Taking Care of Reno: Advent Children
Chapter 5: The Escape
He’d expected only one prisoner… but he’d found two. What was more, he recognized them immediately, even before one of them spoke his name.
“H-how did you find us?” Elena asked, disbelievingly.
“There’s no time to explain. They’re some distance from here, but they’ll have heard that shot,” he replied, and turned to Tseng. “Can you walk?”
“With help,” the Turk leader said, already staggering to get to his feet. Elena quickly came to his aid, slipping beneath his arm to provide support, and they followed the former-Turk out into the open.
“Follow me.”
The building they’d been locked into was near a small lake, and Vincent led them alone a stream that fed it, into their thickly forested surroundings. Tseng was struggling to keep up, even with Elena’s assistance, and Vincent had to slow his pace to give the pair time to catch him. They were fortunate only one of them was injured. He wasn’t sure he could manage hauling them both out while also keeping watch for the creatures that had taken them prisoner.
Far to his left, he heard the distinct sound of footsteps returning, and he signaled them to halt and be silent. Vincent briefly caught sight of the three as they charged through the forest, back towards the ruins. Once they had passed, he and his rescued Turks pressed on. None of them spoke for some time, worried that even a minute amount of noise might give them away.
Tseng stumbled over a thick root, and fell to his knees, nearly pulling Elena down with him, and Vincent stopped, turning back and pulling him to his feet again. The Turk leader was in worse shape than he’d let on, he realized. He was breathing heavily, eyes screwed shut in pain. A thin trail of blood dripped from his nose.
Though he would have preferred to remain in the lead, on guard, it was clear that Elena was going to need his help getting her superior to safety. Vincent pulled Tseng’s arm over his shoulders, taking most of his weight.
“How’s your marksmanship these days?” he asked as Elena relinquished her hold on the Wutaiian.
“Exceptional as ever,” Tseng replied for her. The former-Turk nodded, and handed over his weapon to the woman. It was hard to part with the gun… but with him aiding Tseng, if they were followed she would be the first to spot them.
“Nothin’. Not a goddamn trace of ’em anywhere,” Reno muttered angrily, and threw the potato he’d been peeling so hard it hit the wall on the opposite side of the room. It stuck there for several seconds before dropping to the floor with a loud thump.
Rude sighed, and plucked the peeler out of his hand.
“I know you’re frustrated, but could you not take it out on dinner?”
“Tch… why are we wastin’ time in the kitchen, anyway? Grab a fuckin’ sandwich and let’s go.”
“Go where?” Rude asked, “We’re out of leads. The only thing we can do right now is wait for them to show themselves.”
“And meanwhile, ‘Lena ‘n Tseng are gettin’ who the fuck even knows what done to ’em… while we sit around makin’ mashed potatoes.”
“Scalloped.”
“Like there’s a fuckin’ difference,” the redhead muttered, turning his gaze to the window.
Rude narrowed his eyes, and slammed the confiscated peeler down onto the counter. “They’re not. The same. Thing.”
The redhead quickly turned back to him, surprised by the angry tone of voice… and even more taken aback by the expression his friend now wore.
“Rude… partner… it’s just a fuckin’ potato. Relax.”
The bald Turk growled and seized the casserole dish he’d been filling with sliced potatoes and hurled it to the ground. It shattered, sending shards of ceramic and bits of the starchy tubers flying everywhere. He stormed off without another word, slamming the door behind him.
“Crap…” Reno sighed. Something told him this wasn’t about potatoes. He quickly sidestepped the mess on the floor and trailed the other Turk outside. He found him at the overlook, and walked over to where he was leaning against the railing, staring out at the falls. “So… guess that means were havin’ somethin’ else for dinner, huh?”
Rude didn’t answer, and Reno joined him, mirroring his position at the rail. “This is gettin’ to you as bad as it’s gettin’ to me, isn’t it?”
Rude sighed. “Tseng is your mentor. Elena is your wife. But I love them both, too. And I hate not knowing.”
