Chapter 11:
It took a moment for them all to regroup. The boys were all used to seeing bloodshed, but Aerith still had a sense of purity to her. The Masamune sticking out of the late President Shinra's back glinted at the four, mocking them, and as one, the group advanced hesitantly. Aerith was the first to notice the still breathing body on the floor, and headed towards the woman while the remaining three of the party went to check on the cooled body pinned to the desk.
There was a small squeak from behind one of the pillars as they walked by and a rotund figure scampered away, heading for the stairs. Red XIII pounced on the figure, his nails digging into a tan suit as they both fell to the ground. Barret immediately swung around, his gunarm aimed for the one they had figured out was Palmer as Red kept him on the ground.
"D-don't kill me!" the executive sobbed, his breath coming in ragged gasps. "Se-sephiroth did that! H-he said something about finding t-the Promised Land. I-I don't know anything else!" Disturbed by the man's outburst of emotion, Red stepped off of Palmer, but the larger man didn't move. Barret's gunarm was still trained on him, and the Shinra executive was very aware of that fact.
"Why does he want the Promised Land?" Cloud asked softly, turning slightly to look at Palmer over his shoulder.
"So-something about the Mako-"
"Guys, she's waking up!" Aerith called out, cradling the woman's head on her lap. She was dressed smartly, and had a folder of files clutched to her chest. Her eyes fluttered, and as the guys looked their way, Palmer took his chance and scrambled to his feet before taking off towards a side door no one had noticed before. As soon as he opened the door, an alarm went off, red lights blaring throughout the empty Shinra building. Looking around, Barret cursed before shooting the emergency door as it swung shut. The woman in Aerith's lap shot up with a small scream, gathering everyone's attention once more.
Steps rushing up the staircase revealed Astasia, 1st Class, Lieutenant General of the Shinra Army, her sword drawn in one hand, her whip in the other and ready to attack. "Kiani!" she barked out as she took in the scene. "Get away from her!" Astasia attacked Aerith with her whip, the tails gripping the brunette's wrist. Pulling hard, Aerith went flying over to Astasia, pulled cleanly from the Shinra Secretary in one fell swoop. A few bullets sent by Barret were deflected off of Astasia's bracer as her free arm came up to grip her whip tighter, the tails releasing the flower girl's wrist as she was now far away enough from the downed woman. "You all will pay for what you have done here!" she then exclaimed, using her whip to catch the next round of bullets and shooting them back at Barret, making him dodge to the side.
"No, Astasia! It's not what it looks like!" Aerith called out as she got to her feet, her hands in the air to show she meant no harm, her staff still slung on her back. "We didn't kill anyone!"
"Liars!" Astasia maneuvered herself so she was in between a still collapsed Kiani and the rest of the group, Aerith moving so she was by Red, Barret, and Cloud. "You will pay for slaying President Shinra, and will come to justice when the new President gets here."
"New president?" Cloud murmured questioningly but he was quickly answered by a helicopter landing on the pad outside. Visible through the picture glass, the group saw Palmer as he ran to the helicopter and waited. Soon after, a blonde in a white suit stepped out and nodded to whatever Palmer was saying. Cloud started moving before he knew it and was pushing open the door to the balcony, the other three following after him quickly, leaving Astasia to help Kiani recover. Striding to the helicopter, Cloud immediately disliked the other blond, noticing his smug sneer. Positioning themselves as more of a blockade to prevent him access to the building, Cloud confronted him, taking the role of leader in this instance.
"Who are you?" he asked heatedly, drawing his sword and holding it at the ready in case he had to attack or defend. Barret followed suit and prepped his gunarm, pointing it at the blond executive, ready to fire. Red sat, his eyes focused intently on everything, and Aerith remained relaxed, willing to draw her staff only if absolutely necessary.
"What, haven't you heard? I'm the new President, now that dear old Daddy died. And it's all thanks to you guys for taking him out." Cloud tried to interrupt, but the new Shinra President continued on, talking over him. "You know, I really couldn't thank you four enough. Well, the three of you. I've heard about you, Cosmic Hound, from Hojo's reports, and I think you'd fit right in with this group. They're all a bunch of terrorists anyway. But really, thank you for giving me the opportunity to get back together with my wife. If it weren't for you, we never would have found each other again," he exclaimed, a grin on his face.
