Taking Care of Reno: Meteorfall
Chapter 17: Meetings
Elena shivered as an icy gust of wind whipped past her, sending up a flurry of snow from the ground, and followed Reno as he trudged through the drifts. It was obvious the walkways had been cleared at least once already today… but judging by the piles of snow, it was a never-ending job. The two Turks, along with the pair of Shinra military personnel they’d commandeered, hustled to get out of the cold, pushing open the heavy wooden door of the ski lodge. The warmth that greeted her indoors almost hurt against her frost-kissed cheeks, after their long walk into town.
The Highwind hadn’t wanted to draw unnecessary attention… so the pair of Turks and their entourage had disembarked almost half a mile away.
“Heh… You frozen solid yet, ‘Lena?” Reno asked, waving the security officers off for the time being. They wouldn’t need them until Avalanche actually showed themselves.
“My fingers and toesmight be…” she replied, tugging off her gloves and stuffing them into a pocket. She smirked to herself and reached for him while his back was still to her, laying her chilled fingers against the back of his neck.
“Yaahh! Quit it!” the redhead squealed, dancing away from her touch, and Elena heard a hastily muffled snicker from at least one of the soldiers from Junon. “I didn’t ask for a demonstration…”
Elena giggled softly and trailed behind him as he gave a nod to the man at the front desk and made his way over the the wood-burning stove on the other side of the room. He dragged a chair closer to the heat source and sat down, pulling her along with him, onto his lap.
“I’d offer to take you upstairs and warm ya up… but we’re s’posed to be keepin’ an eye out for Avalanche,” he said, leering slightly as he gently rubbed her cold hands in his own. His were cold, too, but it helped a bit.
“Too bad…” She pulled one hand free, and unzipped his coat, grinning evilly as she slipped the ice-cold appendage inside and under his shirt and pressed it against the delicious warmth of his stomach. The redhead gasped at the sudden chill, shuddering. “Guess I’ll just have to warm myself up.”
“Ya know, just on the off chance you’ve never noticed, I don’t have a nice warm layer of fat to protect me from the cold like most people… You’re siphonin’ off all my body heat doin’ that.”
Elena looked him in the eye. “Are you implying that I do have a nice warm layer of fat?”
“… I’m not touchin’ that question with a ten foot pole,” he shot back, “There’s no right answer, and too many possibilities that’ll get me slapped.”
With a smile, she calmly slid the other hand in to join the first. Reno made no further complaints, though, and instead simply wrapped his arms around her tighter, pulling her more fully against his body. The wind outside howled and sent more snow careening into the picture window at the front of the lodge. It was the perfect vantage point, really. They could see most of the main stretch of the town right there from the comfort of the lobby. As stakeouts went, this was definitely one of the more agreeable ones.
“You know… I haven’t been to Icicle Inn since I was a kid.” She shifted slightly on Reno’s lap so that she had a better view of the window. It had been a long time… though very little seemed to have changed. A few new houses here and there, but by and large, it was the same little ski resort her family had vacationed at when she was around eleven years old. “… Well… Unless you count us getting trapped overnight in that cave out on the glacier,” she added with a quiet laugh.
“Tch… Don’t remind me. I don’t think I’ve ever been that cold in my entire life.”
“It wasn’t that bad… at least not until the very end. I was definitely starting to feel it by that point.”
Reno’s eyebrow rose. “Wasn’t that bad for you, maybe… You spent most of the night sittin’ on me. I was freezin’ my ass off the whole time. Not to mention worryin’ about whether or not I was keepin’ you warm enough.”
She snickered and withdrew her hands, flexing her fingers slightly. They’d warmed up nicely, by now, and she smiled as ran them along his cheek. “Well, then… I guess for someone so skinny, you make a great space heater,” she teased.
“That your way of tellin’ me I’m hot?”
Elena groaned at the joke, rolling her eyes… but couldn’t stop the laugh that slipped past her lips. “Your jokes are terrible.”
“You love my terrible jokes,” Reno replied, grinning widely.
“I love you. I only tolerate your jokes.”
The redhead looked positively scandalized. “You don’t really mean that…”
She laughed again and nuzzled him. “You’re right… I don’t really mean it. I love your jokes… I only tolerate you.” Reno mirrored her earlier eye roll.
“And you call my jokes terrible.”
“It’s not much farther, I assure you…”
“Perhaps you might do us all a favor and tell us just what it is we’re looking for,” Rufus ground out. Hojo was beginning to annoy him. He’d spent the last thirty minutes directing the airship’s pilot to circle slowly around the crater, all the while watching out the huge window in front with a smug, superior expression plastered on his face.
“Ah, but that would ruin the surprise…”
“Then ruin it. I tire of this.”
Hojo gave his wheezy little laugh and turned to face the younger man. “Patience is a virtue, Mr. President. But as it happens, there’s no need for explanations. We’re here.”
He pointed toward an indentation in the cliff face, which Rufus realized belatedly was actually an opening… a tunnel, leading downward into the side of the crater.
“What’s down there?” he asked, suspiciously.
“If my hypothesis is correct… the Promised Land.”
Rufus frowned slightly, and glanced at the Turk guarding the Professor. Rude shrugged. The executive stepped toward the window and nodded to the pilot to take them in closer. As the Highwind descended toward the cavern, Rufus was soon able to spot the telltale glow of natural mako. The airship drew closer still, and it became apparent that the glow wasn’t just emanating from deep within… the walls of the cave itself were glowing faintly. It wasn’t ice, as Rufus had initially thought.
It was materia…
Scarlet hurried over to join him. “Incredible…”
“This is really it,” Heidegger said, peering through the glass. “The Promised Land your father was searching for.”
Rufus turned to glance back at him. “And it seems that I will be the one to reach it.”
He couldn’t help the growing sense of smug satisfaction he felt at achieving what his father had failed to do. This would almost certainly prove to be a massive boon to the company. Once Sephiroth was out of the way, he would have teams up here immediately to secure the site, and begin surveying the cavern.
