The Resistance
By: Illusion of the Mirror
"So who was it that shot at you?" Yuffie queried as she applied antiseptic to Tifa's knees. Tifa winced as the medicine sunk in and stung her skin. "I really have no idea what-so-ever." She glanced over at Vincent who was sitting in a chair while Shera wrapped his injured leg.
He had taken his shirt off so that she could wrap his shoulder as well, but he had yet to put it back on. Despite the fact that white scars crisscrossed his skin, Tifa found herself admiring his nicely toned physic. She wasn't the kind to openly check someone out, but her weariness left her little awareness of how her eyes wandered, or rather, remained focused on one subject for much longer than what would be polite.
Yuffie cleared her throat and Tifa immediately looked down at her with a slight blush forming on her cheeks. Yuffie smiled sardonically and leaned in closer. "You've got a little drool," she said with a gesture toward the corner of her mouth. This earned a playful kick from Tifa who was hoping that Yuffie was the only one to have noticed her ogling.
Cid, who had been pacing the room since before Tifa arrived, stopped to crush his cigarette butt in an ashtray and then sighed. "This is just gettin' more and more dangerous and it's starting to piss me off." He flicked open his lighter and lit up another.
Red shook his head. "You're going to kill yourself with that habit." Cid only shot him a dangerous look and took an even longer drag. Red glanced over at their prisoner beside him. The masked man had been tied to a dining room chair and was still unconscious; his head lolling to one side.
"Well, anyway, it's obvious from Tifa's…um…escapade, that we're definitely gathering a fair amount of hazardous enemies. But someone out there is on our side."
Shera looked up from her work and bit her lip. "The question is; who is who?"
Cid stopped pacing and pulled his cigarette from his mouth. He glared treacherously at their unconscious guest. "Well, there's one way to find out for sure." The whole group watched as the brazen pilot marched over to the slumped man and violently ripped the mask from his head.
When Tifa saw who it was that had been tied to the chair, she let out a gasp and nearly fell out of her own chair. "Aiden?!"
Cid looked confused at first, but then suddenly turned to Tifa. "Hey, ain't he one of those kids that works at your bar?"
Tifa rose and cautiously approached hoping that she was wrong. As she got closer, however, it was irrefutable that the kid in front of her was none other than Aiden O'Connor. But why? Was he with Darknation or someone else?
Aiden stirred slightly and let out a considerable moan as his eyes squinted to adjust to the light. When he finally was able to open his eyes fully, he surveyed the faces in the room with confusion pasted all over his face and then glanced down to see that he was bound to a chair. It was then that he realized that he was no longer sporting his mask.
Vincent stood, though not without slight fussing from Shera, and crossed to the young adult. "You rested well I expect." Tifa could see the smoldering irritation in Vincent's eyes, and suspected that Aiden did as well, because he immediately looked defiantly down into his lap without saying a word.
Vincent, however, wasn't going to let the youth get away with this, and knelt so he could glare up into Aiden's downcast face. "I strongly suggest that you begin explaining yourself." Aiden turned his head to the side in order to further avoid Vincent's intimidating gaze.
"I see," Vincent grunted as he stood and then placed his clawed hand on the boy's shoulder. "I do not think that you understand the severity of your position. These past few days have been very trying for us and," he locked eyes with Tifa and tightened his grip. "…and my patience is wearing considerably thin."
Tifa could hear the tension in Vincent's voice, and it told her that he was not bluffing. She decided to lend some help in her own way. She rose and crossed over to Aiden. Vincent arced an eyebrow as she stood in front of the boy and crossed her arms. That's right, you've all seen this before; the motherly lecture stance.
"Aiden," she began kindly enough, but her voice held an edge. "What is going on? What were you doing?" Aiden slowly met Tifa's eyes, but he retained his characteristic boldness; his eyes portraying no sign of guilt or weakness. Tifa sighed and dropped her hands to her sides. "Why? Why won't you tell me? Do you realize what we've been through? I was shot at today, Aiden!"
This sparked interest in the boy's eyes. "What?"
"Ah, so he does have a voice," Red mumbled in annoyance.
"That's right," Tifa answered. "On my way home from the college I was attacked and I was lucky that someone had been there to help."
Aiden's face became serious and his brows drew together in a question. "…that wasn't us…we wouldn't have tried to harm you…"
Barret was in no mood for vague answers. "Us? Who are you with?"
"You sure tried to harm us tonight," Yuffie added indignantly, but Tifa caught a glimpse of something else in her eyes; admiration perhaps?
