Sometimes Zack felt like he was the only one on pins and needles waiting to see if they finally had definitive proof that his best friend was a terrorist. Everyone around the conference table appeared calm. Vice President Shinra also seemed bored.
Zack felt like a nervous wreck. It had taken hours for Tseng to get out to Kalm and scour the cliffs for signs of Reno and Rude, then afterward it had taken almost an hour by itself for Tseng to get the spell off his subordinates. Tseng had taken Reno straight to medical on returning to Midgar because he had a concussion and Vice President Shinra wanted to wait until more of the Turks could be present to discuss the letter and the encounter outside of Kalm at the same time.
Zack didn't like waiting, but could hardly demand the vice president comply with his wishes. Reno kept pushing for simply assuming Cloud was the culprit and now that the Turk had had another encounter with the terrorist, no one but Rude would be able to dispute the accusations and Rude usually backed Reno up. Zack would have to rely on the letter to keep Cloud from being unceremoniously accused. It wasn't like it would be a detailed list of how Cloud was responsible for everything.
"Zack," Sephiroth whispered next to him, "calm down."
Zack glanced at the general, spying cat-slit pupils staring sideways at him, then buried his face in his hands. "I'm just…worried…that it'll be like Angeal all over again." He paused. "And I hate sitting around like this. I feel like I need to be doing something."
Sephiroth put a hand lightly on his shoulder. It was only there for a moment, and the man's expression didn't change, but he took it for a comforting gesture.
The hand left when the briefing room doors slid open, admitting Tseng and a rather unhappy looking Reno, a bruise blossoming on the side of the latter's face back near his ear. "Rude's still showerin' to get the shit smell off his head." He tossed a sealed envelope across the table to the vice president. "I'm only stayin' long enough to hear what's goin' on then I'm returnin' to quarters to recuperate."
Shinra eyed the envelope with distaste. "Is that clean?"
"Yeah, Vice President, it's good." Reno exuded tiredness. He didn't even smirk at the vice president's distaste for possible contamination of the letter.
Shinra still looked somewhat disgusted touching the envelope. He discarded it as quickly as possible and turned his attention to the letter. A faint smirk crawled onto his face while he read. He must have gone through the whole thing three times before reading aloud.
"Rufus Shinra, I have what I want so don't expect any ridiculously overt displays anytime soon. But don't think I won't take an opportunity if you give me one. I won't be entirely unavailable now that my initial aggressive maneuvers are complete. I'd also suggest you refrain from dealing with Avalanche. There are certain elements among its members that support questionable ethics. No, I'm not talking money or information. Both might end up in the hands of those elements of questionable ethics, and that's not something I'll tolerate. Just to put the offer on the table, I'd say I'm the more honorable, under-the-table ally. Given my present record, I'm also more reliable and likely to succeed. The Turks are doing a decent job keeping Avalanche from running wild but you can see that I have my affairs moving according to my own plans. CS Delivery. P.S. If you would arrange for Sephiroth to be the one to meet me the next time I make myself available, I'd appreciate it."
Zack shifted uneasily, unsure of what to make of that letter's contents. He'd read all the right things into CS Delivery's meanings before, but this one didn't look good. He…hoped he was wrong.
"Fair," Shinra said evenly, "from the look on your face I would say you're hearing something specific in these words. Would you care to share?"
Zack shrugged uncomfortably as all eyes turned to him. Tseng's gaze was particularly sharp. "It could really mean anything…. And there's still the stuff in Kalm to talk about so…."
Shinra leaned forward, elbows on the table, and steepled his fingers together. "Fair, I need to know exactly how in tune with the language and meaning of these letters you are." He unclasped his hands to tap the paper sitting in front of him. "I know what CS Delivery means in telling me this. What exactly do you hear."
When Zack didn't immediately answer, Sephiroth said, "Zack, answer him."
"Pretty much," he started out slowly, "CS Delivery is focusing on Avalanche now and will take what he thinks they shouldn't have just like he did with Shinra Company. He's talking like…like Vice President Shinra is feeding them gil and intel and is telling him to stop or he'll be targeted right along with Avalanche. But then he's also putting himself out there as a candidate for alliance instead. Kind of like a hang out with me instead of Avalanche or else deal. But in a really nice way. I guess the only reason he's ignored Avalanche until now is because he thinks the Turks are handling it. But the bit about Sephiroth, I bet he wants to talk." He rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably, wishing they would all stop staring at him.
