None of the three friends had ever been to the capital of Wutai. Sephiroth had been fourteen when the war started, and Angeal and Genesis had practically come directly from cadet training into said war, so none of them had really had the chance. But they'd seen pictures. Wutai, for all its foreignness, had been a modern city with a strong emphasis on culture and history, but it had been a normal city. At least from the pictures Sephiroth had seen.
The 'town' they stepped into (if it could be called that, as there were a maximum of 8 buildings) looked nothing like the pictures. It looked more like they'd taken that culture and history the country was so proud of and dialed it up to eleven. The structures, while interesting and definitely Wutian, looked… false, for lack of a better word. Maybe it was just the fact that the game would have difficulties showing real wear and tear, but everything looked brand-new – like a showroom instead of a place where people actually lived.
"That's… Wutai?" Genesis asked.
"The architecture would indicate so," Sephiroth said slowly.
Genesis didn't respond.
Yuffie was there waiting for them. She even called out to them (or was that her exclaiming in surprise?) before running off. The next thirty or so minutes consisted of them chasing Yuffie around the town, the shops not selling anything to them and them trying to figure out how to get their materia back. Oh, and they ran into the Turks, who seemed determined to enjoy their 'vacation' instead of, perhaps, chasing the Eco-terrorists down. Well, except for Elena. She at least tried to do her job.
And the idea of anyone from Midgar vacationing in Wutai struck Sephiroth as particularly strange, but especially the Turks. Who all seemed to be on vacation at the same time. Why?
The SOLDIERS continued to make Cloud try and talk to people in an attempt to find their missing party member with little success. It bothered Sephiroth that no one there seemed to speak their native language. Everyone spoke in Midgar's default instead. They also found out that Yuffie seemed to have problems with her father and how Godo had supposedly just surrendered to ShinRa…
"Wait," Genesis said, eyes going wide, "is this thing saying that that brat who stole our materia… is, in actuality, the Wutain princess and heir to the throne?"
Sephiroth felt his own eyebrows rise.
What.
He jotted that down in his notebook along with some of his other thoughts in a bit of a daze because what?
Once they got over that shock of confirmation, they wandered around, actually finding Godo laying down in his own house saying he didn't know any 'Yuffie' and to leave him alone to sleep…
Sephiroth had met Godo before. He'd been a strong man, a powerful leader and a worthy warrior. He'd never actually fought the man, but his troops had a discipline and loyalty that he couldn't help but respect.
All in all, their initial romp through Wutai was… disconcerting.
Like more or less anything else in this game.
They also got caught in a cage. Who had cages in their houses? Seriously? Well, according to the game, the Wutaian royal family.
Yet another thing to check out… if they ever made it to Wutai… maybe this would be one verification they would have to just wonder about because Sephiroth didn't see that changing any time soon. Even if ShinRa won the war, he couldn't imagine anyone from the island nation would be happy or welcoming towards anyone related remotely to ShinRa.
And just when they were about to get their hands on the little thief, she got kidnapped by Don Corneo of all people. Apparently, so did Elena. Just how they captured even a newly-minted Turk and a ninja as slippery as Yuffie, Sephiroth had no idea, but at least he could smirk to himself and know that this would never happen now with Don Corneo in prison.
Probably a good thing for everyone involved as by the time they were finished fighting the Don's pet monster on the mountain (how many of those did he have?!), Sephiroth wanted to head down to the ShinRa holding cells and very slowly kill the man. Lecherous didn't seem to really describe the disgusting piece of filth.
Of course, the Turks came in to rescue their own after Cloud and AVALANCHE had done all of the hard work.
At least Yuffie gave their materia back.
How could the Princess of Wutai be so utterly… frustrating? Infuriating? Annoying? All of the above?
They left the town, but Sephiroth thought it would be a good idea to go back in and see if the weapons shop would sell them wears now. They did.
The duo playing the game took a couple of minutes to redistribute the materia correctly (at least, according to Genesis).
