Taking Care of Reno: Meteorfall
Chapter 19: Weapon Attacks
Tseng flinched at the sudden brightness that assailed him as Viridia threw wide the curtains that, up until now, had been blocking out the entirely-too-bright morning sun. He’d been awake for hours… but had demanded that the medical staff leave the room darkened. He wasn’t feeling especially cheery at present, and frankly he didn’t care to be reminded that, outside, it was shaping up to be a warm and pleasant day.
“Which part of ‘leave them closed’ was I unclear about?” he all but growled at her.
“Oh, it was all perfectly clear. I’m just ignoring you,” she responded, smiling sweetly. She tugged open the second set of curtains as well. “Now… isn’t that better?”
“No. I can honestly say it’s not.” He glared coldly. All he really wanted right now was to be left to his own thoughts. When he was ready for company, he would damn well ask for it.
Viridia sighed and took a seat by his bed. “Snarl at me all you like Tseng. Just know that when you finally get out of here, I expect a full apology and flowers. Roses. Yellow ones. And maybe some lilacs. In the meantime, you’re not just going to sit here and brood.”
“I am most assuredly not brooding.”
“Hmm… Of course you’re not. That’s why you’re glaring a hole in the wall,” she said, taking his hand, and gently clasping it in her own. “Reno told me what happened to your friend.”
Tseng made a soft sound of annoyance and pulled his hand out of her grip.
“He’s worried,” she added.
“Ah… I see. You’re here to ensure I don’t drive myself mad with guilt as Reno is apt to do. I can assure you, I have not spontaneously developed his penchant for the over-dramatic…” He folded his arms over his chest, ignoring the painful twinge from his wounds at the movement, and looked away from her.
“That may be the closest thing to an unkind word I’ve ever heard you say about Reno… and he’d be hurt to know that’s what you really think of him.”
Tseng’s scowl deepened, but he didn’t attempt to defend himself. Of course that wasn’t what he really thought of the younger Turk. And there was certainly nothing ‘over-dramatic’ about Reno’s reaction to recent events. Anyone would have had a hard time coming to terms with something like Sector 7… particularly when they alone triggered it.
“He’ll be alright…” he said quietly.
“Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
“I’m in no mood for amateur psychoanalysis, Viridia…” Tseng replied, but, by then, his tone had softened. “But… you’ve made your point. That does not mean I require constant supervision, however.”
“Hmph… And just what makes you think I want to sit with your oh-so-pleasant-to-be-around self all day long, anyway?” she asked, with a hint of teasing in her voice. She leaned over and kissed him gently on the cheek. “Why can’t you just admit it?”
Tseng turned, at last, to look at her, an incredulous expression on his face. “Admit what?” he asked, confused.
“That you’re upset,” Viridia stated, “We all know it’s eating you alive, so stop trying to pretend you’re fine. You’re angry that you’re stuck in bed while your little Turklings are out there doing Shiva only knows what to try and save us all from the mess we’ve gotten ourselves into…”
He pointedly rolled his eyes at the word ‘Turklings’. She’d started playfully referring to his subordinates as such on occasion years ago… but the childishness of it never ceased to irritate him, and she knew it.
“… You’re angry that the girl you tried to protect ended up dead and there was nothing you could do to stop it,” she continued, ignoring his disdain, “And, I think more than anything else, you’re absolutely furious that all you can doright now is lay there and dwell on it.”
“And I don’t have the right to be?!” he shouted, nearing the end of his tolerance.
“Well, if you’re going to start yelling at me, too, then you’d better plan on making itan apology, flowers, and dinner.”
He looked away from her. Angry or not, what right did he have to take it out on her? Viridia wasn’t the cause of this disaster. If anything, she was the one bright point he could still see in it all.
“Tseng…” Viridia said, her voice gentle, but her tone serious. “… be angry. But stop trying so hard to hide it that you lose yourself to it.”
They sat in relative silence for a time after that… Tseng mulling over her words, and Viridia giving him the solitude he needed to do so without actually leaving him on his own. She was, he eventually concluded, correct. What bothered him most was not the events themselves that had brought them to this point… but rather his own inability to prevent any of it from happening. And it was only going to get worse. His Turks were out there, on their own… without him. If he’d been physically capable of doing so, he’d have dragged himself out of this Leviathan-forsaken bed and taken back his command, rather than forcing it upon Reno.
He could still starkly remember the first few weeks after he’d taken over the Turks. It had been overwhelming… Terrifying, really. Even after years of being groomed for the role, he’d been thoroughly convinced he was in over his head. He’d lost track of just how many times he’d quietly wished it was all a dream and he would wake up and Veld would be back in his office. But, of course, that had never happened.
And he hadn’t been dealing with other problems at the time.
He imagined that Reno was going through the same nameless terror and self-doubt he so accurately remembered. There had been a certain feeling of finality and dread when Tseng had taken over… but if he had anything to say about it, he’d be taking that mantle back just as soon as he could convince Ward he was able to, and Reno almost certainly knew that. But the redhead would also be aware that it could be months before that happened… and until then, he was effectively the Turks’ commanding officer. Tseng wasn’t dead… but he might as well have been, for all the good he was to the team at the moment.