Shinra stared at him speculatively for several moment before sharing a long look with Tseng. "Perhaps it's time to tell them."
"I was also thinking so, sir," Tseng said.
The vice president nodded then said, "See that the Second Class Soldier, Kunsel, joins us. I would rather brief them simultaneously."
It seemed this whole thing was much deeper than Zack expected. He exchanged a look with Sephiroth while Tseng slipped out of the room. His general seemed to have come to the conclusion that he had been right in the assessment of CS Delivery's letter and unhappily glowered at the vice president.
Zack eyed everyone in the room, wondering how the world had gotten this messed up again. He thought that after Genesis and Angeal, even though Genesis was only a missing deserter, things would quiet down and it would just be the Wutai dissidents, Genesis copies, and the regular terrorists to contend with. They were so much easier for him to deal with mentally speaking. At least Reno hadn't declared that Cloud was CS Delivery.
The vice president looked determined and Reno seemed more determined, no longer irritated and tired. Sephiroth just seemed frustrated and tense, his brow wrinkling slightly where his eyebrows pushed together. Zack felt like even more of a nervous wreck.
It took forever, but Tseng returned, Kunsel in tow. The Second sat next to Zack as Tseng resumed his seat next to the vice president.
Shinra leaned back in his seat and eyed Sephiroth. "I only ask that you listen to the whole of what I have to say before passing judgment. It's complicated and I would like a proper hearing before you reach any conclusions."
"Why me specifically?" Sephiroth asked, chill evident in his voice.
"Where you walk, Fair and Kunsel will follow. And it since you three are the only ones outside the Turks fully aware of the situation regarding both Strife and CS Delivery, you need to be included in the events CS Delivery is embroiling himself in."
"Speak," Sephiroth ordered.
"I've been supplying Avalanche with gil and intel on Soldier and Shinra movements, using the Turks as intermediaries." At Sephiroth's sharply narrowed eyes, the vice president said, "Don't get me wrong, I have no intention of destroying Shinra Company, it's going to be mine after all. I couldn't care less about the Planet but how could I resist using the opportunity to take power from my father? I plan to take the whole company from him eventually. So far, it's gotten me sole control of the Turks. They only do what my father says when I order them to."
Zack felt frozen. How could the vice president reveal that sort of information so bluntly and so casually?
"In the first letter CS Delivery sent me, he mentioned my father and his endorsement of questionable practices. When he told me a 'good son would know what to do with his father', could this not refer to my ultimate plan to assassinate my father should he refuse to step down as president? Considering only Veld and Tseng knew of that point, CS Delivery must have an unidentified source of intel that we can't track down .
"The next batch of information I planned to send to Avalanche was scientific data on the Soldier program. I know the primary mind behind Avalanche was planning to use it to create his own superior fighters, but given that the man idolizes Hojo, and CS Delivery has gone out of his way to destroy Hojo's most prized research and laboratories, I can surmise with confidence the 'element' in Avalanche CS Delivery will be targeting is that terrorist scientist. CS Delivery is clearly more capable than Avalanche and I won't hesitate in taking the presented offer of alliance. Even if I didn't think I would directly benefit, I would take the offer anyway as CS Delivery seems more prone to swift, effective action. How foolish would it be to put myself directly on the foul side of that drive unless I thought I'd win?
"Also, CS Delivery might be violent and destructive but the lack of fatalities shows that he is both extremely careful and plans to execute his agenda with as few casualties as possible. Avalanche repeatedly proves that they don't care how much live collateral damage they cause. If I'm going to run the world, I'll need the people alive?
"Don't you think President Shinra, is wasteful to invest in projects more likely to destroy him than solidify his power base? With Professor Gast gone, the last shred of practical thinking disappeared from the science department. Hojo has free rein to create his mutated monsters and waste valuable company resources in tracking down the monsters that escape to contaminate the surrounding areas. How can it be beneficial to the company's image to have mako-infused monsters and genetic mutations roaming this whole continent? If they haven't spread already, it's only a matter of time before they're on the other continents too. As the vice president, I can't do anything about the executive board and some of those people need to be relocated. Reeve, I would leave, but Heidegger and Scarlet are sloppy. Palmer is a pushover, and if anything happens in Rocket Town his whole department will be shut down. Hojo simply has to go. The science department shouldn't belong to an egomaniac that enjoys creating monsters and wasting gil."