Then, on their way out again, they decided to take one more look around the town. They found they could rest in the Royal household for free, and took advantage of that to heal themselves (something Sephiroth still found strange).
Once they woke, they found out that they could actually have Yuffie take a test of trials inside the Sacred Pagoda… that no one outside of Wutai had ever seen inside of before.
"Angeal would probably say this is sacrilegious," Genesis said, amused.
"Does he believe in Dai Chou," Sephiroth asked.
Genesis shook his head. "No, but he would go off on some nonsense about how they still deserve respect."
That didn't sound like nonsense to Sephiroth. Still, he was curious about some of the rumors he'd heard and he did want to know if the fighters inside the pagoda actually changed form… That might explain some of the monsters they'd sent against ShinRa, recently.
The two of them had Yuffie fight her way up to the top of the building, only to fail on the fourth trial. As frustrating as that was, they decided to reevaluate their materia and try again. So, ten minutes later, Yuffie and Godo were both laying on the floor after a supposed double knock out (which is not what had happened... game insanity) and it turned out that Yuffie and Godo were actually very similar and both loved Wutai in their own way. Godo had given into ShinRa because otherwise it would have completely wiped the country he loved off of the map. Yuffie saw giving up as a weakness.
It… hurt a little, to see that that's how the war would supposedly end. It wasn't as if Sephiroth wanted to lose the war, per se, but he suddenly realized that he did not want ShinRa to win it, either.
What a troubling thought process.
After that, Godo gave them the Leviathan Materia.
"So it does exist," Genesis said, almost reverently.
"According to the game," Sephiroth added on.
Genesis acquiesced the point with a shrug as they played on.
They traversed the island nation back towards the South where they'd parked the Tiny Bronco and had just reclaimed their vehicle when the door opened down the hall and Angeal strode out. He looked tired, but better as he cracked his neck and stretched on his way to the couch. The other two hadn't moved much, so he simply retook his place with a yawn.
"What did I miss?" he asked.
Genesis handed the controller over to Sephiroth as he prepared to summarize the last two hours of gameplay. As he did so, Sephiroth moved the Tiny Bronco, wandering around the shallow waters of the ocean as the game wouldn't let them go any deeper for some reason. He'd wandered all the way to the Northern Continent before he got out and began to speak to people in the Bone Village (who would build a city out of bones like that?!). Apparently neither Genesis or Angeal noticed. The latter was too shocked at the revelation of the Wutaian Princess.
Asking around the village made Sephiroth realize that they had to backtrack to the Gold Saucer to get the keystone for the Temple of the Ancients. Needless to say, he was rather annoyed. Still, he dutifully got back into the Tiny Bronco and began retracing the trail he'd taken to get up there. Of course, that was when the other two seemed to catch up because they asked him where he was going. He informed them, and then Genesis remembered something they'd heard about in Gongaga – apparently a person selling a keystone to Dio… hence why they were heading back to Corel.
That would have been nice to know ten minutes ago.
Finally, they made their way back to the Gold Saucer.
This time, with all the Gil they had, they decided to go for a life-time ticket, just in case they had to come back again.
It still seemed like a waste of money to Sephiroth.
After a little more running around (during which Sephiroth concluded he was glad to have slept through the first time through the attraction), they found the Show Room, and Sephiroth got his first look at Dio: a bodybuilder in a yellow swimsuit.
This game.
And some people.
They had to proceed to fight through the battle square to 'impress' the man so they could get the keystone that Dio had displayed for everyone to see. The whole experience wouldn't have been so bad if, after each battle, there hadn't been a handicap forced on them. They only made it about five fights in before they lost. It probably didn't help that with the handicap slots, they broke all of their materia and their ability to use items. However, Dio was still apparently impressed enough to give them the keystone.
They went to leave, but the Tram was having technical difficulties, so Cait Sith suggested they stay for the night. They had picked him up at the Gold Saucer, and he said he knew people who could get them in to stay for free. They weren't given the option to refuse. Of course, where were they supposed to go? Back to the Corel prison? Sephiroth supposed they could walk out of there, but he remembered Angeal saying it was easy to get lost in the desert, so that wasn't, perhaps, the best idea. Although, couldn't they just follow the cable the tram went on back to Corel?