And then there was Aerith. He’d turned down Reno’s offer of details, but now he found himself wanting know know what had happened… where he’d failed her. If there was anything… anything all all… he could have done to save her. A part of him prayed that there wasn’t. He could have saved Mayu if he’d acted, and failing to do so had destroyed him. As selfish as it was, he couldn’t help but hope that Aerith had been a lost cause from the start… because the alternative was much too painful to consider.
He must have fallen into a doze, because some time later, he was awakened by footsteps moving away from his bed. It took him a moment to rouse himself enough to recognize Viridia’s retreating form, and he realized that she almost certainly had to leave for her next shift by now.
“Roses and lilacs?” he called after her, raising his head minutely off the pillow. Viridia paused and glanced back, smiling.
“Yellow roses and lilacs.”
By the time they set down in Rocket Town, the sun was setting. Dragging that Ifrit-be-damned chunk of materia out of the reactor well had taken over an hour, and all three of them pulling for all their were worth. Reno hoped the Corel reactor would be a little more cooperative. It ought to have been… Corel was where huge materia had first been discovered to begin with, and he knew for a fact that there had been a crane system installed for just that purpose several years back. That, and the train that had once carried workers to and from the site – before Shinra had razed the town and automated the entire facility – he hoped would make their job a whole lot easier the second time around.
As Rude was shutting down the helicopter’s engine, the redhead spotted Palmer bounding towards them as fast as his fat little legs could carry him. Apparently, he’d been eagerly awaiting their arrival. A small contingent of ground troops trailed behind him, and Reno offered a silent ‘thank you’ to whatever deity may have been listening that they weren’t expected to haul their load any further than they already had.
“Did you find it? How much is there?” Palmer exclaimed excitedly as the Turks disembarked.
“We found it,” Reno replied, motioning to the cargo space in the back of the craft. Elena slid open the door, revealing the crystal.
“Outstanding!” the head of the space program cried, clapping his hands together in delight. He waved the soldiers forward and watched as they collected the materia and carried it off towards the rocket looming over the town. “When will you be leaving for the Corel reactor?”
“First thing in the mornin’, sir,” said Reno. “All goes well, we should be back with whatever we find sometime tomorrow afternoon.”
“Oh, good. Good, good. We’ll be waiting. Now… to get this installed in my rocket!”
Reno shook his head, vaguely amused, as Palmer scurried off after the materia, leaving them to themselves.
“Well, he was a little excited,” Elena commented when he was out of sight.
“Tch… This is probably the most useful the guy’s felt in years…” He turned to Rude. “Mind puttin’ us up for the night, partner?”
“Hmph… My house is your house,” he chuckled in response, and slung an arm over his friend’s shoulders. Rude grinned slightly and pulled Elena in with the other arm. “As long as you two behave yourselves and don’t keep me up all night…”
“What?” the redhead asked leering slightly, “You don’t like hearin’ ‘Lena scream my name? I do…”
“Ugh… Would you just –” Elena began, but paused mid-sentence, and smirked. “You know what? Forget it. I’m not going to give you the satisfaction this time. You just go ahead and make all the jokes you want.”
Reno blinked in surprise. “I… You…” He glared at her. “Tch… It’s no fun when you don’t get all embarrassed.”
Rude snickered loudly and led them down the main street of the little town, turning off when they neared the outskirts and walking up the path to the little two-story cottage. The bald Turk ushered them inside, turning on the lights and dragging the sheets he hadn’t bothered removing on his previous visit off of the furniture in the living room.
“So… outta curiosity…” Reno began, “You keepin’ this place or what? Been sittin’ empty for awhile now.”
Rude shrugged. “I don’t know.” H hesitated a moment before continuing. “Not a whole lot of reason to, I guess. Not like I’m ever moving back here.”
He turned away from the pair, haphazardly folding one of the sheets, before sighing and tossing it onto the small pile of coverings he’d left on the floor.
“I’ll be back in a little while. If we want to eat tonight, I need to run to the market. Didn’t leave anything behind when we stayed here before.”
The other two Turks watched him as he drifted past them and back out the door without another word.
“Is it me… or did he seem a little uncomfortable?” Elena asked.
“Heh… Trust me, it’s not you. Doubt he’s real thrilled to be back here again so soon. Bad memories ‘n shit, ya know? I keep suggesting that he sell the place, but… I don’t think he’s quite ready to let it go yet.”
“Because of his dad?”
Reno shook his head. “Nah… ’cause of his mom. From what he’s told me… which frankly isn’t much, ’cause Rude does not like to talk about it… this place was her dream. Perfect job, perfect home, perfect family. Then it all kinda blew up. Literally.”
“What do you mean, ‘literally’?” she queried, and Reno could hear the note of morbid curiosity in her voice.
“One of Shinra’s fuckin’ rockets exploded. With her in it. Nothin’ was ever quite the same between Rude and his dad after that. He doesn’t want to get rid of this place ’cause of her… but he doesn’t want to actually come here ’cause of him. So it just kinda sits in limbo for the most part. Personally, I think he’d be better off if he got rid of it.”
He reached for her, and pulled her over to the couch, settling her on his lap and grinning.
“Ya know… Between me, Rude, and Tseng, the Turks are probably the sorriest bunch of fucked up assholes on the planet,” he said, snickering. “You’re about as normal as we get, I think… and even you have that whole romance novel addiction thing goin’…”
“You’re seriously comparing my reading habits to your issues?” she teased.
“Hey, I may be a mess, but at least I admit I’m a mess. You’re still convinced readin’ that trash isn’t a major psychological problem.”
