Another chapter is here!
Enjoy!
Silently ruminating on how to enter the structure further ahead of him, Kunsel couldn't help but think it was ludicrous. He'd known Shinra had secrets hidden in the dark, but there was literally a lost city down here. And it had been there, hidden right beneath their feet, the entire time that they were working with Shinra.
It was insulting on some level that he hadn't suspected it was there until he collaborated with his contact in Midgar. The fact that the Deepground troops had suits that circulated a current of mako, had access to high-tier equipment, and were under the direct supervision of Heidegger, all pointed to the location being in Midgar. But it was Reeve who pegged that the headquarters had an independent power source, that the output was greater than needed to power the building, and that both Hojo and Heidegger were rarely seen leaving the compound, yet they weren't spotted inside for long intervals.
Once they knew that, it was just a matter of checking with the help of a Mini-spell and going down the ventilation system. From there, he learned about the hierarchy, how things operated, and where the Tsviets stood in things through an interrogation. It painted an ugly picture as a whole.
"Don't just stand around staring or you'll draw attention," said a hushed voice from inside of his plundered coat.
He looked down from the building that most likely housed Aerith's mother and into his coat, where the plush toy that Reeve had sent along with him was. Since having it in the open would raise questions, he had it beneath the Deepground Officer uniform that he stole. "Any luck on finding the blueprints on the place from your end?"
"No. They've done a good job of covering it up." No surprises there. It was only deductive reasoning and luck that they found it in the first place. "But there's a lot of movement going on up here."
Kunsel's eyes traced the walls until he spotted a vent. If the building was built symmetrically, there had to be one in the back. They could use that. "What kind of movement?"
"Security is going around and searching for Heidegger. Scarlet has already been dragged from her office."
The former Second-Class spent a moment thinking on that abrupt development when a message rang out from the speakers that they had all around the hidden city. It called for all Deepground military personnel to assemble and prepare for combat. Putting the information together in his head, Kunsel came to a conclusion and moved quickly. "Get out of the building and head to the rendezvous point."
The black cat stuck its head out as Kunsel turned around and went into the back road, narrowly avoiding being spotted by the others who were heading out to actually attend the assembly. "What for?"
"Something must've happened that tipped Rufus off and now he's going after the senior members who would know about it. There's no way he'll let this slide since Heidegger was already on thin-ice. And when you factor in that Heidegger has been biding his time and managed to get control over this much firepower—"
"There's no way he'll let it go. He'll fight for it."
"And chances are it'll go poorly for Rufus and spill out into the city." He crouched in front of the vent. It was too small for even a child to fit, but Kunsel had done smaller. First, he needed to get grate off of it. That was easier said than done, given he was trying to avoid drawing attention and the facility was no doubt made to house people like him with a certain level of durability.
The plush toy began to pace back and forth while Kunsel used an Ice spell to freeze over the grate. He was hoping to make it brittle enough to break rather than pull it off. "If he kills Rufus, he'll get control over Shinra. And with the amount of control they have over the media already, covering it up won't be difficult if there aren't any witnesses that would speak up."
"And just to make sure there's no competition, he'll get rid of you and Palmer either way—" He slammed the bottom of his mako-strengthened fist against the frozen grate. It shattered inwards, leaving the frame intact. "—so he'll be left unopposed and with all the resources the company has at its disposal."
Path cleared, he gestured for Cait Sith to enter with one hand while grasping another materia with the other. The toy crawled into the tight squeeze and waited for Kunsel to shrink himself down enough to fit inside as well. From there, they ventured within the connecting passages as quietly as they could, looking through the openings to check for any sign of Elmyra.
It was when they were partway through it, at a point where the shafts crossed one another to the extent of being a maze, that Kunsel's enhanced hearing picked up the familiar voice of Heidegger. He held a hand up to stop the black cat behind him and then gestured for them to go down the left passage. There they found themselves in what looked to be the central control room, with Heidegger and Hojo inside, along with a younger-looking girl standing off to the side with a woman leaning against the wall, both of whom had red-hair.
The girl briefly averted her eyes from the bewitching materia that the men were fixated on to ask the woman, "What happened to Argento?"
"She was in the temple when I arrived and has not reported back in. Perhaps the fleas managed to overpower and kill her?" The woman shrugged without concern at the possibility of one of their comrades being slain. "If so, then she was simply too weak to be of use."
Her expression was unchanged as she turned away from the woman. But the vestiges of an emotion could be seen on the girl's face. However, it was fleeting and passed when Heidegger pulled his attention from the beautiful materia to Hojo.
"This had better be worth it Hojo," Heidegger said, glaring at the man. "We lost a great deal of assets to get this Protomateria of yours from those rats and the Ancient got away with the one I actually wanted. If this doesn't give me the results you promise…"
The amoral scientist merely adjusted his glasses at the implied threat left hanging. "Oh, I assure you that this is easily worth the loss of a few SOLDIERs. With this, we can control the primordial WEAPON that slumbers here once the conditions are met. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that you now hold the power of the Planet in the palm of your hand."
