Once More, With Feeling... – Chapter 52: Illusions and Allurements
Summary: Careful planning and unusual talents, make a complex web to weave.
Author: Illusor Meaneld
Rated T: for Descriptive violence and injuries, No Adult Situations, No Cussing.
Disclaimer: I did not create, and do not own the characters from Final Fantasy 7. They are owned by Square-Enix, and I am simply borrowing them for my own (and hopefully your) enjoyment.
Sephiroth gazed intently at his opponent, his posture was straight and balanced, but simultaneously relaxed and confident, cocky… he thought, it was always one of Genesis failings. Some might say the same of the Silver General of course, and they might even be right, he acknowledged privately. After all, in at least one future he'd been defeated by a boy half a decade his junior, with almost none of the specialized training to match Sephiroth's own.
"When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end, the goddess descends from the sky." His Lieutenant quoted with a smirk.
"The Prologue" The General confirmed, sighing, "Always Loveless, one would hope you'd find a new literary hobby eventually."
"It is a classic, perfection of poetry and prose both in its forms."
The silver haired SOLDIER shook his head lightly, tilting his sword towards his friend, "We didn't come here to discuss novels, let's see how much you've improved."
The red-clad man grinned, "Of course." He raised his own sword to shoulder height, holding it perpendicularly to the ground. As he slid his left hand from cross-bar to tip the crimson blade lit with fiery runes. Sephiroth felt his own smile curl his lips, and then they were moving. The crash and spark of the two powerful blades, the sudden cessation of forward movement, then they both leaped backwards, circling each other like hunting predators. They were standing deep in richly vegetated forest, one of the newer Holographic environments added to the training program. The dense foliage and oppressively humid air humming with insects was so realistically rendered the general felt a bead of sweat trickle under his hair. Genesis seemed similarly affected as he ran a hand through his locks and some of it slicked back with moisture.
They both dashed forward to clash again, dodging back and racing forward, trees and plant life collapsed in the wake of the razor sharp magical swords, and the smoldering crackle of damp wood struggling to burn reached the General's nose. Another dash and parry and this time his sword slid along the crimson blade just far enough to slice across a shoulder. His Lieutenant cringed back,… and flickered for just a moment as the A.I. adapted, Oops! Sephiroth huffed at himself, no contact… he shook his head at his own carelessness. The spar needed to look real if anyone decided to check. This was more difficult than he'd expected. He whipped his blade up again as the hologram of his friend pressed the attack in his distraction. What a fascinating challenge.
Reno paced the apartment, dutifully fetching the small glass bowl from the wash rack that his mewling charge habitually ate from. The tiny mud colored kitten that Angeal had gifted his roommate had been growing like a weed. Now she had lanky legs and a long sleek tail, and her smeared looking fur had resolved into more distinct patches. She yowled her displeasure at the wait, her voice still high and squeaky, more cute than annoying at the moment. He glanced with a raised eyebrow at her round kitten belly. His Partner had assured him that was normal, and healthy but it made her look like a fluffy pear whenever she rolled belly up on the couch. Even now it bulged out around her middle like she'd swallowed a softball, and she hasn't even eaten yet. A fact she reminded him of again as she twinned between his legs.
"Hey Cloudy! Don' let'ch'er cat starve yo!" He yelled as he walked past the hallway. Then padding quickly back to the kitchen, and opening the cupboards he pressed the button on the small device in his left hand.
"I'm feeding Lucy right now, keep your pants on!" Cloud's return shout echoed from the recorder.
The redhead grinned as the eager "Mrrreeeoww!" piped up even louder from his pursuant feline. She hopped on the counter, watching him pull out the bag of food and scoop measure with a lashing tail.
Another tap of the button and his roommate's voice crooned, "Here we go sweetheart." As the gangly Turk poured the food into the dish, noting the audible clink of dry pellets on glass. He stroked the velvety soft orange and black fur of Lucretia's forehead as she dove into her dinner with gusto. The apartment he shared with Cloud was fairly secluded, but he could often hear his neighbors, and they him. It wouldn't do for them to remember anyone being unusually quiet on this particular evening. "Who's a good girl? You're gonna grow so big." The little black device informed the kitten happily,
"Mrrpp?" was the reply between crunching bites.