“I’m sorry,” the redhead stated, and Rude finally looked over at him, clearly not having expected that. Reno gave him a weak smile. “You’ve always been the strong one. Nothin’ phases you. Makes it a little too easy to forget you’re just as human as everyone else, sometimes… even when I know better.”
“… Thanks.”
“‘Sides… You got as much claim on ’em as anyone. They’re not mine. They’re ours. Gimme a few minutes. I’ll go clean up the potatoes you just assassinated, and we’ll start over… ‘kay?”
Rude nodded and turned his gaze back to the view, and the redhead headed back to the kitchen, berating himself. He should have noticed sooner, but he’d been too caught up in his own worries to take on someone else’s. But he still should have noticed… especially when Rude had gotten up before the sun that morning to start breakfast. And when lunch had been four courses. And particularly when he’d discovered his friend had written out an entire menu for dinner. Rude loved to cook. It was therapeutic and relaxing for him. And when he went overboard, there was usually a reason for it.
The redhead grimaced at the sight of the shattered dish and started scooping the remains into the trash. It had been one of Rude’s favorites. Elena had given it to him last Christmas. He was going to be upset when he realized what he’d done. Reno decided not to mention it for the time being.
It had been four days. And almost two of those days had been spent sitting around, waiting. The trail had gone cold, and they were left in limbo… desperately wanting to search, but already having covered most places that made sense for them to be hiding. The trio had gone to ground somewhere, and they’d taken two Turks with them.
At least, he hoped, Tseng and Elena were still with them… because the alternative… well, if they’d gotten away, they’d have contacted Healin by now. If they weren’t with the men from the crater, then given that they’d heard nothing there at the Lodge, the odds of them being dead skyrocketed. Thus far, Reno had refused to acknowledge the possibility at all. They were alive, and he and Rude were going to find them. To start thinking otherwise… would probably result in him never sleeping through the night again until this was all over.
He sighed softly and cleared the last of the ex-potatoes from the tile.
It had taken them hours last night to reach this place. And when they finally had, both she and Tseng had all but collapsed. Even Vincent seemed tired, and he hadn’t spent days being alternately starved and tortured.
They would have been able to make better progress, even in spite of the Turk leader’s injuries… but their pursuers had dogged them throughout the night. They’d spend half the trip in hiding, and the other half moving slowly to avoid making too much noise. Twice, they’d somehow gotten turned around in the strange forest, and gone in a wide circle. But they’d made it out. Finally.
Vincent lead them into a large tent… one of several in the little clearing they’d come to, all of which were fashioned from a combination of canvas and gigantic bones. The roof of this particular shelter was a massive dragon skull.
“Where are we?” Elena asked slightly awed as she stepped inside.
“An old archeological dig site. The Bone Village, as its former inhabitants called it. It was abandoned shortly after Meteorfall. The workers had some trouble with mako poisoning following the crisis… though the residual energy seems to have cleared out at this point. I’ve been using it as a sort of base of operations for watching those three,” the former Turk replied, and laid Tseng down on a sleeping bag atop a pallet. “There’s food in that crate. I assume they didn’t bother feeding you.”
“We really need to contact Healin.” She rummaged through the container. It was mostly trail food. Nuts, dried fruit, protein bars. Long lasting and easy to pack. A few cans lined the bottom as well.
“That will be… difficult,” said Vincent. “Even if I had a PHS, reception on the Northern Continent is spotty at best these days. There’s a radio… but it doesn’t work, and probably hasn’t in years. I’m not especially good with electronics myself, but if you think you can do something with it, you’re welcome to give it a try.”
Elena shook her head. “Not exactly my strong suit, either.”
“Nor mine, I’m afraid,” Tseng said, coughing faintly.
“There’s a boat that travels near here once a week. When I need them, I signal them from the beach. But it will be some time before they return. They just passed by the day before yesterday. Had I known you’d been brought here, I’d have asked them to wait… but I was retrieving supplies when you arrived and didn’t find out until I returned to the city.”