Even though he was clearly joking around, Elena leaned back an looked at him, a serious expression on her face. “You’re not a mess.”
Reno had to laugh at that declaration. “You’re right,” he chuckled, “I’m not a mess. I’m a huge mess.” He nuzzled her and inhaled deeply, reveling in her scent for a moment. “But I’m a pretty happy mess, all things considered. I got you to thank for that.” He felt her arms tighten around him as she leaned in, plundering his lips. Reno’s hand crept to the back of her neck, gently urging her to take whatever she wanted from him.
It was several minutes before they finally broke apart again, and he lifted his face to look at her.
“Hey… ‘Lena?”
“Yes?” Elena giggle softly as she teasingly fondled his ponytail. Reno cocked his head to one side and grinned.
“When this shit’s all over… you wanna go to Costa del Sol with me?”
“Are you sure you want to go there?” she replied, surprised. “We haven’t exactly had the best luck on any of our previous visits…”
“Which just means that we’re due,” he shot back, “So?”
She laughed softly and kissed him briefly, as the front door opened. “Of course I’ll go to Costa del Sol with you.”
“… If you think I’m going to handle Corel by myself while you two head off on vacation, you’ve got another thing coming…” Rude commented with a smirk as he made his way into the kitchen to deposit the bags of food he’d returned with. Reno laughed and extricated himself from Elena’s grasp, following him.
“Need a hand?”
“… If I wanted to burn the place down, there are easier ways to do it,” he responded, teasing the redhead.
Reno rolled his eyes. “Are you ever gonna let that go?”
“Not in this lifetime,” Rude said, turning towards him, and gesturing at him with the wooden spoon he’d pulled from a drawer. “Six feet back at all times, if you’re gonna stay and watch.”
The temporary Turk commander sighed as he heard the sound of quiet giggling behind him.
“Oh, give him another chance, Rude…” Elena chimed in, “He’s been living with me for weeks and hasn’t set anything on fire yet.”
“Tch… This is his idea of givin’ me another chance, ‘Lena. Usually, he shoves my ass out the door and tells me to stay out.”
A faint knock jarred Tseng from his sleep, and he sighed in frustration. Sleep seemed to be nearly all he was good for lately… and while he understood it was simply his body’s way of healing itself, it still annoyed him to no end that he couldn’t seem to keep his eyes open for more than an hour or two at a time. He looked up just in time to see a familiar figure striding purposefully into the room.
“Sir. To what do I owe the pleasure?” he asked.
“I was bored,” Rufus stated, “And you know how I dislike being bored. As you seem to be the only member of staff not otherwise occupied, I thought you might entertain me for a time.”
Viridia’s visit earlier in the day seemed to have served to snap him out of his black mood… for the moment, at any rate… which was a good thing for the young President. Had he still been of the same frame of mind he’d been in earlier, he doubted he would have had the patience to deal with Rufus’ usual games. Now, though, had he not known that doing so would have been excruciating, Tseng would have laughed. But as he was, in fact, well aware of that limitation, he instead simply offered the President a wide smile.
“I see. My apologies, sir, but I’m afraid any performance I might be able to offer at present will be rather disappointing.”
Rufus flashed him a look of irritation.
“Hmph… I’m going to have to have a word with my head of base security. She assured me that you were all but biting the heads off of anyone who dared venture too close to your bedside. I was hoping that such a spectacle might provide a needed distraction, but it seems the lieutenant commander is a bit prone to exaggeration…”
“To be fair, I was in a decidedly foul mood this morning, sir…”
Rufus settled himself into a nearby chair, looking somewhat unconvinced.
“… How are you, really?” he asked, and Tseng was slightly surprised by the worried inflection in his voice. It was rare, even in private, that Rufus expressed any noticeable concern for his well-being… even if he made it known in other ways.
“I… suppose I could be considerably worse.”
“But?” Rufus prodded.
“Why the sudden interest, if you don’t mind me asking?”
The younger man snorted contemptuously, and looked away. “Because, you’re a valued employee. And… my friend. And I haven’t had the time to inquire lately.”
Tseng smiled in response. If concern was rare, admitting that he actually considered the Turk to be a friend was virtually unheard of. His charge really must have been worried if he was being so cavalier today.
“I would much prefer to be back at work than lying in bed,” Tseng answered, “Being so utterly useless is… infuriating… and being largely out of the loop on recent events is not something I enjoy.”
Rufus’ gaze came back around at that statement, and he raised an eyebrow. “I would have thought your subordinates would have made it a point to keep you informed.”
“I suspect they would… if you didn’t keep sending them off to Leviathan-knows-where before they get the chance,” he replied with a smirk, “Speaking of which… where have they gone now?”
Viridia had left before he’d been able to ask her this morning. Though to be honest, he wasn’t entirely sure she would have known anyway. Turk missions were well outside her purview, and unless it were directly related to base security, there would have been no reason to inform her of their whereabouts.
“At present, they’re in Rocket Town by way of Nibelheim. I’ve ordered them to begin retrieving whatever huge materia can be recovered from the reactors. Palmer seems to think that Scarlet’s design can be modified into a missile. He and Heidegger are going to try blasting that accursed rock out of the sky. Frankly, I have my doubts it will succeed, but at least it will keep those two idiots out of my hair for awhile.”