This was, perhaps the longest mission Angeal had ever taken Zack on just the two of them. They were currently on a train that traveled inland from the port of Aegit. What had started as a tiny fishing village had been upgraded with industrial docks courtesy of Shinra, to ship supplies westward through the Corel region. They'd browsed around the little town while they were there, it was pretty, and almost quaint. 'Actually smaller than Gongaga' Zack had proclaimed in surprise. The fresh food was decent, but they hadn't stayed the night. Aegit might eventually return to being a tiny fishing village in the future if the war ended, but perhaps the increased industrial capacity might keep it expanding instead. The SOLDIER didn't know for sure, but the way Cloud talked about future progress made him hopeful. The train rocked and rattled on its route, as the tall man prowled around his protégé. Zack was enthusiastically doing squats to pass the time, the added challenge of balancing with the movement of their transport added new dynamic to the Second Class' almost habitual energy burning regime. They were coming up on another stop soon. Not much more than a few tiny stores, and a storage building. They would pause there while the train was checked out for minor maintenance, and Angeal and Zack would step out and explore the tiny rest area thoroughly.
Officially, they were looking for AVALANCHE, and taking the time to further Angeal's protégé's training in his pursuit of First Class status. Unofficially… well… that was an entirely different story. They had two more stops before the train reached Corel. "Old Corel" Cloud had accidently called it during the meeting, and with a little prompting admitted there was a 'New Corel' a 'Corel Prison' and a 'North Corel' in the future. The City they were traveling to, had no longer existed. And isn't that a sobering thought. The shadows of pain on the 'young' man's face had forestalled the Lieutenant asking for more clarification. Though that same consideration was unlikely to stop Tseng or Sephiroth if the subject came up again. After all, it was no small thing for a town of over five thousand people to just vanish. The SOLDIER First shook his head, trying to dispel the lingering sorrow for a future that hadn't happened. One that wouldn't if he had anything to say about it, and turned back to his student.
They had progressed to light hand-to-hand sparing practice when the train reached its next stop. Koiréal was a larger stop than the last, the little village large enough to have a designated name, as the tiny sign by the train station pronounced. Angeal and Zack searched here too, Zackary was suitably impressed by the 'buffalo' the little village was trying to raise, the hump-backed, floppy eared creatures might have been cute, if they hadn't boasted the thick, leathery skin, intimidating horns and tusks, and a temper not unlike a Banoran Badger's. Thankfully, his protégé seemed equally as intimidated, and managed to avoid getting gored by one. After an hour or so, they headed back to the train and moved on, they had one additional tiny nameless stop before their final destination.
It was late afternoon when they arrived at Corel. The little town was bustling with business, and excited to see the train's arrival complete with expected deliveries. Even more enthusiasm greeted the two SOLDIERs as they disembarked, a rare appearance from individuals hailed with near celebrity status. Zack blossomed under the attention, especially that of the young girls his age who were flirting shamelessly. The little scamp was right at home with his earnest enthusiasm, and Angeal felt for a moment, an inkling of what the time-traveler must feel whenever he looked at the rest of them. He was so young, and endearing with his innocence. If Cloud thought of Genesis this way, no wonder he could tolerate the acerbic SOLDIER. After a short indulgence, Angeal gently extracted his charge from the clutches of his new fans, and the two of them explored the town. Right now the key part of their mission was to be 'seen', and by as many different individuals as possible. The more complex aspects of the plan would start coming together in a few hours, when there was a scheduled delivery of supplies specifically for the SOLDIER's mission, coming to the reactor by helicopter. Their travel by truck, boat, and train, pausing to check all the towns and villages on route had taken a week. So a 'resupply' was not out of the ordinary after such a time.
Angeal rather expected that the other planned 'Alibis' should be getting under way soon. Their own was already started, with so many of the townsfolk seeing them in person. As the sky began to darken into dusk, the SOLDIER First and his protégé accepted a room at the local Inn, the one closest to the reactor, and dropped off their small carry bags. Taking the keys after locking up, they made their way to the reactor itself up on the hill. It would have been a tiring hike for the unenhanced, but with his mentor to bolster him, Zack jogged up the path in good spirits, barely winded when they reached the top. They spent a good hour scouting around the area, this had been requested by their superiors. If they were going to be in the area anyways, may as well help the maintenance workers by clearing out the monsters. The 'unofficial' instructions were trickier, and Angeal himself took care to engineer the 'fallen' tree, while 'hunting' that conveniently obscured the view of the camera that overlooked the helipad. There were at least four cameras according to Tseng. The one he'd just blinded, the one in the storage warehouse, one at the reactor door, and one in the reactor itself. They probably could have gotten away without the obstruction, but it wouldn't be there long anyways.