“Rude,” he said, turning to the Turk. We’re going down there. I want to see it for myself. All of it.”
“… Yes, sir.”
Rufus ignored the hesitation in the man’s voice. The Turks worried too much. Every last one of them. Besides which, this was an opportunity he wasn’t about to pass up… no matter what the risk might be. He strolled off the bridge, heading for his private quarters. A trip into the crater below was going to require warmer clothing. Rude followed seconds later.
Hojo, meanwhile, remained on the bridge, off by himself in a corner, ignored by the remaining crew.
“That land is no one’s…” he chuckled to himself. “It’s where the Reunion will take place. They will all gather here.” He frowned thoughtfully, gazing out at the desolate landscape and the materia-lined cave right in the middle of it. “I wonder if we will meet… Sephiroth himself…?”
“Got ’em…”
Elena stirred slightly on his lap, and Reno laughingly realized that she’d fallen into a doze.
“Huh?”
“‘Lena… They’re here!” he whispered, urgently, trying to avoid drawing the attention of the other patrons of the lodge. Her eyes snapped open and and she sat up. He smirked. “Have a nice nap?”
“Oh, be quiet. It’s your fault, anyway, for being so warm” she groused, blushing faintly as she rushed to get to her feet and hurried off to collect their backup. The redhead didn’t argue. Instead, he stared out the window at the odd group of people now entering the town. Their numbers seemed to have grown by two since his last encounter with them. The first he could hardly make out. She… or at least he assumed it was a she, based on her stature… appeared to be huddled in close to the the other newcomer… probably for warmth, as most of them looked to be a bit under-dressed for the local weather. All he could really see of her were her feet, and the outline of her head beneath the heavy red cloak of her companion.
Speaking of whom… he looked more than slightly intimidating. Tall, with long black hair, he was dressed entirely in black, save for the blood-red cloak that whipped around him in the harsh wind. Reno could see the glint of metal on one arm, though from his current position he couldn’t tell if it was armor or some sort of weapon. What he was certain of, however, was that the man had training. He was watching the shadows carefully, though subtly… much the same way Reno would have done himself, walking into a strange place he wasn’t certain was secure. While the others simply trudged along through the snow, this man was on alert.
And somehow, when the man looked in the Turk’s direction and locked eyes with him, Reno wasn’t even surprised by it.
“Fuck,” he swore.
“What’s wrong?” Elena asked, returning with the two soldiers. Reno gave a barely noticeable gesture for her not to come any closer to the window
“Stay outta sight. I just got made,” he replied, not turning his head, or giving any other indication he was speaking to anyone. The man was still watching him. “Take Vir’s men and go out the back door. They’ve already seen me. I’ll keep ’em distracted. Incapacitate, don’t kill… we’re only s’posed to be slowin’ ’em down a little. And watch out for that guy in red. Somethin’ tells me he’s not gonna go down easy if it comes to a fight…”
Elena nodded, and hurried off, the soldiers in tow. He watched as the group outside made their way to the center of town, pausing not far from the ski lodge. He had a feeling that the building had been their original destination… the newcomer had likely warned them he was waiting for them by now.
That was alright. As long as they were focused on him they wouldn’t notice Elena flanking them…
“Don’t let them split up,” Elena said to the two men under her temporary command. “But try not to hurt them, either.” This was going to be tricky. They’d gone into this assuming things would be roughly evenly matched at five to six, as Reeve’s robotic cat creature would do what it could to assist… or at the very least not directly interfere if a fight broke out. Neither of them had counted on Avalanche picking up two additional members, and given that none of Reeve’s reports had mentioned that little detail, the executive’s judgment, if not his loyalty, had to be called into question now. That, potentially, made things eight against four.
Wait… only eight? She frowned, and double-checked her count. Someone was missing. Where was the girl from the slums? Aerith…
She shook her head. Not here obviously. She supposed that was a good thing… One less opponent to deal with. Still, it struck her as odd. Elena drew her gun and signaled for the soldiers to follow her. The group was still huddled in conversation, some of them occasionally glancing toward the lodge. Reno was still visible in the window, though as she drew closer to her targets, he vanished. The man he’d warned her about… the one in red… noticed immediately and reached for his own weapon. Like her, it seemed he had a preference for firearms… though the clawed gauntlet on one arm looked equally deadly.
Elena nodded to the two men beside her and lifted her weapon, aiming it at Cloud.
“I’m afraid I can’t let you go any farther,” she said, having to raise her voice to be heard clearly over the wind. One by one, the members of the party turned. Cloud eyed her appraisingly.
“What’s down there?” he asked, suspiciously. His eyes flickered toward the crater in the distance.
“Can’t tell you that,” she replied… not that she even could have if she’d wanted to. She still had no idea what Hojo had wanted to show the President. “And it doesn’t matter, anyway, because I’m stopping you right here. Besides… I still owe you after what you did to my boss.”
“Boss?” he repeated, sounding vaguely confused, “You mean that guy, Tseng? That wasn’t us. Sephiroth attacked him.”
She knew that… but she could hardly take on all of them with just two officers from Junon backing her up. Reno needed time to get into position.
“Maybe… but don’t pretend you’reinnocent. You left him there to die.” By then, Reno was closing in from the opposite direction. She saw him, briefly, out of the corner of her eye, lurking between two houses. It was time to even up the odds a little. She stepped toward Cloud, lowering her weapon. “Let’s see if an ex-Soldier can avoid this!”
In retrospect, it probably wasn’t the best course of action… but Strife was the bigger threat, and she was under orders not to kill him. They were supposed to stall… and what better way than to start a fight?
What she hadn’t entirely expected was for her suckerpunch to actually connect.
Cloud reeled back, nose bloodied, and landed flat on his back in the snow. He didn’t get back up. Elena blinked in surprise. He hadn’t even tried to avoid it.
“Cloud!”
She was quickly snapped back to the present by Tifa’s alarmed cry, and she hurried to raise her weapon again, warningly.