“… How long have you been here?” Elena asked, curious.
“A little over a month. Those three showed up about a week ago, just as I was planning to leave, myself. I thought it best to stay for awhile longer and see what they were up to.”
Tseng looked up at him in surprise. “A month? What were you doing up here all this time, Vincent?”
Vincent shook his head. “Satisfying my curiosity, mostly. I wanted to explore the ancient Cetra city they’ve since taken over. And… I came to pay my respects. That city is is where Aerith died. And where she’s interred.”
Elena didn’t miss the expression of sadness that came over Tseng’s face for a moment… and she doubted Vincent did, either. Neither of them said anything.
“Sir… You should eat something,” she said, changing the subject.
“You first. You need it more than I do.”
Vincent’s eyebrow rose. “A curious thing to say, given that you appear to be the only one they tortured. Why did they leave Elena be, anyway?”
“I…” the other Turk began, but Tseng opted to explain for her.
“They planned to use her as leverage to get what they want from Rufus. We… located some of Jenova’s remains in the Northern Crater. Reno and Rude escaped with them. We were not so fortunate. They thought perhaps they could trade Elena for them. I was somewhat… less valuable to them.”
Elena moved behind him and carefully helped the Wutaiian Turk to sit up. She tore open the wrapping of one of the protein bars, breaking a piece off and offering it to him.
“Elena… Please just rest. You’re exhausted.”
“So are you. And you’re hurt,” she replied, firmly, adding before he could protest again, “For Shiva’s sake, Tseng… I’m pregnant, I’m not dying.”
“… I see,” Vincent commented, “Well, that certainly explains why they felt you would make a better trade than he would. In any case, you should both eat, and get some sleep. I’ll keep watch. In the morning, I will see what I can do about getting us out of here… but we may be staying put awhile longer.”
“Any news?” Reno asked, as he stepped out of his bedroom and nearly walked straight into Rude in the hallway. It was the same question he asked every morning lately.
“Not about Elena and Tseng,” his partner sighed. “But… there’s signs that a fresh outbreak might be starting in Edge.”
“… Oh, terrific.” That was all they needed. If more people started getting sick, Rufus would almost certainly be forced to pull them off the search for the two missing Turks. Not that said search seemed to be going anywhere at the moment anyway. There were a limited number of pilots on the eastern continent, outside of the ones stationed in Junon… and medical supplies were going to be in high demand. Air was faster… especially if they ended up having to ship them in from other storage locations again. “When the hell’s this shit gonna stop?”
“Not until we find a cure for it, I’d imagine,” a voice from farther down the hall informed them. Reno turned to see Rufus wheeling his way toward them.
“Tch… you gonna stay in that thing all the time, sir?”
“Until I have no reason to… yes. It’s only a matter of time before we’re found. It’s not as if we’ve gone to great lengths to dispel the rumors that I’m here. For all we know, we may be surveilled already.”
Rude chuckled softly. “Thought we were the only ones who were supposed to be that paranoid…”
“Laugh all you wish. Our cure may well be found in this rotting lump of flesh, and I have no intention making it easy to find,” Rufus assured them, as he continued past them. Reno glanced over at his partner and smirked slightly before following the President into the front room. He had to admit, he took a certain amount of pride in the man Rufus had become after the Meteor Crisis. Tseng took even more. The young executive was much changed from the brash, haughty young man he’d been before his father’s death. He’d grown up quite a bit… as had they all.
Though he could still be an insufferable pain in the ass at times.
“Oh, and Reno… ?” the man called back over his shoulder.
“Yeah?”
“There’s a phone call I want you to make. I think it’s just about time we called in a little… backup.”
Without looking back, he held out a somewhat dog-earred business card. The redhead took it from him as he rolled his way towards the kitchen without another word, Rude not far behind. Curious, Reno glanced down at the text printed on the card… and groaned.
‘Strife Delivery Service‘.
~end chapter 5~
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