“Ah. Yes, I can see how that would be appealing.”
“As much as I hate ta interrupt this touching display of mutual disdain… Yer scheduled for an x-ray.”
Rufus turned towards the door and glared at the unwelcome interruption. “Is there no expectation of privacy in this second-rate excuse for a hospital?”
“Not from me, there’s not… Now off with yeh. President or not, yer standing between me and my patient. And my patient is in need of an x-ray,” Dr. Ward stated, shooing him away from the bed.
“How dare you speak to me li–”
“I said out! Don’t yeh argue with me, Rufus Amadeus Shinra. If yeh think I can’t put the likes of yeh in yer place after nigh on two decades of keeping this one and the rest of his ilk in line, yer in for a nasty shock.”
Tseng did at last give in to temptation and chuckled softly despite the stabbing pain it set off in his abdomen. “I would take her at her word, sir.”
“I could fire you right now, you old hag…” Rufus hissed in response, pinking slightly at the use of his full given name.
“Oh, yeh could, could yeh? And just who would take care of yer Turk, here, if yeh did something as foolhardy as that?”
The President’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t seem to have a response to that. Of course, there were any number of physicians available on the base… but none who were as well acquainted with – and well-liked by – the Turk leader.
“Yeh can come back in an hour,” Ward stated, definitively. Rufus scoffed, and raised a finger in protest, but Justinia simply stared him down. “Yeh can come back in an hour,” she repeated, even more firmly. At last, he turned on his heel and stalked out, muttering under his breath the whole way.
“Hmph… The boy didn’t know who he was dealing with,” she said, smirking as she turned to see to her patient. Tseng shook his head.
“Were it anyone but you, Justinia, I believe I would be gravely concerned for your continued employment…”
Elena wasn’t sure at first what had woken her. She’d been sleeping soundly, in the same position in which she’d drifted off. The room as silent and dark and still. A moment later, however, thunder rumbled loudly.
A storm. That must have been it.
She yawned and gave a mental shrug, before seeking out the familiar warmth of her bedmate with the intent of going back to sleep… only to find him missing.
“Reno… ?” she called out, softly. When there was no answer, she groped for the little lamp on the bedside table and clicked it on, squinting at the clock next to it in the sudden brightness. It was just after two in the morning. Where could he be?
Uncertain, she crawled out of bed, stretching as she padded her way across the room. She hoped it wasn’t another nightmare. She hated it when he just disappeared like this because he didn’t want to wake her. If that were the case, though, it seemed odd to her. Reno hadn’t had one in… well… at the very least not since she’d woken up in Junon… and he hadn’t seemed especially troubled when they’d retired for the night. At least no moreso than anyone else was at the moment.
Elena yawned again and twisted the doorknob, wondering where he’d be hiding if he was having trouble sleeping. Rude had taken the couch in the living room downstairs… and the room down the hall was stuffed full of boxes and old furniture. There really weren’t many other places he could go…
As she stepped into the hallway, though, it became clear that he hadn’t gone far at all.
“Reno?” she queried, flipping the wall switch and flooring the landing with light.
He was nestled into the corner at the far end, knees hugged tightly to his chest. She could hear him, breathing rapidly… practically panting… and when he looked up at the sound of her voice, his face was pale and his eyes were wide.
“It won’t… stop…” he managed.
“Reno?!” she repeated, feeling an icy chill run down her spine. She covered the distance between in a few strides, dropping to her knees in front of him. “Reno? What’s wrong?”
Elena tried to coax him out of the position, but he was so tense… He shook his head.
“Go back to bed…”
“What? No!” she very nearly shouted, worried. Something was very, very wrong. And if he really thought she was just going to leave him and go back to sleep, he clearly wasn’t thinking straight. The stairs creaked and a few seconds later, Rude reached them, blearily rubbing his eyes.
“… What’s going on?” he asked, before his gaze landed squarely on the redhead. “… Reno…”
By then, Elena was on the verge of panicking. She had no idea was was happening to him… no idea what she should be doing. Apparently, her fear was more than a little apparent on her face. Rude turned to her and sighed.
“He didn’t tell you about this, did he?”
“Tell me about what?” she asked, swallowing the lump in her throat.
“That he’s been having panic attacks,” he replied. “Don’t worry… he’ll be alright.” Rude reached for his friend, lifting him off the floor and carrying him back into the bedroom, depositing him on the bed. “You need to control your breathing…” he said gently.
“The fuck you think I’ve been tryin’ to do for the last twenty minutes?!” Reno replied, squeezing his eyes shut. “This shit won’t stop this time!” His eyes opened again, and he looked up at him with pleading misery. “For fuck’s sake, make it stop, Rude… Please…”
Elena felt her heart twist at the desperation in his voice. As useless as she felt, she couldn’t just stand there and do nothing while he suffered. So instead, she slipped into bed next to him, fingers finding the sensitive spot on the back of his neck, and massaging gently. It always seemed to lull him to sleep when he was restless… She hoped it would help now. Rude gave her an approving nod before turning his attention back to the redhead.
“You’re alright. Just breathe,” he said, keeping his voice even and calm. “Slowly,” he amended, when the rapid breaths continued unabated.
“I hate this…” Reno whispered.
They stayed like that for what felt like hours… though when Elena glanced at the clock again, it had really only been about fifteen minutes… until the anxious redhead finally settled into a more normal rhythm, eyes drifting shut as his body relaxed a bit.