The way that Hojo let a low chuckle out at that sent a warning chill up Kunsel's spine. The fact that Heidegger now had another weapon of mass-destruction only served to raise the stakes even further. And from the sound of it, they took it from Crimson's party.
Hojo then turned to the woman in red as she looked down at her clawed gauntlets in the same manner one would look at their nails. "How did he react when you removed it? Were there signs of physical change or instability?"
"He turned into the Beast," she said. "It is as you predicted."
"Professor Crescent's research was on-point then. Soon it will only be a matter of time before he succumbs to it, and with the Protomateria we'll control Chaos as well." Placing the Protomateria into his pocket, Hojo made for the door. "I'll see to it after I have released Azul from the chamber. His modifications should be done."
"Finish within the hour and have him come to the assembly." Heidegger turned to the red-haired pair. "Rosso, you're heading back out so get a fresh current of mako running in your suit. Shelke, block all communications using a SND and make sure no messages get in or out. It's time that we put Rufus in his place."
Kunsel recognized the names from his information-gathering. Rosso the Crimson was known for being the most bloodthirsty of the Tsviets. Considering how she smiled in a manner that was both sweet and dark, as if enthusiastic of the chance to join in what was sure to be a slaughter, he didn't doubt the validity of it. Shelke the Transparent seemed to specialize in information-manipulation, notable for looking rather young despite being around Yuffie's age.
Cait Sith's attention seemed to linger on the girl, whose blue eyes that shone with the color of mako seemed almost blank as she got into a machine while the other two left out. Whatever she was doing seemed to be taking her full attention. But she was still a SOLDIER and that meant if they spoke carelessly they could be overheard, so Kunsel gestured for the toy to follow him as they headed back to the maze of ventilation shafts.
"One of the people I've been trying to get to join my new organization has been looking for a girl named Shelke Rui," Reeve explained using the toy as a mouthpiece. "She had supposedly been kidnapped by Shinra around seven years ago. I told her that I would look into it, but I never suspected that she would be here."
Kunsel took a moment to consider their options. Leaving aside the fact that whatever they had done to the girl made her unlikely to come quietly, they still had to find Elmyra. But, at the same time, letting whatever Hojo had planned go unhindered left him uneasy. If they really took that materia from Crimson's party and were intending to use it against them, then he had to get it back—and kill Hojo before he could cause even more problems.
Making up his mind, the former Second-Class pulled out an Exit Materia. It had been keyed to return them to the rendezvous point. He un-shrunk it and passed it to Cait Sith. "Go find Aerith's Mother and get her out."
The plush toy looked between the materia and Kunsel. "Okay, but what about you?"
"Feel free to leave without me," he said. "I can make my own escape once I get that materia back from Hojo."
[-oOo-]
Elmyra Gainsborough paced the room, still dressed in her green dress and jacket. She hadn't been tied down after they shoved her into the room, but she couldn't break free of the heavy steel door that locked from the outside. Yet, despite being locked in that small room surrounded by metal walls, she only had her daughter in her mind.
They hadn't told her anything after they'd gotten Aerith's word she'd do what they said to keep her safe. There was a very real chance that they'd never see one another again, even if Aerith complied. They had used Elmyra as a tool to bring Aerith to heel and would continue to do so, using her daughter to their own ends despite the fact that she was meant for greater things.
That hurt the most, more than anything that happened since they'd taken her. Aerith was being made to obey the people who hounded and hurt her since her birth because of Elmyra. Her lamentation over that fact and her worry were what moved her feet, despite the fact that she was tired.
"Elmyra!" Tension ran up her spine as she thought she heard something. "Up here."
Elmyra looked up to find a black cat with a crown and cape was waving at her. She just stared at it curiously, wondering if the lack of sleep was getting to her. Just to be safe, she rubbed her eyes and found that it was still there.
The plush toy continued to talk. "I was worried that Heidegger had done something to you after those two kidnapped you. Are you okay?"
"…Richard?" The toy nodded. Her confusion gave way to anger. "Or should I call you Reeve Tuesti. That's who you really are, aren't you?"
The fact that the man whom she had been seeing was actually one of Shinra's board members had been an unpleasant revelation. The little girl who'd nearly caved his head in had informed her of that fact while she had been led away. To say that she felt betrayed was an understatement.
In response, the black cat glumly hung its head in shame. "I'm sorry you had to find out this way."
"You orchestrated everything between us, didn't you?" Just like she had said about the orphanage, there was never anything good below the surface. "You were manipulating me since that day we met."
"… I won't lie further and say that I didn't have ulterior motives. You deserve better."
The anger bubbling up in her chest spread throughout her body at the admission. "I always knew that you couldn't trust anyone from Shinra! Liars, manipulators, and murderers the lot of you—even going so far as to kidnap and indoctrinate children of all people!"
"That's what I'm trying to stop," it said softly in response. "That's why I searched you out after that day you told me your last name. I was hoping to expose Shinra for all it had done and uproot the current people in charge. So that things like what happened to Sector 7 wouldn't ever happen again."