“Unless you want to end up laid out just like him, stay right where you are,” the Turk cautioned. Her reinforcements quickly backed up her threat, lining the remaining members of Avalanche up in their sights. She motioned to Barret and Cid. “You two… pick him up and take him inside.”
She suddenly found herself staring down the barrel of Barret’s gunarm.
“Wouldn’t try that if I were you…” a voice from behind him warned. “Unless you want me to put a bullet in your little friend here…”
“Barret…” Tifa prodded, reaching for him and pushing the weapon down so that it pointed at the ground. She glanced back over her shoulder, insistently, and when he followed her gaze, he saw what Elena had already spotted. The redhead had moved in and was holding one of their own hostage.
She didn’t look very old. Maybe sixteen or seventeen… Wutaiian, with short black hair and a massive shuriken strapped to her back. Reno had taken her by surprise when Elena had knocked out Cloud, separating her from the other newcomer and the rest of her allies.
“Now… How ’bout you just do what the lady told you to…? You play nice and no one else has to get hurt,” he continued, a smirk crossing his face. He looked directly at the man in red… who didn’t seem at all rattled by the unexpected turn of events. The stranger stared him down for a few seconds before wordlessly turning and taking several long strides towards the downed ex-Soldier. He lifted him with little effort, slinging him over one shoulder.
Elena and the two officers corralled the remaining terrorists and escorted them into a nearby house… one that was, mercifully, empty. She didn’t think things would have gone over well if she’d had to deal with it’s residents as well. Once inside, Reno released the girl and shoved her towards the group.
“Ugh… Jerk!” she muttered, stumbling slightly. Her eyes narrowed at him as she regained her footing and, and she stood up, arms crossed over her chest, looking annoyed. “Hey… Don’t I know you?”
Reno snorted in contempt. “Dunno… Do ya Miss ‘ultimate ninja’…?” he asked, a smug grin plastered firmly on his face before he slammed the door shut, cutting off whatever reply she might have made. He turned to the two soldiers. “Kick back and relax. We got things from here.”
“Yes, sir!” one of them replied, and they took off, back to the ski lodge.
“Who’s the girl?” Elena asked, curious now. “She seems a little too young to be a former date…”
“Tch… That’s the little brat that swiped my phone and my wallet on that goddamn mission to Wutai awhile back. Recognized her as I was moving in. What’re the odds?” He smirked and tossed a materia sphere into the air, catching it as it fell. “Figured I’d return the favor while I had the chance. Payback’s a bitch.” He handed the sphere to Elena, and grinned. “And since I didn’t bring you back a souvenir from Mideel…”
Elena laughed, shaking her head. “You’re always so thoughtful…”
“Come on… They’re not goin’ anywhere ’til Strife wakes up. Let’s get out of the cold.” He draped an arm over her shoulders and guided her back towards the ski lodge. They’d stick around and shadow the group once they did finally get underway again. But for now, they had some time to kill. Reno suddenly laughed.
“What?”
“I just realized somethin’. Always knew you had a hell of a right hook, but you fuckin’ knocked a former Soldier out cold with one punch. ‘Lena… I am going to try very, very hard to never ever piss you off ever again. Ever.”
It was glorious. The materia stretched from floor to ceiling like a great crystalline tree. The floor of the cavern, the walls, the roof… all materia. It was like standing inside a flawless gemstone. Sunlight filtered through from an opening high above them, adding to the natural mako glow.
“It’s… amazing…” Scarlet breathed, unable to take her eyes off of the sight before her. For once, Rufus actually agreed with the woman. He’d never seen… never even imagined… anything like this. “It’s all materia!”
“And rich with mako energy. Father was right… The Promised Land truly does exist.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hojo, hands clasped behind his back as he studied one of the shimmering pillars. Rufus ignored him and instead turned to Heidegger “As soon as we return to Midgar I want you working with Tuesti on an initiative to begin harnessing the energy of the crater. There’s so much… so close to the surface… We won’t even need a reactor! The company will see profits my father never even dreamed of…”
“Yes, sir!” Heidegger replied, enthusiastically.
Yes… The profits from this venture would be unprecedented. And Shinra’s legacy would be secured for all time. He would never have to worry about the threat of internal incompetence damaging the company again… Hell, he could probably even get his step-mother to agree to a cash settlement rather than fighting her for control of his father’s board interests with what this place would bring in. Juliet didn’t want to run the company. She just wanted an income that would keep her securely in the lifestyle she had become accustomed to.
It would be a new era for Shinra. For the entire planet!
Somewhat unbidden, his thoughts turned to Tseng’s advice… That should it come down to it, the Promised Land must be destroyed if it looked like Sephiroth might succeed in getting his hands on it. Rufus dismissed the idea entirely now. He couldn’t destroy this place. And if all went according to plan, it would never be necessary anyway.
Without warning, the entire space began to shudder and quake, and the President found himself nearly thrown off his feet. He was quickly steadied by Rude, who had been silently shadowing him since their arrival in the cave.
“What’s happening?” Rufus asked.
“It’s… It’s coming from inside the wall!” Scarlet gasped, pointing beyond the tree-like structure. “Something’s in there! It’s moving!”
Rufus followed her gaze, peering into the glassy surface of the wall. At first he wasn’t certain what she was talking about. There was nothing there in the darkness beyond the materia. His eyes widened as he realized that the darkness wasn’t beyond it at all… it was, indeed, inside, encased in the crystallized mako. He didn’t know what it was, but it was huge. The cave shook again, and the President recoiled in horror as a huge emerald eye slowly opened behind the wall of materia.
“Weapon… Then it really does exist. I never truly believed it…” Hojo’s voice spoke. The President turned to stare at him incredulously.
“You knew about this… this creature?!”
Hojo chuckled quietly. “Weapon. Monsters created by the Planet itself. They awaken when the Planet is in danger. Their sole purpose is the elimination of the threat. Or at least that’s what my former colleague, Dr. Gast, believed.”
The rumbling had stopped, but the gigantic eye still watched them, unblinking. Rufus couldn’t help but wonder… was Sephiroth the threat that had awakened it? Or Shinra? Based on sheer size alone, he prayed it was the former.