Zack had to practically pull his jaw off the table when Shinra stopped speaking. And here he thought the situation with Cloud was troubling. What was he supposed to think when the vice president said he planned on ousting or assassinating the president, who also happened to be his father?
"What makes you think I won't go straight to the president with this?" Sephiroth asked, chill still evident in his voice.
"Would you confide in President Shinra, who fully supports Hojo, when we've uncovered information about Nibelheim concerning you that both of them neglected to share?"
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. Zack could hardly breathe. If Sephiroth had something to do with Nibelheim and Cloud had something to do with Nibelheim then perhaps Sephiroth had something to do with Cloud.
"We haven't been able to glean much," Shinra said, "but we know you were born there."
"I don't have a hometown," Sephiroth said coldly.
"You weren't raised there," Shinra countered. "You were born there. You know perfectly well that you're the only Soldier without blue eyes and considering that the Nibelheim facilities were under Hojo's jurisdiction and you know perfectly well that the science department had you for your childhood. Perhaps the reason CS Delivery went after Nibelheim was primarily because of Hojo and what was going on there. We don't know exactly what was going on regarding you but we know that Hojo was creating…monsters in the reactor. We've recovered a few sparse reports on building facilities and personnel movements as well as biological materials and the only possible conclusion is that Hojo was using Second and Third Class Soldiers to create super monsters."
Sephiroth clenched his fists so hard he shook. "Is that what happened to me? Is that why I'm different than the other Soldiers? Is that why I don't degrade like my friends? Am I just some super monster cooked up in Hojo's labs?"
"We don't know," Shinra said bluntly. "But we think CS Delivery does."
Sephiroth actually leaned forward in interest. Zack found himself enthralled, and having no idea of which direction the information would go.
Shinra said, "It took quite a lot of investigation, but we know Hojo didn't have backups of most of his data in Nibelheim. Or more specifically, his backup data for what was going on in the manor was in the reactor and the backups for what was in the reactor was in the manor. He has a third facility we haven't been able to locate, but it only has minimal specimens and data. We also have to take into account what CS Delivery told you about believing what you find out from this company. If I were Hojo and I wanted to control you, I would plant data that I knew you would find and that I knew how you would react to. If Hojo had something in Nibelheim and you were ever sent on a mission there, you would certainly find the mutants in the reactor, and what would stop you from combing through all the data in both locations?
"Don't you see?" Shinra asked. "You can either go to my father and ally yourself with Hojo to perhaps find out, or more likely be told the possible lies planted for you that CS Delivery destroyed. Or you can join with me, the Turks, and this CS Delivery that thinks as poorly of President Shinra and Hojo as we do. To me, CS Delivery seems like the most advantageous bet of all parties involved. President Shinra is corrupt. Hojo is amoral. Avalanche disregards human lives. Don't I qualify as a traitor and would-be committer of patricide?"
Hints of a smile touched the vice president's lips. "How does CS Delivery's large scale property damage compare to these other less-than-honorable acts?"
Shinra leaned back in his chair as though he hadn't just divulged his intention for sedition and a rather large conspiracy. "Choose your evil Sephiroth, I haven't got all day, and I'd like to move into deeper planning stages."
Sephiroth pushed back from the table and rose. "Zack, Kunsel," he said, and made for the door.
They both scrambled to their feet and followed the general. Zack had no idea what to think. With logic alone, it would make more sense to go with the vice president. He already had the backing of the Turks and they influenced a huge chunk of Shinra company's operations. But that would mean turning traitor to the president. And bringing justice against a corrupt scientist. But CS Delivery was blowing up buildings. Sure he wasn't killing anyone yet, but that's all it was, a not yet.
But that would make Zack a traitor. Just like Genesis. Just like Angeal. Only worse, because he'd be pretending he wasn't a traitor and helping sabotage President Shinra from inside the company.
Ultimately, when picking between two halves of Shinra, when picking sides, he had to go with his heart. He didn't have that option last time. CS Delivery had Sephiroth's secrets. If Cloud had something to do with CS Delivery then that connected his friend to the terrorist group and to Sephiroth.