Aiden sighed and shook his head. "You misunderstand…you see, we didn't realize…there was a monster chasing us. We were shooting at that, and then your friends started returning fire despite the fact it was not aimed at them."
A fierce glint came to Vincent's eyes when Aiden said the word monster. She only hoped that he would let that one slide without any comment, but it was not to be. Despite his physical condition, he allowed his body to transform right in front of them all. Aiden was shocked; his mouth hung agape to prove it as the "monster" from before twisted into shape in front of him. A grave frown formed on Vincent's frightening features. "Not all things are what they seem."
This seemed to break the tough exterior that Aiden was presenting. Fear was evident on his face as Vincent's body popped and snapped back into place. Tifa approached the stunned young man and turned his head so he was looking her in the eyes. "Aiden," she said calmly. "It's time for you to start answering our questions."
Aiden closed his eyes tightly and slowly nodded. "Now," Tifa murmured as she stood up straight. "What the heck were you doing?"
Aiden was silent for a moment and all that could be heard was the downpour commencing outside. "We had to come. We had to." He looked up into Tifa's eyes with what almost looked like sadness. "You found Marie's room."
The realization hit Tifa like a ton of bricks. "You came for the candles, didn't you?"
"…yes."
Yuffie blinked. "Marie's room? How did you know about that?"
Aiden looked toward Yuffie with his emerald green eyes. "That would be the same question I would like to ask you. But since you did so first…" He trailed off and seemed to be gazing at something very far away and beyond the walls.
Tifa bit her lip and then breathed deeply. She'd figured it out. "You're…you're with the Resistance, aren't you? That's how you knew; because of Marie herself."
"Yes…we have always known." A very stern expression filled his youthful face, making him appear to have aged ten years right in front of them. "We are not your enemies…we never were."
"Then that Bordeaux girl is with you too," Cid added, seemingly putting two and two together.
Aiden nodded and the others exchanged glances all around the room. "Aiden," Tifa began. "Please, tell us all you know."
Aiden nodded once again and then smiled crookedly at her. "I can do better than that, boss. I can take you to some people that know even more than me." He glanced down at his bound figure. "But I'm afraid you'll need to let me loose first. I swear I won't run for it."
He glanced at Vincent standing there with crossed arms. "Not that I would get too far."
Tifa nodded to Barret. "Let him go now."
Barret seemed apprehensive, but obeyed with only a slight hesitation. Once he was loose, Aiden stood and stretched to his full height. Tifa glanced at the clock above the fireplace mantel. It was now nearing two o'clock in the morning and she could read the sheer exhaustion on everyone's faces. "Cid, what time is Shera and the kids' ride getting here?"
"Around fourish. Thought it would be better to get them outta here while it was still dark."
Shera gripped Cid's hand. "Then it looks like the kids and I only have about two hours. I'll go wake them up and have them get ready the rest of the way." She started towards the stairs.
Vincent regarded Aiden with evident dislike. "Where, exactly, are you planning on taking us?"
Aiden was either totally oblivious to Vincent's barbed statement or he just didn't care. "Eh? Oh, to meet the rest of us, I guess." He turned to Tifa.
"You said someone shot at you? We knew Darknation was after you, but we didn't think…" He then waved the statement away. "Well, the others will know what to do." He then looked down at his ankle. "What I'd really like to know is who set up that trap."
Yuffie stepped forward almost meekly. "Er…that was me."
Aiden smiled broadly and held out his hand. "Excellent job! I mean, I totally didn't see it until it was too late. You're pretty good at that sort of thing, eh?"
Yuffie blushed and stood up straighter. "Heck yes! I have a lot of talents for stuff like that and people around me don't seem to appreciate it." She gave a quick glare in Cid's direction.
Aiden snickered at this and then remembered the rest of them. "Oh, yeah. We can wait until the ride comes for the others, but if things are really getting that serious, I think we should get to the others as soon as possible."After that was said, he turned back around and started right back up in his conversation with Yuffie, who was eating up the attention.
Tifa glanced over at Vincent. He looked quite unhappy. Could she blame him? He locked eyes with her and then dropped his arms and crossed over to her. He stopped next to her and spoke softly very close to her ear. "I need to speak with you." Tifa assumed she was supposed to follow him and left the others downstairs.
Once they were in his room, Vincent immediately pulled another shirt out of his things and put it on. He then sighed and sunk down onto his bed. He sat with his elbows on his knees and his fingers together in front of his nose.
