Chapter 2: Here's a lesson on Midgar
It's raining bullets. I kid not. Several streets into my search for a group of terrorists, I bumped into a group of Shinra soldiers. For several seconds, all we did was stare at each other, them wondering what the hell I was, me wondering how they were going to react.
In all honesty, I should have seen them going trigger happy from a long way off. One right hook to the squad leader, and a tail whip to the idiot that had pulled out some handcuffs, I turned tail and fled, ducking into an alleyway to avoid the hailstorm of bullets that came my way. Typical really. This was the Shinra, they were hardly known for leaving people to do as they pleased, even if they weren't breaking any laws... well, I don't think I was breaking any laws. For all I knew, giant bipedal lizards were illegal, but somehow, I really doubt it.
For some reason, I couldn't seem to lose them. Any I shot or slashed at with my gunblade were replaced by more of them. Did they have an infinite supply of goons, just standing idly by until some of their comrades were killed? Well, that was the best explanation I could come up with.
But these grunts were lousy aims. I could probably be shot at from point blank range and they'd miss. I wasn't about to test that theory, of course. I might be crazy, but I'm not stupid. I think the Shinra military has had one budget cut too many, if they can't hit me from 12 feet away. True, I was moving, and trying not to get shot at the time, but at that range, with an assault rifle firing on full automatic, I should have been shot. Not that I'm not thankful that I wasn't. I like being alive, thanks for asking.
Leaping up onto a fire escape ladder, and scrambling up, I managed to escape the Shinra moans (named after their constant moaning about not being able to shoot me) for the time being. Sighing, I climbed all the way to the roof, and sat on the edge, looking at the sky. How did I get here? All I knew was that some girl, claiming to be my PS2 dragged me here, because of a comment about living here and fighting the fight. If I'd known that this would have happened, I probably would have kept my big mouth shut. I have nothing against being here... in my geeky dreams. Actually being here, sorry, too much work. I'm not a physically fit guy. Quite the opposite. Picture those stereotypical computer geeks, who sit in their bedrooms using the computer all day, 24/7. Yeah, that's me, only skinny.
Though at the moment, I'm hardly skinny. Broad. Standing up, I looked down at myself, examining every part of me that I could. While I'm sure you're meant to feel different when you've fused with your pet, the fact I'm not out of breath after being chased by the Shinra moans caught my attention. Besides the fact that my arms were green, something about them looked different. Very different. I figured out was it was, when I tensed my arm.
I had muscles.
True they weren't professional boxer or a body builder's size muscles, but I actually had some meat on my bones. So that's what I'd felt. Well, that's one bonus to being here. I have muscles. I could beat someone at an arm wrestle if I tried now. Now that I think about it, no wonder I could actually lift my gunblade. How convenient.
Looking over the edge of the rook, down at the street, I scratched my snout, pondering as to how I was going to be able to find Cloud and the rest of the friendly neighbourhood eco-terrorists. Preferably without being shot at.
Fate decided to tell me the general direction I needed to travel in when one of the Mako reactors exploded, the force from which making me fall of the building. Thank god for balconies. I managed to see which reactor blew up before my drop, it wasn't far, though it was still some distance, it being at the edge of the city while I was more towards the heart of Midgar, still in the shadow of the tower that was the Shinra headquarters. Then again, was there any place in Midgar that wasn't within the shadow of that tower?
Hopping from the balcony to the street below, landing with a grace that couldn't have been mine, I started to move through the streets, towards the large smoking husk that was once the Sector 1 Mako reactor. Regrettably, at the first junction, the Shinra troops found me again. I didn't wait to see their response this time around. I just pulled my gunblade free and shot the lead trooper in one fluid motion, almost as if I'd been doing this for a long time. Something to ponder on later.
The troopers weren't exactly overjoyed to see their commanding officer take a bullet to the head. I wouldn't have been either, but I didn't hang around to offer any sympathies. Shouldn't have tried to capture me for whatever purposes. Probably Hojo. Hate to imagine what'd happen if he got his greasy hands on me.
"Stop, in the name of the Shinra!" One of the troopers yelled out at me.
Sod that. If he wants me to stop, he's going to have to do better then that. Maybe paying me the entire Shinra fortune.
A bullet flew over my head, making me stumble, cursing. Mid-stumble, I swung my gunblade around, aiming the end of it in the general area of the moaning soldiers, pumping the trigger as quickly as my finger would allow. I didn't look behind me to check whether any of them were hit though, everyone knows that looking behind you is a foolish thing to do when being chased. Looking behind you slows you down. But judging from the yelling, I think I hit somebody, at least.
Hmm, as well as stronger, and having more stamina, I also seem to be faster then I used to be. Not like it was a difficult feat, me having been so slow back in my human body. I wonder whether these improvements to my body were a result of the fusion, or something the girl that claimed to be my PS2 did. Maybe a combination of the two.