"I bet she's just a gold digger. Now that you're head honcho of a horrible company, she's only with you for your money," Barret called out, growling in disgust at the blond's attitude. The new Shinra President scowled in retaliation.
"President Rufus!" Astasia called out from behind the group, and Aerith turned to watch as Astasia helped Kiani limp over to the helicopter. They had to pass through the gathered group of AVALANCHE, however, and Aerith moved forward to help. The Lieutenant General went to snarl in reply, but Kiani calmed her friend with just a quiet word, and the older woman begrudgingly accepted the help. Cloud ignored the three women, keeping his eyes on Rufus.
"Wouldn't you want to also be called President Shinra?" he asked in disgust, openly scowling as he adjusted his grip on his sword. "Be just like dear ol' dad?" Rufus gave out a laugh and focused his glare on the ex-Soldier.
"I don't think anyone hated my father more than I did. Just because I tried to overthrow him when I was younger, doesn't mean it was right for him to exile me from here. He tried to rule the world with bribes and corruption. That's not my way." All ready to launch into his speech, Rufus kept an eye on the brunette woman as Astasia and Aerith helped Kiani into the helicopter. Aerith gave the helicopter a startled, lingering look before she rejoined her group and Astasia stood by Rufus' side, a sleek black panther jumping down from the helicopter to join them. "I plan on bettering this company, and do it my way. I plan on destroying everything my father touched, and rebuild this company from the ground up, no matter what the cost."
While these words should be comforting, Cloud and Barret only got chills from his mini-speech, and in his apprehension, Barret accidentally shot the ground by Rufus' feet. Dancing out of the way, Rufus took no notice when Astasia moved to stand between him and Barret.
"Try that again, heathen. I dare you," Astasia swore, and only Rufus' chuckling made her pause.
"Actually, I would like the honor of saying I took down my father's killers. The public loves a story of revenge, after all," Rufus stated, walking the few paces back to the helicopter to grab his sawed off shotgun from the cockpit. Rejoining the fray, he pumped his shotgun once before aiming it at Barret. "Your move, big man," he said with a grin.
Cloud intervened before any battle could start. "Barret, I want you and Red to get Aerith someplace safe." Seeing Barret was about to object, Cloud continued quickly. "Our objective was to rescue her and get her to safety. If this battle goes badly, we can't have her falling into the hands of Shinra once more."
"Aw, how chivalrous," Rufus commented, his shotgun not wavering from his target. After a beat, Barret released a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"Alrigh'. You better not die, you hear me Spikey?!" With his non-weaponized hand, Barret grabbed Aerith and led her away, Red hesitating as he heard Aerith's protests. Turning to Cloud, he voiced his concerns.
"I do not think three against one is a fair fight," he explained, and before Cloud could reply, Rufus interjected.
"Then how about I have Astasia here bow out of the fight." Immediate protests sprang up from Astasia, but she was quickly silenced when President Rufus raised his hand to cut her off. "That way, little pooch, you can feel better about it being one on one with my familiar. I'm sure he's fought battles with more people than this. Surely he can handle himself." All of this was said in a condescending tone and the fur on Red's back stood up in retaliation.
"Go on, Red. Take care of Aerith for me, please," Cloud asked in a nearly begging tone, and the Cosmic Hound faltered for a moment before acquiescing.
Turning, Red nodded. "Good luck, Cloud." He then bounded off after Barret and Aerith, without looking back.
Cloud faced Rufus and grinned, excited for this battle. He waited until Astasia made it to the helicopter before he lunged first, deflecting the resulting shotgun attack. Watching his back for a sneak attack by the panther, Cloud tried to slice where the President of the Shinra Corporation was, only to hit air.
Barret ushered Aerith down the stairs and through the bloody secretarial floor to get her to the elevators on the south side. She was hesitant, however, and when they got past the large desks, Aerith stopped altogether.
"Com'mon! We gotta keep going!" Barret said, trying to get her to move.
"But what about Cloud?" she asked, worriedly.
"He's a big boy, Spikey can handle himself," the leader of AVALANCHE explained, and Aerith bit her lip in contemplation.
"But-"
"But nothin', missy. If Cloud thinks he can handle it, then we just gotta trust 'im. But if we get caught again, all o' his fightin' will be for nothin'." He knew with those words, he had convinced the flower girl, and with a nod, she continued forward. Red rushed at them, ready to get out of there.