But what truly disturbed him was that Hojo hadn’t even batted an eye. He’d expected this. Rufus glared over at the man.
“It would seem that you’ve been keeping a great deal of information to yourself…” he said, coldly.
Elena looked down the nearly sheer cliff face, and swallowed sharply. This… wasn’t fun. It didn’t seem to bother Reno, however. But then again, the redhead climbed like a Shiva-forsaken spider.
It wasn’t the height that was getting to her… though they were certainly high enough by this point that a misstep was going to result in serious injury, if not worse. It was the wind, and the ice, and the biting cold. She’d lost all feeling in her fingertips, and she wasn’t entirely certain she still had feet.
Avalanche had left Icicle Inn nearly an hour ago… and headed straight out onto the glacier after picking up some gear at the local shops. She and Reno had quickly followed suit, tailing them across the ice fields. It was slow and tedious work… and when they’d finally stopped for a short rest at a small cabin near the base of Gaea Cliff, the two Turks had slipped into a nearby cave to escape the wind and huddled close until their targets departed once more.
And now they were climbing the damn cliff!
“You okay back there, ‘Lena?” Reno called down to her. He wasn’t far ahead, but the wind and snow made it hard to see or hear him.
“Aside from the frostbite?” she shot back, and continued up to the narrow ledge where he’d stopped to wait for her. As she reached his position he grinned and pulled her the rest of the way up.
“Didn’t quite catch that…”
“I said I’m going to have frostbite by the end of this…” she repeated, and stripped off her gloves so she could blow warm air onto her fingers. It didn’t help much. “Any idea how much farther we have to go?”
Reno directed his gaze upward. “‘Least another fifty feet or so.” He pointed to a wide ledge above them. “Saw ’em pull themselves up there a few minutes ago. Haven’t seen ’em start climbin’ again… so they’re either takin’ a breather or there’s another cave.”
They’d already passed through one such opening in the cliff face. It had been a slower, but easier route upwards. Unfortunately it only got them so far before they were back to climbing.
“You doin’ alright?”
Elena nodded. “I’m fine. I’m definitely going to feel it in the morning, though. Assuming I’ve thawed out enough to feel much of anything by then…” She bounced vigorously on the balls of her feet, hoping to keep the circulation going. Standing still was just making her colder.
“Oh, I’ll thaw ya out all ya want soon as we’re back in Junon… Count on it,” the redhead teased suggestively. “But for now, we better get goin’ again. We stay here much longer, we’re liable to end up frozen to the rock.”
She nodded, and Reno started up the next leg of their climb. It was so cold… and it seemed to go on forever. By the time she was halfway to the next ledge, she was shivering so violently she could hardly find a decent handhold. The red head disappeared over the the ledge a few minutes later, safely at the top and she struggled to follow.
“Come on, ‘Lena! It’s not much farther! You can do it!” his voice shouted down to her. Elena yelped as her fingers suddenly lost their grip on the rock and she scrambled to find a new hold. When at last she did, she clung to it, pressing her body tight against the unforgiving rock. That had been too close. She stayed like that far longer than she should have, unwilling to risk moving again… but she knew she had little choice in the matter. She was too far from the previous ledge to go back, and still too far down for Reno to pull her up. She had to keep going.
After what seemed like an eternity, her fingers finally closed around the edge of the outcrop Reno was standing on. He hauled her up, and she very nearly went limp in his arms, she was so exhausted. The cold was sapping her strength, and she hoped they didn’t have to keep going as they had been… she wasn’t sure she could make it much farther.
“Hey… You still with me?” Reno asked, and she looked up to find him frowning in concern.
“I’m so cold…” she whispered. He guided her away from the edge, and, she was thankful to see, into the mouth of a cave. Out of the wind at last, she relaxed slightly.
“Not sure how far ahead of us they are… but we can’t keep goin’ like this,” said Reno. “I’m freezin’, and you look like you already froze and made it up here on will alone.” He glanced around, eyes falling on a pile of partially burnt wood, the charred remains of a fire. “Looks like we’re not the only ones who made it this far and needed to take a break.” The redhead pulled a glove off with his teeth and stuck his hand over it. “Cold as the fuckin’ mountain, though. Been here awhile.”
Elena let herself sink to her knees nearby. It was getting harder and harder to ignore the feeling of fatigue that seemed to be seeping into her very bones, and somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew that she shouldn’t give into it… but it was so very tempting. Reno looked up from his somewhat futile efforts to relight the fire with his lighter and swore.
“No, no, no… Don’t do that…” he said hurriedly, returning to her side. “Gotta stay awake for me, ‘kay?”
“Trying…” she murmured. Elena forced her eyes open again.
“Don’t s’pose you’ve got a lightning materia on ya?” he asked, lifting her arm and pushing back the sleeve of her coat to take stock of the little spheres equipped in her armlet.
“Don’t you mean fire?” she replied, still a little dazed.
“Tch… If I could use fire, sure. But most materia doesn’t exactly like me, remember? Might at least manage a spark or two with lightning… before I electrocute myself, that is…”
Elena shook her head, trying to clear it. She had a fire materia! Why in Ifrit’s name hadn’t she thought of that herself? With some effort, she made herself focus on it, sending an effective, if somewhat weak, spell towards the wood. It flared to life moments later. Reno picked her up and carried her closer, setting her down as close to the flames as he safely could.
The next several minutes were spent largely in silence as the pair slowly started to warm up. It was Elena who finally broke that silence with a faint giggle.
“You goin’ snow crazy on me or somethin’?” he joked, “Is that a thing?”
She smiled. “You were going to risk electrocution for me…”
“‘Course I was. Not that I’m not glad I didn’t have to resort to that… but I’d do anything for you.”
Elena shook her head and grinned, as her hand found one of his. “I’d tell you not to… but you’d just do it anyway. Do you think we’ll be able to catch up to them?”