Sephiroth stopped only in the room outside the briefing room. He rounded on the other two Soldiers and said, "I'm not thinking clearly. Tell me your thoughts."
The desperate sort of crazed look lurking behind Sephiroth's bright green eyes unnerved Zack more than he would like to admit. So he blurted the first thing that came to mind. "You and Cloud have to be connected. Your catty eyes say as much. You're the only Soldier without blue eyes and Cloud's pumped full of so much mako he's got green flecks. CS Delivery knows about what was going on in Nibelheim and is willing to deal with the vice president. The president and Hojo are tight. If Hojo's done something, President Shinra knows about it. If they haven't told you yet, they probably won't tell you the truth."
"Tactically speaking," Kunsel said, "I agree with Zack. The way the players stand now, Vice President Shinra is dumping Avalanche because that three-man team is stronger than an entire terrorist organization. If CS Delivery is on your level and it comes down to a fight, while you and he have at it, it'll be Soldier plus Scarlet's periodically malfunctioning weapons against Turks plus CS Delivery's lackeys. There will be heavy losses on both sides. Unless you can finish off CS Delivery quickly, I'd say there would be more losses on the Soldier side because of CS Delivery's companions and the Turks having intimate operating knowledge of Scarlet's weapons. Soldier still hasn't properly recovered from the desertions but we're the swing vote sir. If we side with the vice president, we'll win for sure. If we side with the president, I'd say it's about fifty-fifty."
Sephiroth took a deep breath and brushed a stray lock of silver hair out of his face. "Alright," he whispered, seemingly to himself. Then he headed straight back for the briefing room door.
Everyone inside was waiting silently, simply watching them.
"Soldier is in," Sephiroth said. "But if I find out any of you have purposely left me out of any planning or have withheld additional information, I will take your heads to President Shinra myself."
"Understood," Shinra said. With a slight smile, he continued, "If you resume your seats, we'll move on with the meeting."
Zack practically dropped into his chair, feeling a bit queasy. It was all so much to take in at once. His general might be a monster like his mentor and their friend. Vice President Shinra had been working with ant-Shinra terrorists. CS Delivery had medical secrets about Sephiroth and probably Cloud.
Politics sucked.
"Pull yourself together, man," Kunsel muttered under his breath. "You look like you're going to puke."
"You do," Sephiroth said in a more normal tone, sliding into his own seat.
Zack stared blankly for a moment, unsure of what he was supposed to do with that information.
"Our primary objective," Tseng started, "is contact with CS Delivery. For now, we have to wait for him to make his move. We have no sure means of contacting him. Our best lead is Cloud Strife. We aren't positive they're connected yet but the odds are climbing. Since Sephiroth's experiment was probably conducted in Nibelheim and Strife appears to be exhibiting similar physical characteristics, chances are CS Delivery knows about Strife as well, if he isn't Strife to begin with. Since Strife is vague about his allies, the most obvious scenario is that they belong to CS Delivery."
Sephiroth said, "Zack, your primary mission is Cloud Strife. Get as close to him as you can. We need him. If you have to, swear that Soldier will protect him from Shinra's scientists. It would be best if you could talk him into meeting with additional members of this little rebellion." Sephiroth waved one hand airily as his dark gaze flicked over the room's occupants. "The more he trusts us, the more likely he is to tell us who's been protecting him. Understood?"
"Yes sir." With that, he whipped out his PHS and scrolled through his contacts. He selected Spiky and hit call. It only rang twice.
"Zack?" Cloud sounded surprised.
"Hey Spike, you got a few minutes?"
"Where I'm…-ly bad re-…I se-…." Then the signal dropped.
Zack's eyes widened. "I heard the word 'bad'," he said. "What if he's in trouble? What if I called him in the middle of something and he's not supposed to be getting calls and now they're going to kill him? What if someone started strangling him for answering the call?"
"Calm down Zack," Sephiroth said. "If he wasn't supposed to be taking calls he probably wouldn't have answered. It's quite unlikely someone would end the PHS call in the middle of strangling him. And just so you're aware, I didn't mean you should start this mission in the middle of our briefing. We still need to discuss the events near Kalm."
Zack frowned, still disturbed about the phone call. "Sorry. I guess I just got carried away. I feel like I really need to do something."