"Tell me, Tifa, do you trust this young man?"
Tifa crossed her arms. Did she? After a moment of silent thought, she finally answered. "Aiden has been working for me for a while now, and he's a lot of things, but he's not a liar. Blunt to a fault, yes, but a liar he has never been."
Vincent grunted in response and then looked up at her with his intense eyes.
"I know that you don't trust people very easily, Vincent," Tifa began slowly. "But I don't really see how we have a choice. We can go with him and finally get to the bottom of this, or at least close, or we can remain blind to whatever's out there."
"It seems that you have already weighed the issue thoroughly." Vincent looked towards the window and lowered his brows. "There is truth in your words, and if you truly believe this is the best choice," he halted his speech and looked up at her once more. "Then I believe that it is as well."
He rose and began smoothing the wrinkles out of his shirt. "I may not trust your brash little friend, but I trust your judgment."
Tifa was taken aback by what Vincent had just said to her. "…you…you really mean that?"
Vincent paused and met her eyes with a slightly disturbed look on his face. "Do you believe that I would lie to you?"
"N-no!" Tifa stammered.
Vincent's expression softened and the ghost of a smile played at the corner of his lips. "Yes, I do mean it. Your opinion is important to me, Tifa. Even if you don't believe it is."
Tifa smiled sheepishly. "It's just that I've never had anyone tell me that before. Thank you." Vincent gave a slight chuckle. Placing a hand on the small of her back, he led her toward the door. "You are welcome. Now come, I believe I heard a vehicle pull up outside."
Tifa, however, barely registered his last words and nodded distractedly as energy zinged from where his warm touch graced her skin.
-- O --
Ding dong. There was the doorbell. Denzel looked down at his feet as he lay on his bed. He didn't want to leave, but he knew that there was no way the others would let him stay. Sitting up, he reached down and began putting on his shoes. I'd much rather stay here and help fight…but I know that Marlene doesn't want to leave either. I guess I've got to be strong for her.
"Kids!" Shera shouted up the stairs. "Evans is here!"
Marlene, who had fallen into a light sleep snuggled up next to Denzel, sat up and rubbed her watery eyes. "Denzel," she said softly. "I don't want to go."
Denzel stood up and held out his hand to help her up. "I know. But Aunt Shera might have the baby soon. We have to be there for her just in case."
Marlene smiled, but the light that usually permeated her eyes, was gone.
-- O --
Evans, a short, stocky man with a buzz cut and tattoos of fierce looking dragons covering his arms, stood in the parlor and looked completely out of place standing next to Tifa's china hutch full of ceramic fairies. When she noticed this, she giggled to herself and ended up having to point it out to Yuffie once pestered enough. Yuffie was even more entertained than Tifa had been and had to excuse herself for a moment to guffaw in the other room.
There's something to be said for telling jokes at four in the morning, Tifa mused.
Cid and the man conversed about the situation in hushed tones. "Now, you're gonna wanna take the back roads so ya won't be detected as easily…" Evans nodded as he took everything that Cid said in stride. Tifa assumed he must work for Cid.
Just then, Denzel and Marlene came down the stairs. The young girl rushed over and gave Barret a hug.
"I'm gonna miss you, Daddy," she sobbed into his shirt.
He embraced her tightly and patted her head. "Don't worry, Sweetheart, it's gonna be okay." Marlene sniffed and nodded. She then proceeded to give hugs to all the others, even Vincent. Tifa found that especially endearing.
Denzel gave Barret a rather non-committal hug and then turned to Red. The stood there speaking silently to each other until Denzel stepped forward and embraced the kindly beast round his neck.
"Take care of them, Denzel," Red sniffed. Denzel nodded and straightened, hesitantly taking Marlene's hand; his facial expression betraying the fact that he resented being sent away.
Shera stood on her tip-toes and planted a kiss on Cid's lips. "You stay safe, old man."
With a last round of spoken and unspoken goodbyes, the four stepped out into the rain and ran for their ride to safety. Evans started the car up and the headlights lit up the driveway. Even though it was dark out, Tifa saw Marlene waving from the backseat and lifted her hand to them as they pulled out and on to a safe haven.
Aiden, who had been standing in the background in uncharacteristic silence, stepped forward. "I've contacted the others. They're expecting us. We should leave immediately."
-- O --
Since they were positive that Darknation was surveying the house, Aiden led them out during the fiercest part of the storm and they traveled on foot to the bus stop up the road where they waited in the darkness. The wind whipped Tifa's soaking locks into her face and the cold drops soaked through her torn clothing. This situation was certainly not ideal.