“Dunno…” he replied with a shrug, “Maybe, depending on how rough the road ahead is. But I think we’ve accomplished what we were sent to do. The Highwind’s got a good couple of hours on ’em at this point. I say we warm up, see how bad it looks after this cave, and put in a call for extraction if it gets any worse than what we’ve already dealt with. No sense killin’ ourselves just to follow those assholes.”
“Did you notice? Aerith’s not with them anymore…”
Reno nodded. “Yeah… Reeve told Rufus she took off on her own awhile back. Guess they never found her again. Rufus didn’t say anything about ’em joinin’ back up, anyway. Wonder what she’s up to? Hope she’s okay…”
“Who is she, exactly, anyway? I never quite got the whole story…”
Reno sighed and leaned back against a rock, gazing up at the ceiling as he organized his thoughts. “She’s an Ancient. Or a Cetra. Or whatever the hell they call themselves. Last one alive, far as anyone knows. Shinra scientist by the name of Gast met her mother and talked her into helpin’ him with his research on the subject. And then they up and disappeared. Few years later, Hojo stumbles onto ’em again, and now there’s a baby. Not real clear on what went down, but Gast went missing again and Hojo convinced Aerith’s mother to take her kid ‘n come back to Midgar with him as research specimens. ‘Least that’s what’s in the reports. It was years ago. Before I was even born, I think.”
“Hojo… just convinced her to come back?” Elena asked, suspiciously. She had her doubts about that. Reno snickered quietly.
“That’s the official record. Don’t think anyone who’s ever met the little fucker actually buys it. Tseng definitely doesn’t. He thinks Hojo most likely killed Gast and kidnapped Aerith and her mom. It was before his time, too, so he really can’t say for certain… Makes sense, though, ’cause eventually Aerith’s mom grabbed her kid and ran for it. Got as far as the Sector 5 slums, but she was injured by the time she got there. Pretty bad. She didn’t last long. Aerith got taken in by Elmyra… You met her when ya dropped off that little girl at her house.”
Elena nodded. She remembered the older woman well. She hadn’t exactly been pleased to find a Turk on her doorstep, but she’d welcomed the little girl with open arms.
“Eventually, Hojo decided he wanted her back. So the Turks got tasked with findin’ her… or more specifically, Tseng did. And he did find her… but he let her go when she told him about how she and her mom had been held prisoner ‘n shit. She wasn’t high priority at the time, and the Meaningless War was just startin’. Plus it was right after his sister died… Think her story hit a nerve. He just couldn’t bring himself to take her back to that life. He told Veld that he’d lost track of her somewhere in Sector 1, and that was that. Kept it a secret from everyone ’til he took over for Veld as commander. Then he let me in on it after I got promoted to Second, and then the more senior Turks a little later. Most of ’em took it to their grave. Me ‘n Rude are the only ones left who knew.”
“But… I still don’t understand why Hojo wanted her to begin with,” Elena replied. She prodded the fire a bit, coaxing its flames higher. Reno shrugged again.
“It was the whole Promised Land thing, from what I’ve heard. Hojo thinks the Cetra are the key to findin’ it. And Aerith is the last of the Cetra,” he explained, before amending, “Well… last living Cetra, anyway. That Jenova things’ s’posed to be one of ’em, too. Personally, I don’t see the resemblance. Like I said,though… I hope she’s okay. Tseng’s got a soft spot for her. I don’t think he’d take it too well if somethin’ happened to her. Hell, I’d be a little ticked off, too. She’s a nice girl who doesn’t deserve the bullshit Shinra’s put her through.”
“I didn’t know you knew her that well…”
“Don’t, really. I mean, aside from occasionally checkin’ in on her and makin’ sure she’s still where we think she is, and maybe every once in a while keepin’ an asshole or two from botherin’ her. But she’s one of those people that’s it’s kinda hard not to like. Always seems to find somethin’ good in a person, ya know? Even the fuckers who’ve been keepin’ her under surveillance for the better part of a decade.”
“Sometimes it’s not that hard to find something good in a person,” she responded, leaning against his side. Reno smiled and put his arm around her, pulling her closer. The wind outside seemed to be dying down a little, and Elena wondered how long that would last. If the weather calmed for a bit, they might be able to push through and catch up with Avalanche.
“Heh… Hopefully she came to her senses and decided to get herself outta this shit and go somewhere safe. Looks like Avalanche found a couple people to pick up the slack, anyway. The Wutaiian kid’s a brat… but she’s got skills. And that other guy…” Reno shook his head. “Don’t know who he might be, but if you ever run into him on your own, watch yourself. Don’t think he’s your average mercenary.”
“Why?” she prodded. She couldn’t deny that he’d been somewhat imposing… but if he were really that great of a threat, why hadn’t he bothered attacking when the two of them had confronted the group?
“Somethin’ about him. The way he looked at me. I just got the feelin’ that he knew exactly who I was… and that he decided to hold back and not start shit on account. And not ’cause he was worried about not bein’ able to kick my ass, either.”
By now, the fire was dying down again, and no amount of poking or prodding seemed to be encouraging it. Their wood supply was nearly at an end. They’d have to move on soon. Reno was sorely tempted to call an end to the pursuit. Elena had warmed back up, but he didn’t look forward to making her go back out there. For that matter, he really didn’t want to step back out into the cold again, either. The Highwind could easily send a helicopter to retrieve them from the ledge outside.
Besides which… he definitely didn’t want to be too close to Avalanche if and when Sephiroth decided to show up and have it out with them. Preferably, he’d have liked to have been as far away from that shitshow as they could possibly get when the Highwind started throwing everything it had at the former-Soldier… but Rufus wanted that materia, and if it vanished in the aftermath, he wasn’t going to be happy about it.
The redhead sighed inaudibly. He’d be glad when this was over, and he could take Elena someplace warm… and ask her to be his wife. He’d decided… he was definitely going to propose to her in Costa del Sol. At sunset. On the beach. He was already mentally rehearsing what he’d say to her whenever he had a spare moment.