"Let's go," he said, rejoining the two and the trio headed for the elevators. The half minute it took for the elevator to get to their floor was torturous, each second dragging out longer than the last. When the doors finally opened, Barret did a cursory glance around them to double check that no more Turks would ambush them in the elevator like last time. Sliding in before the doors shut, the button for the first floor was pressed and the glass elevator started to travel downward.
Their trip went in silence, and for a moment, they were able to relax. They were going to get away, scot free, and for once, they didn't have to worry about battles or anything!
Famous last words.
A crashing of glass sounded overhead and all three flinched before looking up in time to see a shower of glass cascade around them. The other elevator suddenly started moving, and it caught up to them pretty quickly, undoubtedly aided by the extreme weight caused by the robot that had its numerous guns aimed at them. Groaning, Barret readied his own gunarm and waited, hoping not too much effort would be needed. When the robot shot at the glass surrounding them, Barret shielding Aerith from the worst of it before returning fire, getting a few bullets off before the robot put a shield up.
Why couldn't they do anything without being attacked?
When her husband told her that his father was dead, Tifa nearly had a mini heart attack, her face losing all of its color as she stood up to face him.
"What do you mean he's dead?" she asked quietly, gripping the tablecloth. Jean noticed and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Apparently they had captured AVALANCHE last night, and they just escaped. One of them put a sword in my father's back," Rufus explained, ending the call and stowing it away. "I have to go."
Her gut had gone cold at the mention of AVALANCHE, and Barret and Cloud's faces flashed in her mind. Moving to leave her seat, Tifa exclaimed "I'm coming with you."
"No," he replied immediately, Jean watching from the sidelines at the dispute he knew was sure to come. When it looked like Tifa was going to put up a fuss, Rufus held up a hand. "I don't know how dangerous it is going to be, or if AVALANCHE is still going to be running around when I get there." Grabbing her hands when the blond noticed that she was still going to argue, Rufus lifted them to place a kiss on her palms. "I just got you back. I don't want to lose you," he then admitted, and Tifa flinched. Huffling a little, her eyes narrowed at her husband and a scowl twisted her lips.
"I could say the same for you," she replied easily. "If they're dangerous, I don't want them anywhere near you. I would feel better if I came with you. That way I'm not just some damsel in distress waiting for you to come back." The pout came easily, as if she were a child again, and she knew she had won when Rufus' expression softened.
"Fine," he said after a beat of hesitation. "We will be flying in with the helicopter, since it will be the fastest way to reach Midgar. When I get out, I expect you to stay inside. While I was told there was a massacre there, I expect there might still be some people left alive. If anyone comes to the helicopter, can I count on you to help them?" Tifa nodded and Rufus' entire stance relaxed.
"I'll reschedule all of your appointments for tomorrow then, Mr. President?" Jean then asked, pulling out a date book and making a mental note for himself.
"Yes, please Jean," Rufus replied as Tifa turned to grab her clutch off of the table. "Finish your dinner. Call your spouse to join you. My treat," he then said before waving their waiter over and quietly conversing with him. Tifa turned to Jean and smiled.
"It was wonderful to meet you, Jean. I'm so glad my husband has you to help him," she complimented, and the secretary merely beamed.
"'Tis my pleasure, m'lady," he replied with a grin. "Now, if you'll excuse me," he said before pulling out his phone to make a call. With a gentle tug on her elbow, Rufus had caught Tifa's attention once more.
"Dear, let's go," he said, and with a nod to his secretary, Rufus led Tifa out of the restaurant. "I have a helicopter waiting for us a few blocks over. Do you think you can defend yourself in that?" he asked, his hand on the small of her back as he led the way. Swallowing slightly at the prospect of the unknown, Tifa nodded.
"Yes, I can. It would be preferable if I had gloves but I'm used to fighting with bare hands," she replied. Their walk to the helipad was quick, and once the two of them were safely ensconced in their seats, and insistent Dark Nation at their side, the helicopter took off. This time, their journey from Junon to Midgar was quicker than the reverse, and Tifa suspected it was because Rufus was trying to woo her with the sunset they had ended up seeing.
It had worked.
By the time they had arrived at the Shinra tower, the night had turned colder. Their landing was smooth, and after Rufus stepped out, Tifa made to follow suit, but he turned to her to stop her. His hand went to her face, and his eyes searched hers.