Turning a corner, I slammed into another Shinra trooper, knocking us both to the ground. Thankfully, I landed on top, meaning I didn't have to wait for the soldier's weight to get of of me before I could get up. Before doing so, I slammed a fist into the trooper's face, knocking him out. No sense in letting him join his comrades in their little lizard hunt. Back on my feet, I sprinted down the street like my life depended on it. Knowing the Shinra, I probably did.
Halfway down the street, the whispers came back, and with them, I felt the strangest urge to dive into the alley that was just coming up. Under the mentality of 'what's the worst that could happen?' I dived into the alley, just as heavy machine gun fire started to pour bullets down the street, and would have likely torn me to shreds had I not taken the dive.
Sighing a breath of relief, I eyed the dead end, and shrugged, before climbing the wall that blocked off the alley. Better then waiting here for the moans to arrive. Over the wall, and into a dumpster. My day just keeps getting better with every flying minute. Scrambling out of the dumpster, and away from the stink, I started to move, eager to put as much distance between myself and the moan brigade as I could.
That plan was ruined when a completely different group of Shinra troops stormed down the street, rifles aimed at me. Sighing, I raised my hands, the universal gesture of surrender. I wasn't suicidal, and I doubt they'd hesitate to kill me if I did anything to threaten them.
Doesn't mean I won't try to make life as hard as I could for them.
"Surly we can work something out?" I asked the moans, in mock fear.
"It spoke!" One of the morons yelled in surprise.
"Hail the queen of the obvious." I muttered.
"Shut your trap." The same trooper snapped. "How much of a raise do you think we'll get for delivering this thing to Hojo?"
"At least triple the current wages." A small soldier piped up.
"At least half, you mean." I countered.
"How would dat work?" A different moan pondered, sounding extremely confused.
"Easy. You failed to deliver the goods." I smirked.
"But... but we haven't failed ta deliver... have we?"
"Trust me, you have." I answered him, before grabbing him by the neck and tossing him carelessly through someone's window.
One of the things I liked about this new body was the fact I actually had some strength in my body. As I had mentioned, I was about as strong as a body builder was, but it didn't look it, though you could tell that I was pretty strong. After hearing the smash of the glass, I spun my body around, tail whipping the rest of the soldiers. The moans went flying several feet, doing exactly what I named 'em for, moaning. Before they could stand up, I yanked the gunblade from the sheath and got into a combat stance. My stance was pretty relaxed; I held the gunblade with one hand, which hung loosely by my side. For some reason, it seemed like an automatic reaction, I'd barely put any thought into how I was going to fight. It seemed pretty effective too, because when the soldiers got up, they were pretty unnerved from how relaxed I was.
"Right men." The 'queen of the obvious' started. "It obviously doesn't want to go quietly, so we'll take it by force, dead or alive."
"I was wrong." I claimed, suddenly. "You aren't the queen of the obvious... you're the goddess of the bleedin' obvious."
The man grit his teeth and opened fire at me. I rolled under the storm of bullets and slashed upwards with my gunblade. The poor sod was dead before he could blink. I didn't dwell on it for long, because two of the others started to shoot at me as well. I leapt to the side, and watched, bemused, as one of the pair cut down the other by accident. He stopped shooting the god forsaken machine-gun, to gape at what he had done, when a hole appeared in his forehead, where I shot him. I remember whirling and twisting as I slashed and shot at the Shin-Ra lackeys, making it all seem like some kind of dance. A couple of times, I even used my tail to add to the attack. Afterwards, I stood over the dead bodies, a little puzzled. What puzzled me was that I hadn't even thought to attack, just as I hadn't thought to enter that battle stance. I figured I'd think about it later, or maybe even ask my PS2 about it, when I got the chance. As a victory move, I flipped my blade and caught it before swiftly sheathing it.
I looked around and remembered my current situation. The mako reactor had blown up, and not too far away, but thanks to that fight, I may have missed AVALANCHE. I took off down the street, looking for a train station. AVALANCHE got to sector 7 by train, so I needed to be on that train.
Lady Luck frowned upon me. After I took a single step, the original moan patrol showed up, guns blazing. Cursing, I fired several rounds at them, examining my surroundings for a way to slow them down, help me to get away.
My eyes strayed to a cable stretching across the street, cackling with electricity after brief intervals. Taking another shot at the troopers, I switched my aim to the power cable and shot at the point where it connected with a large pole that kept it suspended in the air. The seventh bullet tore through the cable, forcing it to become a victim of gravity, which wasted no time in throwing it to the ground in front of the moans. The troopers moved backwards, their aim drifting from me to the cackling cable that now blocked their path.
I took the opportunity to run the opposite direction, pausing only briefly to introduce a late comer from the now dead group to me palm.
I was in luck. As I left the street, I entered a very familiar area. It was the site where Cloud was ambushed and was forced to leap onto the train. And he had only just finished off with the first wave of moans. I watched as right after they died, another pair of troops arrived, and forced him to retreat. He ran to where I was standing, planning on fleeing down the street I had just come from.
"You don't want to go down there." I said, grabbing his arm.
"Why not?" He demanded.
"Couple of squads of them, with more probably on the way." I grimly replied.