But for now, it was just a tempting fantasy. They were alone in an icy cave, high up on a frozen cliff, not on the warm sand of the beach. As much as he would have liked to have continued his daydream, they had other matters to see to. At the very least, they should continue on through the cave and see if catching up to the quarry was feasible.
The fire had burned itself down to a pile of glowing embers by then. It was still putting out heat, but Reno could already feel the chill creeping back in.
“Think it’s time we got movin’ again…”
Tseng stared upwards at the ceiling tiles, trying his best to ignore the pain in his abdomen and chest… which, truth be told, seemed to have been the primary activity of his entire day thus far. He’d requested that Ward back off on the painkillers a bit, to which she had grudgingly agreed… with the firm stipulation that if it became an issue he would be honest with her about just how much pain he was in. For the time being, it was bearable, if not exactly pleasant. He’d allowed her to give him just enough to take the edge off.
He wanted to be alert, not drugged into a stupor. His Turks were out there… without him. He needed to be awake in case there was news… even if there was, quite literally, nothing he could do but worry about them should said news be bad.
And then there were Viridia’s visits to his bedside. He wanted to be awake for those as well, as they were infrequent and sporadic and often far shorter than he would have preferred due to her duties on the base… but he looked forward to each and every one of them.
There were times that he wished Viridia wasn’t so dedicated. Or perhaps that he weren’t, either. He couldn’t deny that he occasionally entertained the idea of saying to hell with Shinra and relocating to Junon, or pleading with her to join him in Midgar. Such fantasies were fleeting, however. He knew that neither of them would ever really choose to give up their careers and ignore their duty. Not even for each other. It didn’t stop him from thinking about it now and then, though.
He could still remember the first time they’d met. The connection between them had been almost instantaneous, and when Veld had informed him that they wouldn’t be leaving Junon until the following morning, Tseng had bid him goodnight and headed for his quarters… and then walked right past them. He hadn’t even been certain, at the time, where he was going, but before he knew it, he’d found himself at her door.
He’d woken just before dawn, tangled in her bedsheets and regretting nothing… a sentiment she’d wholeheartedly shared. Somehow he’d known, even then, that it wasn’t going to be just a one night stand.
Tseng closed his eyes, smiling slightly in spite of his pain. He didn’t know how long he stayed like that, but it couldn’t have been long before he was interrupted by the very person he was picturing.
“And just what are you so happy about? Did you finally decide to let Ward up your morphine again?” a familiar voice teased. The Turk leader chuckled softly and opened his eyes, his gaze falling on Viridia.
“No… Though I seem to have found a suitable replacement for the time being.”
“Oh, really?” she asked, slipping into the chair beside his bed.
“Mmm… I was just thinking about the day we met. And that evening.”
“Well, I hope you’re not getting any bright ideas. I don’t think you’re quite up for that level of activity just yet.”
“Pity.”
Viridia laughed and shook her head. “That lieutenant of yours has been rubbing off on you more and more of late, Tseng.”
Tseng smiled. “I suppose seeing him so completely in love has just made me think about certain things. Reno certainly has no issue expressing how he feels about Elena. I sometimes wonder if perhaps I should follow his example on occasion.”
The security chief cocked her head questioningly. “Just what are you trying to say?”
“That you mean a great deal to me, and I don’t think I’ve ever actually told you how much,” he replied, reaching for her hand, and lightly caressing the back of it. “And that I’m fortunate not to have lost my chance to do so.”
“Tseng…”
“I love you, Viridia. I don’t wish to… change… anything between us. Only to tell you that. Because I never have, and you deserve to hear it from me.”
She brushed his hair back with her free hand, and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I love you, too,” she whispered, smiling widely.
“Oh, for Ifrit’s sake… First we go up – and damn near freeze to death doin’ it – now we’re stuck goin’ back down again,” Reno muttered, eying the sharp incline. The cave had eventually led them to a snowy path. The path had led them into the crater itself.
At least it was a hell of a lot warmer here.
“Reno… Look.” Elena pointed into the distance and the redhead’s gaze quickly followed her own, narrowing his eyes as he struggled to make out the dark figures on the pathway below.
“Are… those more of the clone assholes we keep runnin’ into?” They certainly looked to be, concealed in black cloaks as they were. “Fuck…” he breathed, “How many of those things did Hojo make?” He counted at least two dozen. And that was just on what he could see of the winding ledge from his present position. There might very well have been more farther down.
He hesitated. None of the ‘clones’ they’d encountered up to this point had been especially strong or skilled fighters. But in large enough numbers, the two Turks could easily be overwhelmed… and they definitely seemed to have numbers.
“‘Kay… we’re gonna go slow and take ’em out one by one. Don’t let ’em slip behind you. Last thing we need is our escape route to get cut off.”
Elena nodded and readied her gun as she followed him down the incline. Reno, too, opted for his backup weapon rather than his mag-rod. Better to take them down from a distance and give themselves a little bit of a safety zone. The path was narrow, and it was a very long way to the bottom. Getting caught in a melee wasn’t going to end well.
They seemed to be moving slowly forward, unhurried but single-mindedly. The redhead actually cringed when one of them simply plummeted over the side with a faint cry and the others didn’t even react. He glanced back at Elena, who was watching them with an expression of fascinated horror on her face.
“They don’t even care,” she said, shocked, “I’m not sure they even noticed…”
“What I wanna know is… where the hell are they goin’? I mean, seriously… what the fuck’s down here? You think Sephiroth sent ’em in for some reason?”
By now, they’d drawn close enough to the procession that he could get a decent shot. But he didn’t take it… and signaled for Elena to hold off, as well. The creatures were oblivious to just about everything around them… and as this was, quite literally, the only navigable path, Avalanche must have gone through that gauntlet, as well. Clearly there had been no epic battle fought before he and Elena got there… Why waste the ammunition and risk Avalanche hearing them coming a mile away when they could just walk right past them?
“New plan…” he said, lowering his weapon and tucking it back into its holster.