Game insanity.
The next scene showed them in the lobby of the hotel… where ghosts were playing chess and no one seemed to care.
By this point, Sephiroth was just going to say 'whatever' and be done with it.
Everyone wanted an explanation and while Sephiroth was pretty sure he and his friends understood what was going on, they decided to have Cloud try to explain it anyway. It never hurt to make sure everyone was on the same page.
Cloud more or less summarized the game and it's incredible claims so far. They, as a group, were following Game Sephiroth, who was looking for the Promised Land. The Promised Land was supposed to be full of Mako energy, according to ShinRa, but no one knew if it actually existed. The Ancients, also known as the Cetra, believed they would return to the Promised Land and find everlasting happiness (apparently Barrett wasn't paying attention because he asked what the Cetra were… honestly). Then Aeris said that one could only find the Promised Land by searching until they felt they found it. That sounded ridiculous to Sephiroth, but he supposed he could see a culture believing that. Surprisingly, Aeris said she thought she could feel the Promised Land.
Game Sephiroth was also looking for the Black Materia. Genesis and Angeal had mentioned that to Sephiroth before, but he wasn't exactly sure what it meant. None of them had ever heard of a Black Materia. It didn't seem like the group knew what to make of that either. They'd never heard of it before coming to the Western Continent in the game. They only knew Game Sephiroth wanted it.
They spoke of the people in black capes with tattoos, and pointed out that Red XIII had a tattoo himself, given by Hojo. Apparently his scars were simply 'battle scars', but the number was purposeful. So there were at least twelve other people with tattoos. The black capes had something to do with Game Sephiroth and likely Hojo, but they didn't know exactly what. Sephiroth had some uncomfortable ideas…
Then Aeris said they should go after Hojo, and was about to say something else, but instead told them to never mind and rushed upstairs to bed. Yuffie followed her. Barrett seemed to want to just start over in the morning and left too.
Then Red – Nanaki walked up to Cloud, asking if he'd go mad too. Sephiroth found himself relating to the four-legged animal quite a lot just then. Tifa said he was alright so far, so he'd be fine. He just had to be strong. Somehow Sephiroth didn't think it was that easy. Neither, apparently, did Nanaki. He questioned, but Tifa cut him off, then pointed out how he wasn't the only one who was worried. She had a point. Cloud had been under Hojo's tender care at some point if he had SOLDIER enhancements, even if he didn't have a tattoo. And they had no idea what had been done to Vincent, although he obviously knew Hojo and had been experimented on at some point. There were quite a few people in their little group who could potentially 'go mad' if they were basing this off of Hojo and his experiments…
Cait Sith and Vincent both suggested they all retreat and cool down. Sephiroth thought that to be a sound idea.
And apparently Cid had been sleeping through the whole discussion anyway.
The scene faded out and then back in on a room with Cloud looking out the window. A tapping had Cloud walking back towards the center of the room, where he met Tifa who came in. She asked him to 'sneak out' and spend some time with her.
Sephiroth felt the next part of the game was… superfluous at best. The two of them were the hundredth couple to enter the stadium and were shoehorned into playing the lead roles in a play. Genesis protested. Vehemently.
After a couple of lines into the play, he got up.
"I've had enough. I need to visit the restroom anyway." Then he walked away grumbling about people who didn't understand theater or the art of the play and the plebeian masses who had no taste for true art. Once he'd closed the door to the restroom, Angeal glanced over at Sephiroth, and then burst into quiet laughter. Sephiroth looked away, smiling a little. That had been… very Genesis.
"I'm going to purposefully mess up the play," the brunet said after a minute, a mischievous smile stretching across his lips. "I'm just curious how it will turn out. And since Genesis isn't here…"
"I heard that!" the muffled voice of their friend came through the door. Angeal just snickered again and glanced at Sephiroth, who raised an eyebrow in amusement.