Sure enough, about half an hour after the camera had been so unfortunately covered over, and the two of them had dispatched quite a number of Bagnadrana, Bombs, and other local monsters, they heard the thrumming sound of a helicopter overhead. In the time it took for the vehicle to approach, they'd returned to the landing pad with the grisly proofs of their work. Angeal greeted the unfamiliar Turk pilot politely, nodding to the two accompanying MPs. The two SOLDIERs quickly stepped forward to help them unload. Some of these supplies were for the reactor itself, while those could have come by train like Angeal and his protégé, Shinra would use any excuse to transport them more securely. They packed the crates in the warehouse, making sure to be seen together with the Shinra personnel. Then Angeal and Zack both escorted the trio down to the town to spend the night. The plan was for the helicopter to leave after the two SOLDIERs had finished conducting their search in this town. What they didn't know about, was the unsanctioned cargo, at some point while they were all unpacking boxes, a pair of stowaways had made their way from the helicopter out into the dense surrounding forest. Angeal never saw or heard them, so he had to assume things had gone as planned. They packed up and he escorted the pilot and MP's to town, to settle them into their own separate rooms at the Inn, as he did so, he audibly instructed his student to finish cleaning up the nearby monsters, so their transport would remain undisturbed. Silently, he wished the young man luck, and prayed this mission would go according to both official, and unofficial plan.
Cloud and Genesis slid neatly out from among the stacks of cargo on the helicopter. The unloading had been going on for about 20 minutes, and the blond was confident he had the pattern timed as well as could be expected. He tapped lightly on Genesis shoulder and the two dashed soundlessly from the aircraft across the helipad to the nearest fence. They were over it, and had vanished amongst the trees in seconds. The two had spent part of the past week practicing stealth, and the Lieutenant was wearing a dusky grey outfit, similar enough in style to the clothing he usually wore under his signature red coat to be familiar, but with none of the noisy squeaking leather. This had taken quite a bit of convincing to accomplish, but with their heads neatly covered by loose hoods and masks they were all but invisible in the darkness. They pulled the cloth from their mouths as they traveled far enough to avoid accidental discovery, and spent a few minutes searching out the rendezvous point Angeal would have marked earlier in the day.
Once they located the tree in question. A large one, with its trunk scored by sword marks that loosely looked like an 'x' filed with the glowing blood of a bomb. Cloud set down one of the small packs they'd acquired for their trip. Filled with the supplies they would need to accomplish their mission. There were three packs, each with a slender but sturdy sword wrapped and carefully tucked inside in such a way as to make no noise. Neither Genesis nor Zack had been happy to be deprived of their 'signature' weapons, and both had groused over the 'small' size of the provided blades. But these were discrete (in a way rapier adamantly was not), and the weapons maker, a skilled crafter native to the slums, would rather have his limbs chopped off than admit to Shinra who had purchased them. The Lieutenant set down his two similarly, one was for Zack, who would be joining them as soon as possible, sometime in the next hour or so when he was freed from observation. In the meantime, Cloud had the next part of the plan to finish himself.
"I'm observing." Genesis whispered stubbornly, the blond sighed, they'd been arguing about this since the plan had been made.
"I need to do this myself,"
"I will watch, or I will hold you by the scruff like a kitten until our time has run out." The auburn-haired man returned with an amused grin.
"Seriously?" Cloud choked, the little brat! He had a lot of experience with kids, and with stubborn teenagers… but it had been a very long time since anyone could physically overpower him, and he wasn't used to that anymore… Sometimes he really missed his enhancements. They stared each other down for long seconds, but weighing in at maybe ninety pounds soaking wet, Cloud knew his puny fourteen year old body was no match for the 'older' boy's muscular stature, and over a foot in additional height.