“… I have a bad feeling about this place, Mr. President…” Scarlet intoned ominously. The eye still stared at them from the wall, but no further tremors had been felt. It was as disquieting as it was fascinating, in Rufus’ opinion. Who could have known that such a massive creature slumbered within the northern crater?
“We’ll leave the Promised Land for another day. Sephiroth is our primary concern right now,” he said, turning to the woman. “Let’s get back to the airship.”
As he turned to head out, the cavern was suddenly engulfed in a light so bright, Rufus had to shield his eyes against it. When it at last faded out, he discovered that they’d been joined by someone new.
“H-hey! Where did you come from?” Scarlet blurted out, and Rude moved to pull the president out of harm’s ways as Cloud Strife gazed up at the huge materia formation in the center of the room.
“This is going to get rough. Better get out while you still can,” he said, emotionlessly.
Rufus pushed the Turk aside and took a step towards the ex-Soldier. “What are you talking about?” he asked, eyes narrowing. Did the man really intend to challenge Sephiroth here? Alone?
Cloud slowly turned to look at them.
“This is where the Reunion is happening. Where everything begins and ends,” he replied, cryptically.
“Yo, Cloud!” a voice from behind the group shouted. “What’s goin’ on?! Tifa said there was trouble!”
Rude once again hauled the young president back, this time insistently placing himself between Rufus and their unexpected guests, and shot him a look that very clearly said ‘Stay there’ as Barret approached, weapon raised. Cloud nodded, more to himself than to his ally.
“Thanks… Barret. The black materia. Where is it?”
The man with the gunarm seemed to hesitate a moment, glancing between the former-Soldier and the Shinra personnel that surrounded him. Rufus eyed the pair of them curiously, wondering how they’d managed to recapture Sephiroth’s prize. Surely they hadn’t already faced the lunatic…
“It’s safe…” Barret replied, cautiously.
“I’ll take things from here. Give it to me.”
Rufus had only had the dubious pleasure of meeting Strife face to face once before now… but even he could tell that something seemed off. This wasn’t the man he’d been confronted by on the balcony of the presidential office. He seemed different now. Almost… resigned.
“Yo, Cloud… you a’ight?” Avalanche’s supposed leader asked. Apparently Rufus wasn’t the only one with misgivings about the Solider at present. He moved to take a step forward, only to be physically held in place by the Turk in front of him. Cloud nodded in response and held out his hand.
“Hope you know what you’re doin’…” Barret said, producing the mysterious materia sphere and handing it over.
“Just leave the rest to me.”
There was a second blinding flash of light, and as it faded out, a new voice chimed in.
“No, don’t! Cloud… please, stop!”
Rufus cringed at the sudden shouting, as it was directly next to his ear, and turned in surprise. The woman he recognized, though he didn’t know her name. Reno referred to her consistently as the ‘bartender’.
“Thank you for everything,” Cloud said, apparently ignoring her plea, “And… I’m sorry.” He turned to face the new arrival. “Especially you, Tifa. I really am sorry. I never lived up to being ‘Cloud’. Maybe one day you’ll find the real one.”
The woman gave a distressed cry, and sank to her knees.
“Perfect! Absolutely perfect!” Hojo exclaimed, pushing through the small crowd. “It means that my experiment was a success! What number are you? Where is the ID tattoo?” he asked, excitedly looking Strife over. Cloud gave a sad shake of his head.
“I don’t have a number. You never gave me one. I was a failed experiment.”
Hojo took a step back, aghast. “What? Impossible… How could only a failure have made it this far?”
“Professor… please. Give me a number now. Please,” Strife implored him. Hojo merely turned his back.
“A failure…” he muttered shaking his head in disbelief. Cloud’s shoulders slumped at the rejection. He didn’t move again until, without warning, he rose into the air. Rufus’s eyes went wide. He could actually feel the mako energy all around him, cascading towards the center of the room, lifting the man higher and higher. He’d never witnessed such a phenomenon before… never even heard tell of anything like it. Strife vanished before his eyes, in another flash of light.
Rufus angrily grabbed Hojo by the collar, pulling him in close to his face. “Who is he?” he demanded. He’d known the bastard was keeping thing from him. But this… Just what sort of game was the demented scientist playing at?
“A Sephiroth clone I created after the real Sephiroth died five years ago,” Hojo said, chuckling slightly. “Jenova’s cells and mako energy, combined by science and nature, to bring him to life. I must admit… I’m disappointed to learn that he was one I had considered a failure, but my theory has been proven.”
Rufus glared at him. “And just what ‘theory’ might that be?” he ground out.
“The secret to immortality. That Jenova will eventually become whole again. A Reunion of the body. I have waited for years for it to begin,” he replied, no small amount of madness in his eyes. “I believed that my clones would gather in Midgar, where the largest part of her body was stored… but I was wrong. Jenova was able to move on its own… to escape its confines. But being the genius that I am, I soon figured out why. It was Sephiroth’s doing. Dead or alive, his will is strong… Too strong to simply diffuse itself into the Lifestream of the planet. He began to manipulate the clones himself… and Jenova followed them.”
“To what end?” Rufus asked. Hojo ignored the query.
“The one thing I couldn’t figure out was where they were all going. But what I did know was that Sephiroth was at their final destination. The real one… not the likeness of him created and controlled by Jenova that you’ve been following.”
The cavern suddenly shuddered violently, and shards of materia rained from the ceiling of the cave. Rufus looked upwards in alarm as a massive crystal was dislodged overhead. For a brief moment, he was certain it would crush them all, but it held fast, cradled in the tendrils of the tree-like structure. He swallowed sharply as he realized there was something inside.
“Do you see him!” Hojo shrieked, “He is here! Sephiroth!”
And he was. The form inside the crystal was indeed a body, and as Rufus looked closer, he recognized it as the rogue-Solider they had been chasing since Midgar. Or thought they’d been chasing… Frankly, he still wasn’t entirely clear on what was going on… but now was hardly the time to explore the subject, as a second figure became visible next to the strange cocoon. Strife was there, in defiance of the laws of gravity, physics, and logic, standing before the legendary warrior. In his hand was the black materia, which he offered to Sephiroth, breaking the barrier of the crystal as though it were liquid. He released it inside and it took on an ominous glow..