It turned out that purposefully messing up the play ended with Tifa, the princess Rosa, apparently, taking out the dreaded dragon herself. In all honesty, Sephiroth found it an amusing ending.
"I'd go see that play," Angeal said.
"You would," Genesis practically hissed as he returned to the living room and plopped sulkily down on the couch, continuing to mutter about 'uncultured swine'.
Angeal just looked amused, so Sephiroth assumed it wasn't meant as a true insult… or perhaps it was, but Angeal didn't seem to mind, so he decided he wouldn't mind either.
Cloud and Tifa went on the Gondola next. Sephiroth frowned as he had no control of where the two of them went. They got on the ride and then just sat in a wooden box with benches and windows, looking out over what must be the many levels of the Gold Saucer below.
Then it showed what they must be seeing. It looked… rather impossible to Sephiroth.
"How is that cable staying in the air?" he asked.
"Game insanity," Genesis replied.
Angeal and Sephiroth both smirked a little at that.
Then fireworks went off around them. At least that shot showed the cable going in a straight line over the top of everything, but still.
"Isn't that… dangerous?" Angeal asked.
"Most definitely," Genesis replied, a sharp grin on his face.
Both of his friends turned to look at him.
"What?" he asked. "They're terrorists in a game that claims the Hero of ShinRa goes utterly mad and wipes out villages. I'm allowed to be a little vindictive."
Angeal just sighed and shook his head. Sephiroth shrugged. He had a point, after all.
Tifa kept dancing around something, saying she'd just come out and say it… and then saying nothing.
"Just tell him, for Gaia's sake!" Genesis finally shouted at the screen as the gondola returned to it's spot.
Sephiroth tipped his head thoughtfully. "She was trying to tell him she… loved him?" If even he could pick up on it, then Cloud must be particularly dense.
"Yes!" Genesis said, throwing his hands in the air. "And if she can't come out and say it, she doesn't deserve it."
The Silver General blinked. "Deserve what?"
"A relationship with him!"
Oh. Was that what would have happened had she been able to say she liked him?
"It can't be that easy," Angeal said. "I mean, none of us have been in a relationship before. How would we know?"
"It can't be that difficult either," Genesis protested, folding his arms.
Tifa said she had fun tonight – although, after the disaster of a play and the awkward, dangerous ride in the gondola Sephiroth wasn't sure how that could possibly be true. And apparently she still couldn't say what she'd been meaning to say to him.
Apparently Cloud really was even more clueless than Sephiroth.
Then they saw Cait Sith… who was acting suspicious and had the keystone.
"How did he get that?!" Genesis asked.
Then the robot (marionette?) cat spotted them and took off, leading them on a merry chase around the Gold Saucer. They should have caught him. Several times. The fact that the game didn't acknowledge that was… frustrating. Then the cat threw the keystone to Tseng. In a helicopter. How the game developers thought physics would work like that, Sephiroth had no idea, but the Turks flew off with the keystone.
Cait Sith admitted to being a spy sent by ShinRa. Then he wanted to go on like nothing had ever happened. Cloud said he had a lot of guts saying that. Sephiroth agreed. He didn't take well to traitors and backstabbers. Even if it was for a terrorist organization. Then the cat said something that made Sephiroth stop and think. They didn't get praised, they didn't get paid, and yet they continued to risk their lives on their little crusade. He wasn't wrong. And they weren't actively being terrorists anymore… although that didn't excuse what they'd done to reactors one and five. Still, he could see how that might look to a supposed ShinRa executive – who claimed to be controlling Cait Sith.
"From that distance? Whoever it is must have a phenomenal connection to be able to control a robot to a point where they can fight," Genesis snorted.
Then Cait Sith said he wouldn't feel good if things ended the way they were now.
"You should have thought of that before you stabbed us in the back," the red-head stated.
Sephiroth turned and raised one eyebrow at his friend. "'Us'?"
Genesis blinked, then looked defiantly at Sephiroth. "We are playing as 'them'. That is what I meant."
A valid explanation, but completely false. The Silver General simply nodded, not believing him for a moment.