Soon, headlights appeared in the distance; their light forging a stream through the inky darkness. When the vehicle pulled up, it was nothing more than the usual dilapidated city bus.
"A bus?" Yuffie asked sardonically. "Our escape vehicle is a bus?"
Aiden smirked at Yuffie's disbelief, but did not answer. He merely climbed in through the open door and stood next to the driver; beckoning for their rag-tag group to follow. Tifa was the first to make a move, being that she was closest. Upon stepping inside, Aiden's smirk instantly made sense.
Although the outside of the bus had been thoroughly normal, the inside was a completely different story. The walls and roof were lined with Kevlar armor and more than half of the seats had been ripped out to make room for cases of firearms and other miscellaneous weapons. Tifa's eyes were wide as she surveyed the many computers and surveillance screens that were set up around the vehicle. She turned back to the others, utterly flabbergasted.
Cid stood with total awe in his features. He pushed back his goggles as he closed his open mouth.
"Damn…" Barret's eyes were wide as he surveyed the weapons; instantly recognizing each one.
Red and Vincent surveyed the surroundings with caution, but Tifa could tell that they were both quite impressed.
Yuffie was completely mystified and turned back to Aiden.
He laughed boisterously. "So you approve, then? I thought you would."
The bus lurched into movement and he placed a hand on the driver's shoulder. "Everyone, I'd like for you to meet Dean Preston."
Dean looked over his shoulder with a toothy grin and winked. "Glad to be of service!" He then turned back around and began mumbling into the headset that was attached to his gleaming, standard issue police helmet.
Aiden peered out the side window and then turned back to them. "Looks like we haven't been detected so far, but my guess is that if we do have a shadow, they'll be trying hard to go unnoticed."
Seeing the grim looks on all their faces, he smiled broadly and gave a thumbs up. "Hey, not to worry! Dean, here is an expert driver. If we got a tail, he'll lose 'em no problem!" He lowered himself into one of the still existing seats. "But you might wanna buckle up."
Tifa sunk into one of the seats and clicked the safety belt. Yuffie, who had seated herself next to Tifa, kept her eyes fixed on the redhead in front of her; an unreserved look of marvel in her dark eyes. Tifa leaned over and whispered into the girl's ear. "Hey, Yuffie…you're drooling." Yuffie glanced at her and grimaced, but then went right back to her previous transfixion.
Cid, Barret, and Red spoke in hushed tones with Aiden with many questions about the vehicle. Aiden seemed to enjoy being the center of attention and his chest puffed out a bit more with each answer he gave. Tifa rolled her eyes. He never was the humble type. She glanced back at Vincent who was silently surveying his surroundings while pointedly ignoring the boy. Or the observant type, for that matter. She turned her tired gaze to the window.
Focusing her eyes into the dark, she thought that she could make out the outline of a van in the lane beside them, but if it was there, it had its lights off. Apparently, their driver noticed as well, because the bus suddenly turned left and sped up. The new passengers gripped their seats, but Aiden seemed totally unfazed and kept right on talking.
Tifa's suspicion was affirmed when lights suddenly came on behind them. Dean sped up as the bus approached a tunnel. The van was attempting to catch up, but was a good distance behind now. As they entered the tunnel, Tifa saw Dean reach for a lever to his right and pull on it. The whole group watched out the window as a side of the tunnel opened to reveal a split in the road to the right.
Dean veered to the right and pushed the lever back into place. Through the back window, they could see the entrance close up and all was thrown into absolute darkness save the glowing red lights in the bus' cabin and a faint circle of light at the end of the tunnel.
Dean began to slow the vehicle and soon came to a complete stop at the end. The tunnel had ended abruptly. Then, to the group's surprise, the wall opened up to reveal what appeared to be an underground aircraft hanger and bus terminal. Tifa glanced over to Cid, who she was sure was close to passing out with glee. She giggled at his childish delight.
The vehicle rolled to a stop between two similar buses and Dean turned to face them. "Here we are." He locked eyes with Aiden. "The counsel is waiting in the grand hall."
Aiden nodded and stood; motioning for the others to do so as well. "Come on, we had better get going."
-- O --
Aiden poked his head back out through the double wooden doors of the counsel room. "Alright," he said to the six comrades seated in the hall. "They're ready for you now. Come on in."