"Fine!" He snarled in exasperation, throwing his hands up and striding into the woods, "But stay back or you'll mess it up." A light chuckle from his companion was the only answer. They wandered carefully through the dark foliage until Cloud found what looked like a likely location, he gestured for the SOLDIER First to step back and out of sight. When he could no longer hear the other youth, the blond sat down on the ground with a sigh. Removing the covering off his hair and pulling a small particular pouch from the hidden pockets of his outfit. He pulled it open and allowed the fresh smell to waft around him. Placing this in his lap he cupped his hands particularly in front of his face.
Yuffie had laughed at him endlessly for this technique, and even Tifa had found it difficult to maintain a straight face after witnessing it. Cloud knew with a certainty that was almost comforting, that the sharp eared SOLDIER behind him would never let him live it down either. He let loose a warbling cry, that echoed eerily passed his fingers and palms. Following it with a lower almost bark like noise that would chitter unremarkably through the trees. He repeated the first noise three times, and the second once before pausing, listening for a response. As he glanced around he managed to catch a glimpse of the SOLDIER balanced delicately in the trees, the moonlight was just touching his face, and he was wearing the most peculiar expression. Definitely not going to live this down. Cloud thought as he put his lips to his hands again,
"KWEH!" rang out into the night, and after a moment was answered by a distant sound. Cloud repeated himself, "KWEH!"
"Waarrk?" came the curious bark-like call.
"Kweeh?" the blond drew out the cry inquisitively. Shortly thereafter a number of calls from among the trees rang out enthusiastically, and a small pattering of feet signaled the approach of his targets. The first yellow head popped in to the clearing, gazing warily at the human it unexpectedly found. "Kweh!" Cloud chirped through his fingers. The bird lost its nervousness and trotted closer, whistling as it inspected the fluffy blond locks of the strange boy. As if the first one's daring was a signal, a whole herd of friendly feathery critters bustled into the clearing, inspecting Cloud and looking particularly interested in the bag of tasty greens sitting in his lap. He chuckled softly, petting the many heads and handing out treats. They crowded so close it took him a while to find the ones he needed, but after a short time he'd quietly separated out four green birds. They were slightly more common in mountainous regions, but most people didn't know how to find them except in the grasslands and beaches, where chocobo tracks were easier to locate. Generally only the common yellow birds were found in those areas.
He fed his chosen a few more treats, carefully slipped a halter on each one and then stood to lead them back to the rendezvous. The other birds paused their grooming of his hair, chirped at each other, and began to disperse when there were no more greens on offer. Cloud was about halfway back when the SOLDIER First dropped from the trees, causing the birds he was leading to skitter sideways, hissing in protest. Cloud ignored him and continued walking, gently encouraging his charges along, and tugging one particular bird more firmly when it moved to bite the taller youth.
"That was … fantastic." Genesis murmured, watching the procession with the largest and most honest grin the time-traveler had ever seen on his face. The blond sighed in resignation. The other man followed without further comment, but his high spirits made it difficult to hold resentment for long. Cloud could almost hear him humming something under his breath, and he occasionally reached out a hand to attempt to pet one of the gangly birds, dodging gracefully out of the path of the occasional nip. The four avians were also slowly growing accustomed to their new companion, and most of them settled down with nothing more than ruffling feathers. One though, a small, scrappy looking female, took extreme exception, and was constantly cocking her head to find an angle at which she could take a bite out of the auburn-haired man. The blond decided he'd better ride that one.
Once they'd returned to their marked position, they settled in to wait. The time-traveler took the time to affix the simple leather strap 'harnesses' he'd acquired on the Chocobos, adusting the set and height. They were a simple construction with a wide band across the chest to distribute weight, a single 'handle' for the rider over the shoulders and above the wings. And then two loops further down and back to tuck in one's feet. They almost disappeared among the feathers, and if they'd been yellows, he wouldn't have bothered. When he was happy with their positioning, he turned and pulled another bag from his pockets and handed it to the Lieutenant. Then, with a seasoned eye, he carefully selected a bright eyed young male bird, and tied up the rest to the tree. He led his choice over to where Genesis had settled himself on the ground, and handed the lead reins to the larger boy.
"Here, this fella should suit you nicely," Cloud explained, "give him some greens, not too many, but enough to endear him to you, when he starts nuzzling your hand for more, start petting him. They love to be scratched under the feathers, particularly around the head where they can't reach well."