The Commander harrumphed and sat back, sulking again.
It really was amusing.
Cloud and Tifa didn't want Cait Sith coming along with the party anymore. Sephiroth didn't blame them. You don't go into battle with someone you can't trust at your back. But then the robot pulled out a low card, blackmailing them with either a recording or broadcasting of Marlene.
"Did he just threaten a little girl?" Angeal asked, voice dangerous.
"He did," Sephiroth said.
"Scarlett," Genesis said. "It has to be Scarlett. She'd be heartless enough to do such, and machines are her area."
Sephiroth didn't agree. He couldn't think of anyone who fit everything they knew about Cait Sith… except…
Could it be?
But would he do something that cruel?
Of course, if ShinRa and the Turks were breathing down his neck…
"It's Tuesti," he said softly. The other two turned to him, startled. Sephiroth explained his reasoning. "He has the engineering ability to make something like that, and he's been helpful and patient up until this point. Scarlett wouldn't be."
Genesis frowned as Angeal looked thoughtful. "True," the red-head muttered.
"But Tuesti… wasn't he advocating for the President to not drop the Sector 7 plate?"
"My friend, the fates are cruel. No dreams, no honor remains. Advocating for not killing 50,000 innocent people and backstabbing a group of terrorists are two different things," Genesis pointed out, sounding far calmer now.
"He is a ShinRa executive," Sephiroth pointed out.
Angeal didn't look happy about that. He wasn't pouting like Genesis, but looked more troubled… and disappointed. "And we're ShinRa SOLDIERs," he said softly before turning back to the game.
Genesis looked over at his friend, worried. Neither of them had anything to really say to that, so they moved on.
Cait Sith told them he knew where the Temple of the Ancients was and that he'd tell them tomorrow. They'd get there after ShinRa, but they'd have to deal with that. Then the robot left.
The scene faded out with Tifa and Cloud looking after him and worried about Marlene.
When the screen faded back in, Cloud stood in a hotel room, presumably the one they'd been staying in. Sephiroth, who still had the controller, moved Cloud down the stairs and to the group waiting for him. True to his word, Cait Sith seemed happy to try and move on as if nothing had changed.
Angeal had his unique disappointed look and Genesis was staring at the screen with narrowed eyes.
The robot cat said to go east towards the sea. Aeris said she'd go with Cloud, and then the party menu came up. Angeal argued to use Cid, as they hadn't really fought with him much before and they weren't about to take the traitor they couldn't trust. At least they knew Cid didn't like ShinRa, and then Barrett could take care of Cait Sith.
They made their way out of the Gold Saucer, by the conveniently working tram this time – had that been ShinRa sabotage? – and back towards the Tiny Bronco that they'd left on the beach.
Sephiroth checked his phs. Just after four in the morning. He frowned. They had three hours until breakfast started, five until it ended and the work day started. He'd be skipping out on his morning exercises again, most likely, but they hadn't even gotten through the entirety of disk one yet. They had no idea how much further until the end either. It frustrated him that they wouldn't be able to finish the whole game today. They'd also have to discuss what they were going to do about some of the issues they needed to check up on.
Someone needed to find Cloud Strife and question him. Someone (who wasn't Sephiroth) needed to see when they could get a mission to Nibelheim. Sehpiroth would like to see if Reeve Tuesti had a Robot Cat he'd made and he'd like to meet this 'Aerith' that Angeal had found.
He also needed to decide what to do about ShinRa and, most of all, Hojo.
Although that wasn't a train of thought he really wanted to entertain right now.
Of course, would he ever?
He promised himself he'd bring that up when they went to breakfast.
Meanwhile, he searched around for the Temple of the Ancients and braced himself for more of the game's disquieting revelations.
xXx
AN: Thanks again to Imagination7413 for beta reading this and just being there to bounce ideas off of!
xAshes made another awesome comic! sta dot sh /0o4z8uo07r6 (dot to . and no spaces)
And last but not least, Discord: discord dot gg /U3yaEnBq6Q (dot to . and no spaces)