“How long has this been going on?” Elena asked, breaking the relative silence. She couldn’t imagine Reno being able to hide something like this from her for long, And truth be told, she was a little angry that he’d tried.
Rude frowned. “Since the Temple. When he found out it wasn’t just Tseng in the hospital… that was the first one.”
“That was the only one,” the redhead said quietly, but firmly, and Elena jumped slightly in surprise. She’d thought he’d fallen asleep.
“Ward put him on medication that was supposed to stop this from getting any worse.”
She shook her head. “Well, it’s obviously not working…” she replied, sounding more than a little angry about that fact. Rude folded his arms across his chest, and looked down at Reno with a somewhat accusing expression. The stricken Turk guiltily turned his head away from the other man’s gaze.
“Yeah… ’bout that. I mighta skipped a dose. Or.. ya know… three or four.”
“Reno…” Rude sighed in exasperation.
“It wasn’t on purpose!” he protested, “I’ve just been pullin’ such weird hours the last week or so, I forgot about it a few times.”
“You take it tonight?” Rude asked, an eyebrow rising in challenge.
“…”
“Reno?” Elena softly prodded, “Did you?”
“… No,” the redhead finally admitted.
“Why not?” Thunder rumbled again in the distance, louder than the first time she’d heard it – it sounded like it was getting closer – drowning out whatever answer Reno muttered into his pillow. “What?” she asked, not quite catching it. He sighed, and lifted his head slightly, looking back over his shoulder at her.
“… I didn’t want you to know about it, okay?” he repeated, and Elena was surprised to see a noticeable, if somewhat pale, pink hue color his cheeks. “So, I kinda left ’em back in Junon so you wouldn’t accidentally find ’em. I felt fine. I mean… I didn’t think it’d be a big deal.”
Without warning, the entire house shook as a clap of thunder nearly deafened them all, and the redhead startled violently. Seconds later, the rain began, pelting the windows and drumming on the roof. Elena stroked his hair, reassuringly.
“You know Ward’s gonna skin you alive, right?” Rude commented. The redhead groaned and dragged the pillow over his head.
“Rude!” Elena cried, glaring in irritation. Granted, it was probably true… but hadn’t Reno had a rough enough night as it was? Rude chuckled softly and took a seat on the edge of the bed, prying the pillow out of his friend’s grasp.
“I’ll call her. Find out what she wants you to do, since we can’t exactly get a refill right this second… Maybe I can calm her down before she gets her hands on you. You gonna be alright for awhile?”
“Tch… You’re not seriously gonna call the Doc in the middle of the fuckin’ night for this, are you? Bad enough I’m gonna get reamed out for my own stupidity. Now she’s gonna be extra pissed for wakin’ her up, too…”
Rude snorted a laugh. “She’s never been pissed about that before. What makes you think she’s gonna start now?” he replied, giving the younger man’s shoulder a gentle squeeze before standing and hurrying from the room to find his PHS.
Elena stayed right where she was, rubbing slow circles between Reno’s shoulders. He still felt tense, even though the worst of it seemed to have passed.
“… I’m sorry, ‘Lena…” he said after a minute or two.
“Why didn’t you want to tell me?”
Reno rolled onto his back and caught hold of her hand, coaxing her to lay down beside him. She snuggled up tight against his side, and let her head rest in the center of his chest, fingers sneaking upward to twine their way into his hair.
“… I didn’t want you worryin’ that things were gettin’ worse. And I didn’t want you thinkin’ less of me. You have any idea how fucking humiliating it is to be so terrified of absolutely nothing, for no reason at all, that you can hardly breathe?” The storm was raging outside and another loud clap of thunder interrupted him. His entire body twitched again. “… Or to be so on edge afterwards you start jumpin’ at loud noises?” he grumbled, annoyed at his own reaction.
“So you thought you’d completely terrify me by not telling me something was wrong until after I find you like that?”
The redhead cringed. “You mad?”
“Yes. I am. Very. And if I weren’t also so grateful that you’re okay, you’d be sleeping on the couch tonight, you asshole.” In spite of that, she protectively tightened her grip on him. “Be glad I’m more relieved than angry, or Ward’s lecture would pale in comparison to mine. Don’t you ever keep something this important from me again.”
“If I promise you that, will you still come to Costa del Sol with me?”
Elena propped herself up slightly so that she could see his face. “Why the sudden desperation to visit Costa del Sol?”
He shook his head and managed a weak smile, and let his hand drift along her cheek. “It’s just important to me. I’d tell ya why, but… it’d kinda ruin the surprise.”
She leaned forward and kissed him. “Alright… Deal.”
There was a soft knock at the bedroom door, and a moment later, Rude stepped inside.
“Hey,” he said hesitantly.
“… That’s never a good tone…” Reno muttered, “Do I even wanna hear this?”
“Probably not. But she told me not to wait to deliver the message.”
Elena sat up, concerned, and Reno, too lifted himself more or less upright. “What’d the Doc say?” he asked, bracing himself.
“… You’re suspended, pending evaluation. She’s ordered you to report back to Junon immediately.”
“She can’t do that!” Elena gasped.
“Yeah… actually she can,” Reno said with a defeated sigh.
Rufus glared impatiently as his head of general affairs bumbled into his office without bothering to knock. Behind him, Scarlet’s heels clicked excitedly on the tile as she followed him.