He sounded… sincere. And, if she had to admit it, part of her wanted to believe it. She had enjoyed spending time with him and, despite the immense feelings of betrayal that roiled around inside of her chest, she wanted to believe him.
"Elmyra, do you know what it's like to watch your life's work cause most of the problems in the world?" The toy slumped against the vent, dejected. "I wanted to make life better for people and saw Mako as a way of doing that, so I designed the Mako Reactors. And look at what's happened since then: Shinra used them to build a monopoly and raise an army. They oppressed the people, waged a bloody war over the right to plunder their lands, and that doesn't even cover all of this right now."
Moving closer to the vent, she asked, "Then why did you stay?"
"Because I thought I could at least curb their worst behavior, to make up for my role in turning Midgar into this nightmare it's become. But I was powerless to do anything when they dropped the plate of Sector 7. They wouldn't even let me organize repairs or a support system for those who lost everything. Even the orphanage was a struggle to get running. I… wanted—no, I needed to reform the company and expose what it had become."
"And you wanted to use my daughter to do it?" she guessed.
"She and her friends were the only ones who managed to do something under their own power. I was hoping they could help me somehow. I'm not proud of it, but I wanted to change things for the better. For everyone."
Again, he sounded sincere. But no matter how sweet the words and promises, she couldn't forgive him. Even if she could let the betrayal pass, getting Aerith involved was something she wouldn't forgive. "I can't forgive you for trying to manipulate my daughter. Not after all she's been through. You're no different from Tseng in that aspect."
The black cat nodded slowly in acceptance. "Even though I did come to love the time we spent together, I was dishonest about my intentions from the time we met. So I can't blame you for hating me for it. But at the very least, we need to get you out before Rufus and Heidegger go to war with each other."
She gave him a wary look. "We?"
"I had help getting this far, from a former SOLDIER known as Kunsel. You know him right?"
She nodded. He was the one who gave her the phone and she'd seen him a few times around Aerith. In fact, they were traveling together for a time. "What about my daughter? Have either of you heard anything from her?"
"Just a few minutes ago we overheard Heidegger saying that she got away. Her friends managed to save her. Now we need to get you out of the city and send a message so they can't force her to work for them any further."
Elmyra breathed out a sigh of relief at the news that her daughter was safe. The thought of leaving her home and all the memories they had there were bitter, but the time for nostalgia was long gone. Staying there only served to give leverage to that monster of a man and mad scientist. "What do you have in mind?"
The black cat slipped its gloved hand behind its back and then reached into a hidden compartment beneath the cape. It pulled out a Magic Materia and then slipped it through the vent. She managed to catch it before it hit the ground.
"That is an Exit Materia," Reeve explained through the plush toy. "Use it and you'll be taken to where Denzel and my mother are with an associate of mine, Mister Arkham. They'll take you somewhere safe, a tropic little place on an island to the south called Mideel."
Again, they were the words of someone who had betrayed her. But she wanted to believe them. It would be a gamble, but it was better than the alternative.
Focusing on the materia, a gentle jolt to her mind pulled her away from the small room and towards safety.
[-oOo-]
Hojo couldn't keep the smile off his face as he drained the tank housing the subject that survived his successful melding of a behemoth in an earlier experiment.
The Protomateria was the key to Omega, and that fool Heidegger was just handing it to him without realizing what he was doing. Only an imbecile would believe it to be something as crass as a weapon of war. It was more of a vessel to house the world's knowledge and the key to gaining the infinite knowledge of the cosmos.
After the tank drained, the brute stepped out and shook his head. It wasn't unexpected since the process of integrating innate magical abilities into beings that had none was a very difficult process. Their bodies would often fail, unable to handle the strain. Nevertheless, his vitals were stable for the most part and that was good enough to proceed.
"We need to test the duration of how long you will be able to maintain the barrier using the virtual reality system."
The brute's head snapped up and he raised his nose to sniff the air before snarling. "First we need to take care of a rodent problem, Professor."
Hojo supposed the modifications that enabled his ability to transform had also altered his base senses to a greater extent than ordinary SOLDIERs, but the news of a potential rodent infestation left him unpleased. He had demanded sterile working conditions to avoid the risk of contamination in his experimentations. Is that so much to ask for?
However, that became a secondary concern as the brute picked up the tank he was formerly in. The tank had been reinforced to avoid having subjects within it break out from the inside, so it was reasonably durable given the need to house this particular subject. Backed by his peak physical strength, it easily broke through the ceiling.
"What sort of rodent would require such extensive damage!?" Hojo demanded as he shielded his head in the event that any shrapnel or scrap metal fell down. It was like burning down your own home to kill a flea. More so since this was his lab and the equipment would take days to replace.
Just then, a silhouette descended from the ceiling and then shot forward towards Hojo. The brute intercepted, moving in front of the professor and then swinging his arm around to knock away the assailant. They ended up hitting the opposing wall hard enough to dent it, revealing it to be one of traitors that had tortured him.
The brute cracked his knuckles and bared his teeth in a predatory manner. "One that must be thoroughly crushed, Professor."