Tifa and the others stood and filed through the doors. Upon entry, she could see a large circular table with several people sitting around it; two of whom were very familiar. "Professor Altmann? Professor Stratford? You two are…"
"With the resistance, yes," Catherine Stratford finished. "Please, won't you take a seat?" She gestured toward six empty chairs close to them.
As the new-comers took their seats, a tall, aging man with graying auburn hair rose and made a slight bow. "Good morning, I am glad that we finally have the privilege to meet, I am just saddened that it must be under such unfortunate circumstances."
The man sank back down into his chair and folded his hands in front of him on the table. "My name is Andrew O'Connor. You are already acquainted with my son, Aiden." Aiden, who had seated himself in a chair at the side of the room, saluted casually with two fingers.
"We understand that these times must be very trying for you all," Andrew continued. "And we are deeply dismayed that you have been dragged into this predicament."
Tifa listened intently to what Andrew was saying, but as she surveyed the individuals in the room, one in particular caught her eye; a young, petite woman with short red hair. "Emily Bordeaux!" Tifa interrupted without thinking. Immediately, the girl's gaze collided with Tifa's. She nodded slowly and sighed. "Yes, it's me."
Tifa's mind was flooded with questions as her anger rose, but she was calmed by a steady hand on her shoulder. She looked over to see Vincent giving her an understanding look that said, I know how you feel, but this isn't the time to be getting upset. Tifa took a deep breath and then leaned forward in her chair.
"Mr. O'Connor," she began with determination. "Your apology is accepted, but it's not what we're here for. We're here for answers."
Andrew looked down and then exchanged glances with an elderly man to his right. "Very well. Gabriel, would you do the honor?"
The man to Andrew's right nodded and began. "Our organization, the Resistance, has been in a struggle with Darknation for hundreds of years even before they were identified by that name. It all began back during the reign of an evil king named Sloan. He had in his possession a stone, called the Bloodstone, in which was trapped a dark, pagan god. He drew power from this abomination through the sacrifice of his subjects."
Gabriel paused and his voice became ominous. "Those were dark days and as time went on, the king only grew more and more power hungry. The people lived in terror until a group of rebels resisted and overthrew the king in a long and arduous battle that ended many lives. Under the name of the Resistance, they imprisoned and executed the king and his sorcerers and encased the Bloodstone in a talisman that was branded with a holy incantation that would seal the dark being in it forever."
"But despite the peace that was brought to the land, this land, there were still those who remained loyal to the king. Over time, the people forgot what their ancestors had suffered and the evil ones rose into power once more under the title of the Kingsmen. Led by a wicked man named Sebastian, they hunted down those who were of the Resistance and slaughtered them, their families, and any who had aided them in the past. It was during this time that most of our people had fled to the mountain village of Sráidbhaile, where they would be safe and hidden."
"However, it was not to be for Sebastian's son, Kale, led his band of trained secret soldiers, whom he called Darknation, into the mountains and massacred the entire town; man, woman, and child. But a few of our numbers survived and now we have built this," he gestured outward with his hand. "We will meet Darknation at every turn to keep them from coming to power once more."
Tifa cocked her head and bit her lip. "And what of Marie? How did she and the talisman fit into all of this? What about Timothy and Seraphine? Did they survive the ferry ride?"
Gabriel's wrinkled features were etched with surprise. "H-how did you know about that?"
Tifa blushed, instantly realizing that she had every eye in the room now upon her. Now what could she say? Should she tell them about the visions?
"Andrew…" a weak voice from the corner of the room said in a near whisper. "Bring her to me."
Andrew nodded, stood, and approached Tifa slowly. Tifa withdrew from his open hand when he held it out to help her up.
"Don't worry; I won't hurt you, Miss Lockheart." Tifa allowed the tall man to help her to her feet and lead her over to an ancient looking woman in a wheelchair. "This is she, Rebecca."
Tifa glanced back at the others and saw that both Vincent and Barret had risen from their seats and watched protectively over her. She turned back to the old woman to see her holding out a frail, shaky hand.
The woman's overall appearance was rather frightening. Her eyes were rolled upward and were glazed over with white. Her nearly transparent skin limply hung from her features and her lips seemed to constantly move in an intangible silent muttering.
"Do not be afraid, child," Rebecca whispered. "Please, give me your hand." Tifa obeyed hesitantly and let her hand be taken into Rebecca's.
The old woman closed her blind eyes and hummed. After a moment, a weak smile turned up the corners of her lips. She slowly sat forward and placed her forefinger beneath Tifa's chin, a tear sliding down her aged cheek. "Welcome home, lost daughter of the resistance."
-- O --
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