“Sir… The girl is awake,” Heidegger stated grinning widely behind his obnoxiously bushy beard.
“We can proceed with the execution at any time,” Scarlet added. It took some effort not to let the extent of his disgust show in his expression. Yes, he’d ordered this… as a matter of necessity. These two were taking far too much delight in the prospect of killing someone than he cared to see. But in the end, he supposed, it didn’t really matter. Gleeful or not, Tifa Lockheart and Barret Wallace would be dead by the end of the day… and that would buy the company the good will it needed for its next endeavor; turning the city of Midgar into a giant weapon.
He had little doubt that installing the canon in the city was going to be… unpopular… to say the least. The last thing he needed were protests breaking out in the streets. This execution was merely a part of the narrative to sell the population on his plan.
“The press has been notified of the schedule?” he asked, emotionlessly.
“Yes, sir,” Heidegger replied. “And the gallery has already been set up and decorated for them. We can begin at any time.”
“Notify base security that the execution will take place at noon. See that any of the spectators are kept in line.”
“Yes, sir!” he replied, enthusiastically.
It was almost eight in the morning and the storm still hadn’t abated. Reno stood at the window, gazing out at the gloomy surroundings, watching as the rain turned the worn dirt road to mud. Rude and Elena had planned to make for Mt. Corel at first light. But with weather like this, the helicopter was grounded… at least until some of the lightning and wind abated.
He, however, wasn’t traveling by helicopter…
“Are you sure you don’t want us to at least walk you over?” Elena asked. Reno shook his head.
“Tch… no sense in everyone gettin’ soaked.”
The Gelnika that would be transporting him back to Junon was waiting on the little airfield outside of town. It was only a short walk from Rude’s father’s house. He sighed and turned away from the window. “Look… you two watch yourselves out there, ‘kay? You got two more reactors to hit up soon as this weather clears up.”
Elena hugged him tight, and Reno felt his throat tighten. He wanted to stay with them. They were his team. How the fuck had he managed to screw up so badly? Reluctantly, he placed a soft kiss on her lip and pushed her away.
“Keep an eye on ‘Lena for me, will ya, partner? Don’t let her fall down a reactor well or anything…” It was a lousy attempt at a joke. He knew it. They knew it. But they laughed anyway. “I better go… I miss this flight, Ward really will hunt me down ‘n murder me.”
He shouldered his bag and headed for the door. Outside, he found himself almost immediately drenched by the pouring rain. He cast one last glance back at his fellow-Turks and then started the slow slog to the airfield.
It took far longer than it really should have, and by the time he did finally reach the Gelnika, he was not only soaked, but muddy as well. He didn’t care… it’s went along perfectly with his current mood. Reno flopped down into one of the jump seats that lined the walls of the cargo plane, and strapped himself in.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. When the time came for him to take over for Tseng, he was supposed to have been ready for it. How in Ifirt’s name had he ended up like this? In a way, he felt like a rookie all over again, wondering if he was really good enough to be here… and given his present circumstances, concluding that no. He was not. It certainly wasn’t the first time he’d wondered if Tseng had made a mistake choosing him, not only for the Turks, but as his second-in-command… but it was the first time in a very long time that he was having a hard time convincing himself otherwise.
Reno was only vaguely aware of the flight crew informing him that preparations were complete and they were ready to take off. It was going to be a long trip… and in one sense, not nearly long enough. He wasn’t looking forward to facing the doctor. But he was even less looking forward to facing Tseng. He didn’t know if Ward had told him what had happened or if he’d have to confess to his idiotic decision to forgo his medication himself… and he couldn’t quite decide which would be worse: seeing the disappointment on the Turk leader’s face immediately, or watching it set in as he told him the reason Ward had ordered him back to Junon. The thought of either was almost enough to send him spiraling right back into panic mode again.
The Gelnika began to taxi, jarring him roughly as it clattered over the worn pavement of the airstrip, and moments later, it was airborne. Reno flinched as the pressure change made his ears pop. He’d never liked that sensation. Seldom seemed to experience it in the helicopter, for some reason. He glanced out the tiny porthole-shaped window to his right, watching as Rocket Town faded from sight.
Next stop… Junon.
“Have they been informed?” Rufus asked as he and Heidegger strode into the medical facility. The girl was awake, the press had arrived, and the execution was to begin in a matter of minutes. And the guards were here to escort them to their fate.
“No, sir. As requested, we’ve kept things quiet.”
“Good,” he said with a nod of approval. Reno had successfully talked him out of speaking to the condemned earlier… but it seemed only right that he tell them that they were going to be used to further Shinra’s agenda personally. His father would likely have simply had them dragged off to their deaths, kicking and screaming for the cameras… or perhaps taken a few minutes to gloat before having them dragged off. Rufus didn’t care for theatrics… even though they were occasionally necessary. And he didn’t feel much like gloating over this particular situation. He’d even gone so far as to turn the more innocent members of Avalanche loose… Security had escorted them off the base days ago. But these two would have to die.
They paused in front of the room, and Heidegger opened the door for him.
“I see you’ve recovered,” he said blandly by way of greeting. Tifa eased herself off of the bed, moving to stand beside Barret.
“What are you going to do with us?” she asked, unintimidated. Straight to the point. Under better circumstances, he might have been just a little impressed. He’d specifically ordered that the personnel keeping them contained not rouse any suspicion. They’d been treated as guests up until now, but still the woman was suspicious of his motives. As she should be.