Zack perked right up when his PHS vibrated. He flipped the phone back open and exclaimed, "He sent me an email." Quickly opening it, he read aloud. "Sorry about the disconnect Zack. I've got really bad reception here. If you want to talk send a message."
Zack sagged back into his chair. "Man, that scared me. Bad reception is horrible." He narrated as he typed his message so the others would be in the loop. "I'm so boooored Spiky. I've been in the briefing room all morning. Had a break and wanted to talk. When can we hang again?"
"Seriously?" Reno's face was a picture of comedic confusion. "You really send shit like that to 'im?"
He nodded. "It's better than telling him I'm worried sick and feel like puking."
Vice President Shinra's expression told Zack that might not have been the best thing to say. Then his PHS vibrated again.
Zack flipped it open and read aloud. "You're not goofing off during work are you? Don't email me if you're supposed to be paying attention. And maybe next week."
"This former trooper seems to have a better attention span and sense of responsibility than you," Sephiroth said dryly.
Ignoring the general, he set to typing again. "No worries. I'm not goofing. Why next week? That sooooo far away *pout + puppy eyes*."
"You make me look mature," Reno said.
Zack pulled a face at the Turk and froze mid expression, remembering that Vice President Shinra was present too. Zack grinned a bit sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck, offering a weak laugh.
The speed of Cloud's return message surprised him, as his PHS vibrated again. Aloud, he read, "I might be able to swing the end of the week but it won't be earlier than that."
"Sweet," Zack said under his breath. He set to typing. "Great! Can I bring my friend Kunsel? I haven't gone below the plate with him in a while and it'll be fun all going together. I can still call you right? I don't have to wait until I see you yeah?"
"Why Kunsel?" Reno asked.
Sephiroth answered for him. "Kunsel is the most innocuous of all of us and the least likely to draw suspicion. He's already Zack's friend. Strife is more likely to agree if he thinks it's a social outing rather than a meeting with Shinra representatives. By putting the request in between the other two subjects, Zack implies it's the least important piece in the message, drawing more attention away from it."
Reno chuckled, smirking. "I never knew you could be that sneaky, Fair. When did that happen?"
"I'm just trying to make sure Cloud doesn't freak out." Scowl creeping onto his face, he said, "He's really touchy about Shinra."
"I can't say I blame him," Kunsel said.
His PHS vibrated again. "Kunsel's a Second isn't he? He won't try to make me go back will he? And yeah, you can call earlier. When I have better reception."
He screwed up his face in concentration and typed. "Yes and no and yaaaay! We'll have a blast! So when is earlier? When will you have better reception?"
"I didn't expect him to put forth so little fight," Shinra mused.
"He hasn't agreed yet," Sephiroth said. "Strife asked about the Shinra connection."
"But he didn't outright refuse," Tseng pointed out.
"Don't worry," he said. "Cloud didn't tell me no. In Cloud-speak that means I talked him into it and he's just procrastinating telling me I've won because he doesn't want me to think it was easy." His PHS vibrated again. "See?" He flipped it open. "Fine, Zack. But no one else. Tomorrow after dinner. That's at least seventeen hundred. No one has dinner at noon."
"He knows you so well," Sephiroth said, one brow quirking.
"Is anyone gonna ask about my actual meetin' with CS Delivery?" Reno actually sounded tired. Tired and annoyed. Even the expression on his face was sort of pinched.
"I've already passed around your informal report," Tseng said.
"That shit's essentially an outline," Reno said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "When that asshole was talkin' to the Avalanche spies, 'is face looked damn friendly. He wasn't grinnin' but he had this little smile on. An' whatever he was tellin' 'em scared the hell outta 'em. Course then he turned 'em into toads an' shooed the shits off."
"Was it Cloud?" Zack blurted. He was sure the Turk would have put it in the informal report if it was but he wanted to hear it now.
"Don't know," Reno said grudgingly. Inexplicably, he brightened, eyes widening as he straightened. "The new mag rod made a difference. That asshole wasn't expectin' it either. He grabbed my rod with his bare hand." Smirking now, Reno said, "Practically lit him up like fireworks. I almost got a kick in before he recovered, threw my balance to shit, and started smackin' me the head with my own weapon."
"Are you saying he's susceptible to lightning attacks?" Sephiroth asked.