"You promised," he reminded her, and she pouted.
"I don't want you going off on your own," she reminded, and Rufus grinned at her.
"I'll be alright," he said. The sound of footsteps made them both turn to find Palmer gasping in front of them, his hands on his knees as he doubled over to catch his breath.
"Palmer, report," Rufus said coldly, ripping his attention off of his wife and turning to face the Shinra executive, his hands slipping from Tifa's.
"AVALANCHE. . .escaped. . .Sephiroth. . .alive!" he gasped out. Both Tifa and Rufus stilled.
Sephiroth?
"Where is AVALANCHE now?" Rufus asked, raising a brow as Palmer straightened, a hand resting on his heart as if to calm it. His free hand pointed to the office they could see through the window, and they could clearly see Astasia facing down three people and a dog that looked like they hadn't bathed in a few days. Sliding back so she was more safely ensconced in the darkness of the helicopter, Tifa kept her eyes on the group of four as they burst out of the door that led directly to the presidential office. Cloud. Barret. That brunette that was with Cloud earlier. A red hound with tattoos and scars.
My, what a raggedy bunch.
Tifa's heart gave a little pang when a stray thought made itself known. They had replaced her with the girl in pink. On top of that, they had gained one more party member. It was as if they hadn't cared about her mission at Shinra, or its results. Had they really dropped the plate on Sector Seven? It was seeming more and more likely the longer she spent time away from them. They were hurting more people than helping. Was terrorism really the answer?
Rufus' speech shook her out of her thoughts, Tifa finally noticing Palmer settled in a seat across from her, and Tifa noticed Astasia dragging an injured Kiani out of the building. The girl in pink ended up helping the Lieutenant General pull the Shinra Secretary to safety, and when they got close to the helicopter, Tifa could see the recognition in the brunette's eyes. Grabbing onto Kiani and helping her into the helicopter, Dark Nation got up and off of the seat to give it to Kiani. The dark furred panther followed Astasia back to Rufus, but the brunette hesitated by the helicopter for a brief moment.
"I'm Aerith," she said quietly. "Take care of my sister, please?" she asked, shooting a brief look at Astasia before turning her gaze back onto Tifa. The more buxom woman nodded.
"I'm Tifa," she replied just as quietly. Aerith's eyes widened at her name, and she opened her mouth to speak but Tifa cut her off. "Take care of Cloud. He's. . .fragile," she admitted, and tried to smile. Aerith returned the smile before turning back and joining the group, her gaze falling to the helicopter every now and then. When signs of hostility began, Barret thankfully listened to Cloud and pulled Aerith away, but the red hound hesitated briefly before going to follow. Astasia was sent back to the helicopter, but she didn't accept Tifa's offered hand. Instead, she waited outside of it, primed in case she needed to step in.
Rufus was easily able to hold his own, and it was only after Dark Nation got seriously injured did Rufus withdraw from the fight, with barely any scratches on him. He had managed to lodge a bullet in Cloud's shoulder, but it wasn't very deep. In exchange, Cloud had nicked Rufus' face, and his hair was messy from exertion, but the wound was superficial and the hair easily fixable. Both sides came away from the battle, lucky. Dark Nation, on the other hand, would need treatment, and as Astasia carried the feline into the helicopter and buckled herself in with the cat on her lap, Tifa stepped out of the helicopter to meet Rufus halfway, Cloud already having disappeared back into the office to join the rest of his team. Her hands went up to his face, her thumb ghosting over the cut on his cheek.
"See? I'm alright," Rufus said cheekily, giving her a smile. Growling, Tifa's grip became tighter and Rufus noticed her change in attitude immediately. His countenance grew concerned, and he was worried for a moment that she was truly angry with him. "I'm sorry, I won't do it again," he said, trying to pacify his strong wife.
Her eyes narrowing, she shot back, "You better not," before she pulled him down into a kiss. The two melted into each other for a moment before parting. "Let's get you home. They'll need time to clean this all up," she said quietly. Nodding, Rufus leaned his forehead on hers.
"Lead the way."
A/N: So President Shinra is dead and Rufus is now the new leader of the Shinra Corporation. Aerith is in the know that Tifa is with Rufus now. But what will come of that? And was Rufus telling the truth about tearing down the company that his father built to rebuild it from scratch? We'll just have to see.