“Meteor has been summoned. Essentially it’s all but over now,” he replied. Not entirely true… but that was what any number of people were thinking. “So… I have no use for you anymore.” He paused, and smiled coldly. “No… That’s no entirely true. There is one more important task for you.”
Heidegger snickered behind him, and the President had to fight the urge to role his eyes at the man. As soon as he no longer had need of the pompous twit, Heidegger was going to be out on his ass… right alongside Scarlet and Palmer. He would not allow Shinra Company to continue under such incompetent leadership.
“Preparations for the public execution are complete,” Heidegger said, snidely. Barret leapt for him, snatching the gloating executive by the neck.
“Execution?! What’re ya gonna get by executin’ us?” he shouted, as the other man clawed at his throat, gasping for air. Rufus calmly waved the security guards forward, and they shoved the terrorist back. Heidegger hurriedly retreated behind his superior.
“You are to be executed for causing this situation,” the President explained, ignoring his employee’s cowardice. “People are ignorant. They’ll feel better if someone is punished.”
Barret growled low in his throat and sent one of the guards into the wall, where he crumpled, out cold. The other three rushed to restrain him.
“I take back what little praise I had for you, ya damn jackass!” he yelled, trembling with rage. “You’re just as bad as your sorry excuse for a father!”
Rufus sniffed in contempt and turned to the door. “Well… enjoy your last moments together.” With that, he removed himself from the room, leaving Heidegger and the guards to deal with them. He couldn’t fault the man for being furious. He’d just told him he was going to be killed for political gain.
Though as he made his way back to his office, he had to admit… being compared to his father was somewhat sobering. His father had been… his father. But even Rufus could not, with any honesty, say that he’d been a good one. He couldn’t even claim that he’d been a good person. He had still been his father, however… The only one he’d ever known. And he wondered how far the apple really did fall.
Rufus entered the administration building and took the elevator to the executive floor, walking purposefully into his office and taking a seat at his desk. He would watch the execution on the monitors. He had little desire to be physically present for it… something he was almost certain he and the elder Shinra would have disagreed on.
With a scowl, he pressed a button that turned on the live feed, and watched as Tifa and Barret were paraded in front of the press gallery.
“Is everyone here? These are the ones who brought this madness into the world!” Scarlet proclaimed, emphatically from the podium. She turned to look back at the prisoners. “We’ll be broadcasting your miserable deaths live on national television.”
A reporter waved at her for her attention. “Scarlet… why a public execution in this day and age?”
‘Why, indeed,’ Rufus thought to himself. As barbaric as it was, it served a purpose. For all the civility of human beings, when society felt wronged, they demanded blood. It had been a staple for thousands of years, and no matter how evolved they thought of themselves as being, old instincts still lingered. There had been surprisingly little protest from the public when the execution had been announced earlier in the day.
“We’ll start with the girl,” Scarlet stated, drawing Rufus from his musings. Barret was struggling against his bonds.
“If you gotta do it… do me first!” he demanded. Scarlet grinned.
“Cameras, this way! Make sure you get this… The audience just eats up tearful goodbyes!”
Rufus made a quiet sound of disgust. Yes, it was necessary, but did the woman really have to take so much abject pleasure in it? He watched as Scarlet shoved Tifa towards the execution chamber. That, at least, would be relatively painless. The gas would render its victims unconscious before it finally finished them off. As executions went, it was a humane one.
“This is my special gas chamber. Take your time and enjoy a slow, painful death,” the gleeful executive said as she forced the other woman into the chair. Rufus’ eyes narrowed. When had she done that? He hadn’t approved any such changes. He stood, debating for a moment whether he should put a stop to it… even though realistically he knew that he couldn’t. It wouldn’t do for him to be seen as soft on live TV.
A moment later, however, it ceased to be of any importance. Red emergency lights flashed, and a loud, angry klaxon sounded throughout the base. Rufus ran to the huge picture window… he had a feeling he already knew what was happening.
His fears were confirmed a few seconds later as an announcement blared from the PA system.
“Emergency! Weapon is approaching! All military personnel, take your positions!”
Of all the lousy timing… The President squinted out at the sea beyond the base, only just able to make out the telltale wake forming among the waves.
“Sir!” Heidegger squealed, racing into his office, “It’s Weapon!”
“… There have been so many attacks lately,” he commented, more to himself than to his subordinate. “Can we handle it?”
“Y-yes, sir. I believe so. Your orders?”
Rufus raised an eyebrow. “Is there really a need to ask?”
Heidegger cringed slightly at the other man’s withering tone, but quickly fumbled for his PHS. “Activate defenses and the main canon! Target: Weapon!”
Rufus felt more than heard the low rumbling that he knew was indicative of the huge steel plates being lowered into place to protect the base. The shields had saved them several times already from the tsunamis generated by the massive aquatic monster when it retreated. Hopefully they would continue to do so.
“Preparations complete, sir,” Heidegger informed in, and Rufus gave him a nod. “FIRE!” he screamed into the phone.
The tremor nearly knocked him off his feet when the canon fired. Rufus watched silently as the shot sailed toward its target, hardly daring to breathe. When it collided, it sent a towering wall of water into the air that rushed out in all directions from where Weapon had been. He stared intently as the sea calmed, searching for any sign of their attacker.