Reno scoffed. "I'm sayin' that asshole's not immune to the equivalent of a direct Thundara assault. And that I'm gonna see if I can get another upgrade. I'm gonna fry that asshole if it's the last thin' I do."
"If you utilize a stronger weapon," Tseng said, "it will kill anyone who isn't under extreme mako enhancements. I won't authorize that sort of weapon."
"I wouldn't use it on everyone, boss. I'll keep what I've got for everyday use and save the new shit for that asshole."
A knock on the door broke the almost amused atmosphere that formed after Reno's declaration. Peering through the glass, Zack was surprised to see Reeve Tuesti. Shinra motioned the Head of Urban Development to enter. When he stepped inside, Shinra said, "Please be quick Tuesti, we're in the middle of something rather important."
"I know," he said, gaze flicking over the group, "CS Delivery. Nibelheim experiments. Avalanche. Cloud Strife."
Tseng slowly rose to his feet but Shinra held up a hand to keep him from moving away. "To what, exactly, are you referring?" the vice president asked.
"I know you're investigating Cloud Strife, former infantryman of First Class Fair's acquaintance for his possible connections to CS Delivery, the man responsible for the recent string of terrorist attacks beginning in Nibelheim." He paused. "I also know you're going to break your alliance with Avalanche and ally yourself with CS Delivery in attempt to wrest control of the company from your father."
"Such heavy allegations," Shinra mused casually. "Where are you going with this?"
"There's no need to attempt covering it up sir. I've been monitoring all the activity everyone at this briefing has been conducting." Looking over at Zack, Tuesti said, "Excellent move Fair in getting Strife to agree to meeting with Kunsel as well."
"How exactly do you know that?" Tseng asked, eyes narrowed. "Have you been bugging these rooms?"
Tuesti shook his head. "That wasn't necessary. I simply intercept all electronic communications. The Turks are monitoring enough that I piggyback their equipment." To Tseng, he said, "You're quite thorough. I don't need to use my own surveillance equipment."
"Why are you here?" Shinra asked.
"I would rather side with the lesser of two evils. The President lets Heidegger, Scarlet, and Hojo run amuck. They're unethical in the extreme. In the interest of complete honesty, I don't entirely approve of your practices either Vice President but CS Delivery appears to be cleaning up Shinra Company's messes and that is something I'm interested in."
"You want in?" Sephiroth asked.
"I do, General."
"And if we refuse?" Tseng asked.
"Then I will contact CS Delivery somehow on my own."
"You wouldn't go to my father?" Shinra asked.
"Not when there are better options."
"You consider a terrorist the better option?" Sephiroth asked dryly.
"True, CS Delivery has done millions of gil worth of property damage but each of the explosions was contained. He didn't even damage the grounds at the Shinra mansion. And fatalities are still at zero percent. I'm the Head of Urban Development. There's no reason for my job other than to help people and I worked toward this position for exactly that reason. CS Delivery appears to hold people at the same value."
"Interesting," Shinra said, polite smile taking an amused cant. He gestured to an empty chair. "Join us then."
When everyone was again seated, Shinra said, "It appears you're already up to speed on our plans. Do you have anything to add?"
"Only an oddity or two." Tuesti clasped his hands together on the desk. "Through all the messages you've sent back and forth between each other, I have all your PHS messages tracked, but Cloud Strife's PHS is another matter entirely. I can't get a lock on it. Whenever the signal bounces between your PHS and his, Fair, I can only monitor your side of things. Even embedding tracking bugs in the transmission itself is useless. I simply can't follow them. And when you speak with him instead of message, it's the same, my programs simply can't follow the signal. It's like his PHS doesn't exist and the messages and phone communications spontaneously appear in your PHS."
"How's that possible?" Tseng asked.
"It's very complicated," Tuesti said.
"That implies you know what's being done," Shinra commented.
"I can only theorize," Tuesti said. "I…invented a program to disappear in this same manner. It's how I've been tracking all of your electronic communications. I wouldn't even know how to describe it to someone who isn't well versed in technological…espionage."
"You think either Strife or CS Delivery stole your notes, or whatever it is you keep?" Shinra asked.
