"Well, that was hardly entertaining," Rufus stated as he holstered Dark Nation. He and his Turks in concert with the WRO had managed to retake Nibelheim from the Repentant. There were still pockets of resistance from the zealots in several alleyways and such, but for the most part the battle was over. The Repentant fought like men and women possessed, but they lacked the military skill to hold out for very long. Rufus ran his hand through his hair as he surveyed the extensive damage to the once-quaint hamlet.

A few seconds later, Rufus walked over to where the town's well once stood and met with his Turks. Tseng and Elena's uniforms were a bit dirty from battle, but were nonetheless unharmed. Reno and Rude, however, each had several small lacerations at various points on their bodies. Their uniforms were completely trashed…or in Reno's case, even more trashed than usual. Rufus examined the two partners and laughed.

"Reno, Rude…you two look like hell. Did you fall asleep halfway through the battle? I can't think of any other reason why these amateurs would've ever actually gotten to you."

"Yeah, well…even a blind mu gets lucky sometimes, Mr. President," Reno explained sheepishly. "So, I take it the fight's over?"

"Damn straight!" Elena said excitedly. "The President, Tseng, and I really gave it to those Repentant creeps. Didn't even get hit once! Looks like you two are losing your touch."

"…Elena…" Rude muttered. "Shut up."

"You tell her, partner!" Reno piped up. "So, does this mean we can grab a drink now?"

"Not yet," Tseng calmly stated. "Cyrus Thresher still needs to be dealt with. We have reports that he fled up the mountain, and Cloud and his companions are pursuing him en haste."

"Well then, we'd best be moving out," Rufus smugly stated. "We can't let Cloud get all the glory on this mission."

"We can't?" Reno pleadingly asked...which only garnered him a smack from Elena. "Yeowch! Fine, fine, let's get this over with. Rude old pal, looks like we aren't gonna clock out just yet."

"…Sucks to be us tonight."

Reno, despite the pain and soreness that racked his body, had to laugh at his partner's summation of their situation. Reno took a glance up the Nibel Mountain Path as he followed Rufus and the others as closely as he could.

"Here's hoping we're not climbing this rock just to get a better view of Armageddon," Reno mused as the Turks started to quicken their pace.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Cloud and Tifa continued to press forward through the mountain path toward the Nibel Reactor. The blonde warrior ignored the chilly mountain temperatures as best he could as he motioned for Tifa to get closer to him. When Tifa was standing next to him, he pointed out the rope bridge that led from the main mountain chain to the reactor.

"Almost there…" Cloud said as he took a minute to catch his breath.

"Yeah," Tifa agreed as she too decided to take a couple seconds for a breather. "Brings back memories, doesn't it?"

Cloud was a little surprised by Tifa's observation. "It sure does…just wish the majority of them were good ones."

"Well, at least you have those memories," Tifa pointed out. "Even if they're painful, they're still yours and mine, right?"

"This coming from the woman who told me to choose between my memories or my family? Wonders never cease…"

"Hey!" Tifa exclaimed as she gave Cloud a playful shove in the shoulder. The two looked at one another and, despite the impending doom, laughed a little. Cloud smiled as he said, "We better get moving. Cyrus still has a good head start."

Tifa smiled that sweet smile of hers and nodded. "Yeah, we better…"

Tifa's voice trailed off as her eyes grew wide. She grabbed Cloud's arm and shouted, "Look out!"

Cloud felt himself being pulled towards the rope bridge as a shadowy figure emerged from behind him wielding a pair of large daggers. The figure would have sliced Cloud's head from his neck in one swipe had Tifa not pulled him to safety. The shadow turned to face its quarry as it said:

"I will not allow you stop my master from achieving reconciliation. I am Nimuria…first lieutenant of the Repentant and angel of death devoted to Cyrus Thresher. You who have threaten my master, prepare to taste my blades."

Cloud went for his sword but was stopped by Tifa. "No, Cloud…not now. You have to get to the reactor and stop Cyrus. I'll hold her off here."

"Tifa, wait!" Cloud started to protest before being interrupted by Nimuria declaring, "Neither of you will face my master. I will end both your lives here and now!"

Cloud again went for his sword, but was stopped by Tifa whispering in his ear, "Sorry, Cloud…this is how it has to be."

The blonde warrior felt a thud in his midsection that sent him flying halfway across the bridge. He looked up to see Tifa breaking one of the posts anchoring the bridge to the mountain with a look of determination in her eyes. She shouted, "Run, Cloud! Get to the reactor…stop Cyrus! I'll catch up later. Trust me!"

Cloud didn't have time to argue as the bridge began to fall. He quickly ran across as the ropes and planks that once formed this bridge began to separate and plummet. Cloud made it to the other side with only seconds to spare as the bridge completely collapsed. He looked over to the other side to see Tifa sizing up her opponent as she shot a quick glance back. Her face was a mixture of pride, sorrow, angst, and trust as she gave Cloud a quick wink and nod before refocusing on the Repentant lieutenant.

Cloud lowered his head and muttered to himself, "Tifa…I trust you. I trust you completely. Be safe…we'll see each other again. I promise."

Cloud picked himself up and ran to the nearest cavern. He knew the way to the reactor as well as anyone, and he wasn't about to give up now that Cyrus was so close.

"Everyone's counting on me…and I'm not going to let them or humanity down. I swear it."

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Author's Notes:

REALLY short chapter, but I felt it was needed and it serves as a bridge between the one-on-one battles between the Repentant and AVALANCHE and the confrontation between Cyrus and Cloud. And since it was so short, I was able to upload it quicker than I usually do. How cool is that?

Next Chapter: Nimuria verses Tifa...and then some.

Reader: Hello, this is your average Fan Fiction reader, how can I take your order?

Me: Yeah, I'd like a big, juicy Review Burger with Awesome Sauce...and a large soda.

Can you complete the order?

Later,

"The Exile" Cyrus Truth