here. He blew up Nibelheim because he thought stuff there shouldn't be happening. I don't get that same sense about North Corel. He blew it up for another reason. But I don't think there's going to be any bombs here. He only talks about stealing stuff. He was here to steal. Wherever he's going next, if it were me, I wouldn't blow anything up there either. You blow up the most dangerous places and then go for the secondary targets."
He scratched his head. "Whatever he stole from Nibelheim isn't what he got in North Corel or here. But whatever he's got left is what he got here and in North Corel. If we've got any weapons or materia that come in pieces or sets of three, wherever the last piece is, that's where he's going."
Shinra turned back to Tseng. "Anything on what Scarlet had in North Corel?"
"We've managed to acquire inventory lists despite Scarlet's cooperation. What they might have taken from there isn't anything spectacular, just mid level weapons and materia. The only thing that perhaps they might have gone for is some experimental materia. We're having trouble getting details on it because it was Scarlet's new pet project." Tseng paused. "I'll look into whether or not she was attempting the same thing here. And if she's got anymore anywhere else."
Shinra nodded then refocused on Zack. "What other thoughts on the letter?"
"Once he's got what he wants, he's going to start something he sees as a fair competition between you."
"How do you figure that?" Kunsel asked.
"He called it a game. He's not killing people. If he does what I think and doesn't take out the reactor here, then he's only taking out the pieces he thinks Shinra shouldn't have. The stuff about the Gelnika tells me he was probably going to go for it eventually but us bringing it here saved him the trouble. The way he says it makes me think he thinks it's kind of a riot that we brought all this stuff straight to him."
He folded his arms, wincing again at what the motion did to his ribs. "I'm not as sure about when he's talking about me. I guess it could mean that he's met me before to use my name or that he likes me from reputation or something. He's been getting friendlier to you in the letters but he's talking like he already likes me." He paused. "That doesn't really make it look good for Cloud."
"Tseng," Shinra said, "we don't have much time before CS Delivery strikes again. Find out what he's looking for and send everyone there."
Any reply the Turk might have offered was forgotten when Reno and his string of curses limped onto the air pad. He had one arm slung over Rude's shoulders to keep his feet while said partner sported the hugest purple bruise on his head.
"Report," Tseng demanded.
"Hell boss, we didn't stand a chance," Reno said, then hissed when he shifted. "All the shitty newbies an' mid ranks went down by that damn cat. It just knocked people over. The people that made it past the cat got smacked in the head by that asshole swordsman an' anyone who tried to snipe from the back got shot in the damn shoulder or leg by the gunman. Anyone who wasn't unconscious after bein' shot was smacked in the head until we all went down."
"Why were you shot so many times?" Tseng asked.
One leg shot and two shoulder shots by the looks of the blood. Not to mention the massive bruise blossoming on one side of his face.
"The damn freaks couldn't take me down," Reno said smugly. "Last Turk standin'. The gunner got my shoulder first but I just switched arms and gave that damn cat a smack in the head. So they shot me a second time. I threw my mag rod at the asshole swordsman before I couldn't feel my arm an' the cat headbutted me. Damn little pansy cat made my head spin. So I get up to kick its head in an' the gunman took out one of my legs. Had trouble standin' after that but they finally got me when the asshole swordsman threw me into a wall with the flat of his big ass blade."
"Your resilience is admirable," Shinra said levelly.
He couldn't tell if the man was being sarcastic.
"Any indication of what they were after?"
Reno was shaking his head before the question was even done being asked. "No one heard any of them speak. They didn't even point shit out to each other. Just wandered around like they were telepathic."
"Or professional," Tseng interjected.
"They're damn monsters. The swordsman didn't even flinch when my mag rod hit him. The asshole just smacked it away with a hand an' the electricity cracklin' around 'is arm. It didn't even slow 'im down."
Tseng nodded. "He subdued Fair in an equally effortless manner while the other two raided the Gelnika."
"Why didn't you shoot 'im boss?" Reno asked in confusion. "If the other two shits were gone you all could have ganged up on 'im."
Shinra said, "He deflected bullets with his sword and seemed to enjoy throwing Fair across the air pad."
"But didn't kill him," Reno said sharply.
Not liking the tone, Zack said, "He didn't kill any of the rest of you either."
"He was playin' with you Zack," Reno said with a pained shake of his head. "Your ex trooper friend would do that wouldn't he?"
"There's no proof it's Cloud," Zack said, scowling.