Genesis accepted both items with a smug smile, "Where did you learn to do that, Cloud?"
"I raced and bred Chocobos." The blond admitted with an eye roll. "I was very good at both, and had a lot of time to perfect my techniques." The SOLDIER chuckled, and the time-traveler turned away in exasperation.
It was only a little while later that a soft whispered inquiry came from the trees. "Cloud? Genesis? Are you there?"
"We're here." Cloud confirmed, equally quietly. The tall young man jogged hesitantly out of the foliage, sagging with relief when he saw the other two waiting for him.
"Wow, you guys really do have Chocobos!" Zack chattered excitedly, "And they really are green! I know you said they'd be green… but wow!" he began moving towards the three tied birds. Cloud neatly stepped between him and the cranky female, who's cocked head and dilating eyes translated her desire to bite the newcomer just as clearly as if she'd shouted it. The black-haired Second Class didn't seem to notice, his hands reached out eagerly to the other two birds, with no consideration for their nervousness, and began stroking his fingers through their plumage.
"I'm aware you thoroughly explained your plan to aquire these verdant birds for transport, but I'm curious as to how their plumage so alters their ability to traverse our particular terrain." Genesis inquired with smooth verbosity.
"The theory I've always heard from the sages, is that they have an elemental affinity, gifted by the planet, or the, 'goddess' if you like.… and some of that gift shows in their feathers."
Genesis raised an eyebrow, "And does your own theory concur?"
"I'm sure that has something to do with it. The color is consistent. But there's some physical traits too if you know what to look for." He gestured to the feet of the Lieutenant's bird. "Green Chocobos have thicker claws, with a sharper hook. Their feet have a bit more swivel in the ankle too. Shorter thicker toes, and even the vanes on their feathers are stronger. I think the green helps them blend in the mountain forests they prefer to nest in too."
The SOLDIERs both obligingly inspected their mounts for the mentioned physical traits, Zack still looking vaguely baffled. The First Class snorted, "Little thought have I given, for I never cared to ride one."
The blond just smiled, and shook his head a little… well, perhaps they'd take him more seriously once they got moving. He watched Zack for a moment, and then separated the bird who leaned hardest into the teenagers petting. He handed the boy another of his bags of greens, offering the same instructions for taming that he'd given to Genesis. After a few moments of following directions, and when the bird was cooing pliantly. The young SOLDIER Second glanced up, "Where did you rent the Chocobos? I didn't see any stables in town." He inquired naively.
Genesis snickered, "We can't go into town little fool, but we didn't need to." He glanced pointedly at Cloud with a grin. "Cloud has a … way with Chocobos it seems."
The blond pinched his nose with a sigh. "I know how to lure them." He tried to explain.
"It's almost like he, speaks their language." The Lieutenant chortled.
"Huh?" Zack simply looked puzzled, "So these ones are wild then?" He asked, still petting his chosen mount.
"Our own little chocobo all but summoned them for us." Genesis confirmed,
The black-haired Second Class frowned, "Cloud doesn't like that nickname." He advised,
"I'll bet his friends used to call him that, and I bet I know why!" The auburn-haired young man laughed,
Cloud heaved an almost soul deep sigh, but found his heart warm with the teasing, Vincent and Shelke had never really picked up this sort of levity, and it had been a while since anyone knew him well enough to poke fun at him like that. Not that he'd tell Genesis as much. He mentally chided. Then he settled the packs on the fourth bird, and mounted the scruffy female he'd chosen for himself.
"C'mon guys," He gestured the other two to follow, and they mounted up quickly. "Let's Mosey." They began trotting off towards the mountains, with Genesis soft laughter following.
((Author's Note:
I had a bit of fun with this chapter… and you guys can probably tell, that Genesis also had fun … a LOT of it. XD
These scenes, or variants of them, are things I've been planning for a while, so they were actually pretty quick to write. I finished this chapter, and the last one within a week of chapter 50. But considering my less than stellar track record of posting in a timely manner, I thought it might be fairer all around to space out the posting of them… so the delay between each doesn't reach 2 YEARS again. . … anyways, thank you for your patience! And hopefully I'll get around to fleshing out this story on a more regular basis. ^_~
-Jianre M. A.K.A … Illusor Meaneld.))