“This is perfect! Jenova’s Reunion and Sephiroth’s will! They won’t be diffused into the Lifestream, but gathered and strengthened here!” Hojo cackled.
“What are you talking about?” Tifa asked, eyes wide. “He’s going to use that materia to summon Meteor! He’s going to destroy the planet!”
Rufus frowned as the room began to shake again. Not in sporadic short tremors as before, but rather an insistent rumbling that seemed to be growing in intensity. As much as he wanted to hear more about this so-called ‘Meteor’… there was no time.
Though wary at first, by the time Reno and Elena had made it halfway along the ledge, they were moving at a sprint. Something was going on up ahead… something big. Reno wonder vaguely if maybe it might be a better idea to turn tail and run… but something told him that it would be better to go on. As they neared the source of the tremors, Elena came to a halt.
“Reno…”
“Shit… Think they’re dead?” he asked, eyes falling on the sight that had stopped her. It was Avalanche. Minus a few key members, but most of the group was present and accounted for. That… didn’t bode well. He shook his head and covered the remaining distance, kneeling down beside the first body he came to. It was the man in red. The redhead reached for his neck, searching for a pulse.
Without warning, a clawed, metal hand closed around his forearm, twisting it painfully and forcing him to lean back or risk a broken arm. Red eyes stared back at him for a moment, and then the Turk found himself face down on the rock, his arm yanked roughly behind him, and pinned in place.
“Let go of him!” Elena ordered, and Reno turned his head slightly… just enough to get a good look at her holding his captor at gunpoint.
“You followed us…” he simply. “Why?”
“Ordered to,” Reno shot back before Elena had a chance to answer. “We were just s’posed to stall you assholes for awhile.”
The man was still for a few seconds, and then, just as suddenly as he’d found himself incapacitated, the pressure on his arm eased.
“You didn’t do this?” he asked, nodding to he still-unconscious companions.
Reno sat up rubbing the abused limb, and signaled Elena to lower her weapon. “No. We just caught up to you guys. The hell’s goin’ on?”
Several large boulders came loose from the sides of the crater as the shaking intensified, and the man glanced farther along the path, towards an opening in the far wall.
“I don’t know.” He stood, and moved to check on the others. Reno scowled faintly at the rough treatment and subsequent disinterest, but stood and brushed himself off.
“‘Lena… Gimme a hand here,” he called back to her, joining the man in red and gently rolling the female ninja onto her back while his apparent temporary ally tried to rouse the pilot from Rocket Town. She didn’t appear to be injured… but she was out cold. “Check on that stupid Moogle, will ya? See if that thing’s up and runnin’.”
A few feet away the cat-like creature the group had stolen from Shinra labs clambered to its feet, shaking its head. “… Vincent?” he queried glancing toward his compatriot, and then back at the pair of Turks with suspicion.
“Don’t worry about them. Help us wake the others. I’ll explain later.”
“Oooh…” the Wutaiian girl groaned, starting to come around. “Why do I feel like I got trampled by a cockatrice?”
“Tch… Quit whinin’ little miss ninja-brat. I don’t think you wanna hang around here much longer…”
Her eyes shot open, and she glared up at the Turk who was tending to her. “Ugh… You again?! Don’t you have anything better to do?”
“What in fuck’s name’s goin’ on?” a gravely voice groused from a short distance away, and Reno spotted the pilot from Rocket Town sitting up, shaking his head to clear it. Vincent… apparently, as that was what the lab specimen had addressed him as… had vanished. It took the redhead several seconds to catch sight of him again, moving swiftly towards the large opening in the cliff face.
“Not really the time to discuss particulars, Gramps… We’re not safe here. ‘Lena, move it or lose it!” he replied, hefting the young Wutaiian to her feet.
“Who the hell are you callin’ Gramps, pretty boy?” the man growled at him, but he didn’t seem interested in pursuing the argument any further, gaze taking in the shaking walls and sporadic landslides.
There was a low, ominous rumble from the direction they’d come from, and they turned just in time to see the path that had brought them here collapsing like a trail of dominoes.
“Ah, fuck me…” he breathed, “Fucking run!”
“This way!” Vincent called out to them, waving them forward from the opening. A handful of the Hojo’s Sephiroth clones began to converge on him, and Reno watched as he made short work of them, the blast from his gun sending two to them ground and a third sailing over the edge into the abyss.
The two Turks, and their unlikely allies, wasted no more time standing around. The little group followed Vincent’s lead, rushing toward the questionable safety of the other side of the crater. What remained of the clones didn’t try to stop them… They simply continued to shuffle along, only to be swallowed up by the collapsing walkway.
The ninja girl tripped, crashing hard to her knees, and Reno didn’t even break stride as he seized her by her belt and yanked her upright again, urging her on. There was no time to waste. They had to get across… Now.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they made it, skidding to a stop just on the other side of the opening. Much to the Turk’s surprise, they weren’t alone. Rufus was there… and Heidegger and Scarlet, and Hojo. Rude, too. So were the Lockheart woman and Barret Wallace. Rufus shook his head.
“Whatever I say now is too little, too late. We need to evacuate,” he said, then glanced at the new arrivals. “Come with us. I want to know what you know.”
Reno ducked his head as a shower of tiny materia shards rained down on him. When it stopped he looked upwards searching for the source… and what he saw stopped him cold.
“What the actual fuck… ?” he managed, eying the huge materia crystal held aloft by a branching, tree-like structure, and its sole occupant. Inside, glowing with a disquieting purple light, was an orb… the black materia, he realized belatedly.
“Reno! Come on!” Elena’s voice demanded, and he turned, seeing that the others were already heading for the exit. He cast one final glance at the strange sight above him and then hurried after them… only to stop dead in his tracks as his sights settled on the wall… and the massive eye that was watching him. “Holy shit…” he gasped in disbelief, before fleeing along with the others to the Highwind.
~fin~
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