"There's no proof it isn't," Reno shot back. "His name is CS Delivery for Gaia's sake. They're your friend's initials. Cloud Strife. Cloud Strife Delivery."
"Two letters isn't proof."
Reno shook his head, turning his attention back to the vice president and Tseng who'd been observing the argument silently. "Wherever the assholes go next, you gotta send Sephiroth." The Turk sounded tired. Of course that should be a given, he'd been shot several times, head butted, and thrown into a wall.
"Or more Soldiers," Kunsel suggested.
"Tseng," Shinra said, "figure out what CS Delivery took. We're going back to Midgar."
Zack just hoped they wouldn't expect him to know where the mysterious object of CS Delivery's attention was with nothing to go on. Junon had been a fluke. He couldn't fluke his way through the whole scenario.
Cloud flipped his PHS closed. "No casualties apparently. VP Shinra and the rest are back in Midgar, mulling over where we'll go next." As they were already near their destination, he didn't expect they would encounter trouble beyond the mistrust of the locals.
"Where are we going after this?" Nanaki asked. The giant cat had taken quite well to adventuring and antagonizing Shinra.
"The Cetra city ruins. Places there are meant to keep things like what we've got safe. Places I think the planet won't let anyone but myself or Aerith get into deep below the surface."
"And there," Vincent said, "you might be able to find some way to acquire the Black Materia without the mechanical mog and cat or sacrificing a person."
He nodded. His PHS buzzed again. He checked it. Message from Zack's fan club. He couldn't help the smirk on his face. "Apparently, someone in Zack's fan club found out about what I did to his ribs. I've been put on their most hated list and there's a twenty thousand gil reward for figuring out who I am so the club can dispose of me before Shinra does."
Vincent huffed a sharp breath and even Nanaki bared his teeth in a bestial grin.
"I would have liked to see your spar with your friend," Nanaki said.
"I'm sure you'll get your chance. Shinra is exceptionally displeased with me."
The wound their way silently up the snaking, dirt path toward Fort Condor. The giant bird wasn't nesting atop the reactor but it certainly enjoyed hanging out up there. Unfortunately, the rope he'd expected wasn't hanging where it was supposed to be. Shielding his eyes from the sun, he peered up to the hole in the bottom of the fort to find the faint outlines of a face.
"We've come to trade," he called. Sort of trade anyway.
"You look like Shinra assassins," came the old man's voice. Was that guy never young?
"Just trade I swear. I have funds for your mercenaries if you're interested."
A flurry of unidentifiable movement washed through the dark up there and the rope uncoiled right down to the ground. He gripped the rope and climbed, trusting the others to follow.
"How do you do that?" Vincent asked as the made they way down the path in the soft sunset light, fort and giant condor behind them.
"What?" He frowned at the taller man.
"Tell people what you want and have them give it to you. You did the same thing in Corel and Gongaga."
His frown deepened. "I paid for what we took."
"They handed you a huge chunk of experimental materia and a summon that revives instantly and simultaneously deals damage to enemies for a mere hundred thousand gil."
"They want to protect the condor," he said. "They need the money for mercenaries. It will last for several months. They need that more than something they'll never use. None of those people have the magic reserves to summon Phoenix anyway. Besides, I'll send them more money later. I left my number with their leader."
"That's not the point Cloud. If I were to have asked for what you asked for at the price you offered, I would have had a gun pulled in my face."
He shrugged uncomfortably. He'd never really thought about it but he had noticed. "I don't know. I never really realized it was unusual until after I separated my memories from Zack's and pieced myself back together. I used to…just waltz right into people's homes and take their stuff and nobody batted an eyelash. I could walk out with gil and potions and weapons and no one ever said anything. Half the time I never even had to do that. I'd just go talk to someone and they'd empty their pockets and give me stuff." He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I consider it improvement that I pay for things now and kill monsters for money instead of just taking it."
"That's…very unusual Cloud," Nanaki observed.
He nodded. It wasn't like he could do anything about it. He couldn't decide if it was something the Planet did to him or something he got from his Jenova cells. Everyone seemed to do what Sephiroth wanted too. Though that may have been born from fear as opposed to whatever made anyone give him things.
His PHS vibrated in his pocket. He pulled the device out and quirked a brow at the caller ID. "Aerith?"
AN: Any and all comments, disclaimers, and notes are on my profile page. If I get asked a question enough times, its answer is there too.