"That wouldn't be possible, Vice President. I've never written the procedures down. So far as I'm aware, that only leaves us with two possibilities, that I taught him how to do it, which I didn't, or that he found my programming and replicated it. This seems equally impossible because I created this method without have a way to circumvent it. I've been running scenarios for days now and this is in addition to all the program testing I did during development. I don't know how to track down this programming so if he's done it, he's better with technology than I am. And I don't know anyone better than me with computers even among the Turks."
"What makes you so sure?" Tseng asked.
"Because you would have noticed my spying by now if you had anyone at my caliber."
"You should have joined the Turks," Reno said with a smirk.
"I prefer a nonviolent approach," Tuesti countered.
"You said an oddity or two," Shinra said. "I heard only one oddity."
Tuesti nodded. "I suggest an alternate means of monitoring Strife." He smiled pleasantly. "I have just the robotic prototype to do it."
Four giant materia crystals hovered just above the water, rotating slowly on their own axes. The blobby Cetra ghosts hovered around with an air of vague uncertainty. Light flickered around the small room, refracted in little specks and rainbows.
He stepped back toward the entrance and the air around the Huge Materia shimmered. He turned and leapt out of the nook, landing on a crystal pillar some twenty feet away. A glance over his shoulder revealed a solid wall, the base of a tower stretching high inside the cavern as part of the Cetra under city. Even if someone found their way into the under city, the Cetra remnants would never let them find that small, unobtrusive room.
He leapt from pillar to pillar, winding his way back up in the main under city. On the path made of light, he climbed back up to the surface city entrance. The likelihood of anyone even finding the under city was ridiculously slim. In the two thousand years since the Cetra's war with Jenova, the under city remained pristine and untouched. Even Kadaj and the others seemed to have remained above ground. It made him wonder just how he and his comrades had managed to find it the first time he'd followed Aerith in. He would have to remember to ask the young woman if she'd let him follow on purpose. If she did, he was going to have to yell at her. Who in their right mind let someone follow them if they were essentially possessed by a psychopath intent on murdering them?
At the top of the glowing staircase, he stepped through the shifting light to find himself back in the Cetra house. Vincent was leaning against a nearby wall and Nanaki climbed to his feet.
He glanced over his shoulder and the shimmering image of the giant fish hovered in place.
"That didn't take long," Vincent said.
Cloud shrugged. "I was expected."
"The Huge Materia is safe?" Nanaki asked.
Cloud nodded.
Vincent pulled away from the wall and Nanaki loped after them both. He blinked and scowled at the bright midday light outside. The under city, though beautiful and crystalline and adequately lit, was a far cry dimmer than anything bathed in straight sunlight.
"Wark."
He couldn't help the smile that cracked his face at the sound of chocobos. Three of the bright creatures shoved through the rest to quibble over who head butted him in greeting first. Of the entire flock, these three had adopted him as their favorite. The feeling was mutual. He scratched the feathers on the backs of gold, blue, and black heads. A young yellow chocobo hung hesitantly back behind the three fully grown ones. He particularly liked Cloud too but felt really intimidated by the adults.
He handed the three each some greens and then left them to pay some special attention to the smaller one. The chocobo just about quivered with delight at such attention. His warks turned to the chocobo version of a warbling purr. The rest of the chocobo flock looked up at that, another seven heads lifting from their browsing of the sparse foliage. They apparently all liked it when a younger one was so pleased.
"These creatures have a surprising affinity for you," Vincent said.
At least Cloud didn't have to worry about chocobo-head jokes with these two.
"I did a lot of work with chocobos before coming back. They're very useful."
"They certainly ease transportation. Especially when you have so many of them." Vincent vaulted up onto a green chocobo, the only one of the lot that had taken a liking to the gunman.
A particularly cantankerous black chocobo allowed Nanaki to leap onto its back. "It's interesting being allowed to use another beast for transportation."
"We can't travel with all these chocobos everywhere, Cloud," Vincent added.
"I know," he said with a slight, half smile.
He ignored the stares of the townsfolk. And the pointing. And the laughter. And the chatter. And the shouted questions.
A strong shove from behind nearly sent him stumbling. He reached back to scratch beneath the gold chocobo's beak. It preened his hair affectionately. He glanced around the chocobo to see the whole flock still trailing happily behind him. They ignored the townsfolk in favor of vying with each other to walk closest to him. He made sure to catch a glimpse of the smaller, yellow chocobo before resuming his quick pace through and out of town.
Vincent and Nanaki would already be waiting for him.
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.