The swordsman frowned, glancing over my shoulder to see my handiwork, before nodding.
"Fine." He responded, running the opposite direction.
I followed him. We encountered another squad of goons, who were easily disposed of between the two of us, before another squad came to replace them. Eventually we were cornered, on the side of the bridge, over looking the train tracks. The trains whistle was heard by all.
"That's as far as you go." one of the soldiers said smugly. Each of the soldiers had their guns raised, ready to fire if either Cloud or me made any other attempts to escape.
"I don't have time to messing around with you guys." Cloud snapped at the goons.
"Enough babbling, grab them." The commanding officer ordered.
I wasn't about to hang around for them, and neither was Cloud. We leapt up onto the wall and jumped off. To anyone else, it looked like we had committed suicide, but to us, it had been anything but. We had heard the train coming (or rather Cloud did, I only knew because I've seen the clip loads of times), and we had jumped safely on top of it. Once the train entered the tunnel, away from the Shin-Ra soldiers, Cloud turned to me.
"Thanks for the help." He said; voice raised just enough so that he could be heard above the noise the train was making.
"No problem." I answered. "Hey, do you know about AVALANCHE?"
"I know them. Why?" He asked, scowling.
"I want to join them. Shinra has screwed up enough peoples lives; I want to help them stop Shinra."
"You'll need to speak to Barret. He's the leader. I'll show you to him in a minute." Cloud responded, after thinking for a while.
I blinked in surprise. I had expected him to refuse, but he had said he'd show me to Barret? I couldn't help but think that this was a little out of character for him at this point in the game. Then it hit me; he was a mercenary, and by introducing someone who wanted to join, full time, he was hoping to get a little extra in the payment, greedy bastard. Grinning, I observed him, as he ran to the end of the train and crouched down. I walked casually up to him.
"Don't follow me straight in." Cloud warned. "They are extremely cautious, and if they see a non-human just waltz in after me, they'll assume the worst, for both of us. It doesn't help that I'm ex-SOLDIER myself. Wait for me to give all the cautions to them."
"Be my guest." I shrugged. As long as I was accepted, I was happy.
I watched him grab onto a rail and lower himself to the doors. He knocked on them several times, before opening them and flipping in.
"Show off." I muttered, rolling my eyes.
I sat down, waiting. I almost burst out laughing when I heard Barret start yelling at Cloud over the mercenary's ego. It went silent for a couple of minutes until Cloud leant out of the door.
"You can come in now." He said.
Nodding to myself, I leapt from the roof of the train, grabbing the railing with my tail, swinging myself through the large doors. 3 people inside jumped at my appearance, the pair who didn't being Cloud and the leader of AVALANCHE himself: Barret. Barret raised an eyebrow, and was about to say something, when I interrupted him, grabbing his hand and pumping it up and down. Hey, if there is one thing I know about being allowed into groups, the leader's ego is the key. Inflate it enough, you're in.
"Wow... The mastermind behind AVALANCHE himself. This is an honour. And... oh my god, the rumour is true, you do have a gun-arm. This is the greatest day of my life. I'm a big fan of you guys." I say so fast, even I had difficulty understanding myself.
I heard Cloud snort in the background. Barret was looking at me, mouth agape as he tried to register just what I had said. Eventually, he smirked at me and turned to Biggs, Wedge and Jessie, in the background.
"I like this guy already." He grunted.
See what I mean about inflating the ego? Anyway, he seemed to be analysing me, with those beady eyes of his, probably pondering whether to actually let me join or not.
"You're in." He grinned. "What's your name kid?"
And for the umpteenth time today, I am surprised at these auto reactions I seem to be using, because, instead of saying my name, I called myself:
"Spike."
"Spike, eh? Welcome aboard." He replied. "Damn. Now I can't call Cloud 'Spike' in honour of his hair." He joked.
Everyone but Cloud chuckled softly for a moment.
Barret turned quickly and headed towards the door leading into the next train car. "Wake up! We're movin' out! Follow me."
And just like that, Barret pushed open the door of the car and headed out, leaving the rest of us in the baggage car. Wedge pushed himself up off the crate he had been sitting on, and walked to Cloud.
"Hey, Cloud, you were great back there," he commented, before he turned looked at me. "Great to have you aboard, Spike." He claimed, before he walked through the door after Barret. Once he was gone Biggs walked up to me, after previously saying something to the spiky headed swordsman.
"It's great to have a new permanent member, we've been hurting for help for ages now." He said, and he also walked through the door.
I turned at the sound of the cargo doors shutting and smirked at Cloud while Jessie mothered him, scrubbing his face clean.
"There you go." She concluded. She then walked past Cloud, heading for the door. "Say, thanks for helping me back there at the reactor."
Before she left, she nodded politely at me, before exiting. Cloud stood still for a couple of seconds before following. I smiled in victory at managing to join AVALANCHE. I was disturbed by the sound of someone clapping. I pivoted my body around and saw just the person I wanted to see: my PS2. I pointed at her, scowling.
"You. Me. Answers. Now!"