“Did we get it?” he asked, somewhat breathlessly. He hardly dared hope. Weapon had taken impacts from the canon during earlier attacks as well and come back fighting… though they’d never managed to score quite so direct a hit before.
“Seems so…” Heidegger replied, but the words had barely left his mouth when the alarm sounded again, and he jumped, surprised.
“Weapon approaching! Speed, 50 knots! It’s heading right for us!” the soldier on the other end of the phone call cried, his voice so loud that Rufus could hear him quite clearly even without the aid of the speakerphone. Heidegger looked at him in panic.
“It can’t be! We hit it dead on!”
Rufus turned toward the window, where he spotted the familiar wake reforming in the water. It was wasn’t done yet. Previous attacks had ended after a single run at the base. Either they’d severely pissed it off, or it had finally grown tired of playing with them.
“How long until we can fire again?”
“It will take them six minutes to reload.”
“Then use regular firepower in the meantime. Everything we have!” If they survived this, it would be a miracle. Heidegger was already shouting orders.
“Open all artillery doors! Don’t let it reach land!”
Sapphire Weapon was closing now, it’s deep blue body rising out of the water as its speed increased. Far below, Rufus could see the movement of troops as they scurried into position to take aim at the creature with smaller weapons… all of which, he knew, would be ineffective, but perhaps could buy them the time they needed.
The base’s secondary canons fired first, and then the ground troops opened fire as well, sending trails of smoke towards Weapon. Explosions detonated as the shots hit their mark, but the great leviathan was unphased. Rufus shook his head, and stepped back from the window. This was not good.
“70 knots and closing, sir! It’s going to hit!” Heidegger gasped, and a moment later, the impact sent Rufus staggering. He only just managed to grab onto the edge of his desk and remain upright. He turned his gaze on the window, watching in horror as the Weapon began to rise out of the waves, mouth gaping as a surge of energy built up in the depths of its jaws. They’d never seen this before. It seemed Sapphire really was done with them… It intended to finish them off, and they were defenseless.
Just as it looked as though they were lost… the main canon fired. The shock wave sent a long crack streaking down the large picture window in Rufus’ office, and for a moment, there was so much smoke beyond the glass, the President was certain it had been a misfire. Slowly, it began to clear, and the imposing silhouette of Sapphire Weapon remained… standing before the city. Rufus’ stomach clenched in fear. That was, quite literally, everything they had. There was no chance of loading the canon for a third shot.
He’d very nearly given up hope of getting out alive. Until, that is, the remaining smoke cloud was whipped away by the ocean breeze. The Weapon still stood… but without its head.
With an agonizing slowness, it’s massive body began to topple, sinking into the ocean. Muffled by the cracked glass that separated him from the base outside, Rufus heard a cheer go up from the soldiers below.
“We got him, sir! We got him!” Heidegger cried, ecstatically, and Rufus covered the short distance to the window, looking out at the sinking giant with a mixture of satisfaction and disbelief. He shook himself from his shock and glanced back at the man.
“See to the injured… and then get that canon prepared for its move to Midgar.”
Junon didn’t need it now. True, Emerald Weapon was still out there, but it had never ventured close enough to be perceived as a threat to the base. It seemed far more interested in the supply ships – which had largely stopped running their usual routes after several devastating attacks – than in harassing the military installation.
“Yes, sir…” He was out the door before Rufus could say anything farther. The young President breathed a sigh of relief and looked back to the window. Movement along the barrel of the canon suddenly caught his eye.
“What in Rumah’s name…” he began, moving closer to the glass for a better look. Scarlet was easily recognizable, her crimson dress fluttering around her in the brisk wind. But it was the figure out in front of her that drew his attention. It took him several incredulous seconds to realize that it was the Avalanche woman. How she’d managed to get loose, much less out onto the canon, he was at a loss to explain… but Scarlet didn’t seem eager to let her get any farther.
And when Tifa rather viciously slapped the weapons developer, he couldn’t help but feel a smug sense of gratitude towards her. He’d wanted to do that for years. The blow knocked Scarlet to her knees, albeit briefly, but it was more than enough time for Tifa to run… though where she planned to run to was anyone’s guess. She reached the end, and to his surprise, simply kept on going.
As her feet left the edge, the Highwind rose to meet her, a rope dropping over its side. She came close to missing the catch, but she managed, and Rufus could do nothing but watch as she was hauled aboard… by the other member of Avalanche his idiotic staff had failed to execute.
The airship began to turn, not back toward its dock, but out to sea… and unless Rufus was very much mistaken, Barret Wallace was standing on its deck, looking directly into his office, with his middle finger in the air.
Reno couldn’t do anything but watch as the Highwind tore through the skies at high speed, away from Junon. He’d heard the canon fire… not once, but twice. But the Gelnika had been too far off, and the cargo bay too badly positioned, for a good view of what was going on. By the time he’d made his way into the cockpit, whatever it was seemed to be over, and the airship was fleeing the scene.
It almost had to have been another Weapon attack. There were very few reasons for that canon to be fired, let alone fired twice in quick succession, and he wondered if they’d finally managed to wound the son of a bitch. The previous attempts had barely made a dent in Sapphire’s armored exoskeleton… even though they had served to drive him off.
He couldn’t help but wonder – and worry about – the damage to the base. Last he’d checked, the defenses were still under repair from the last time the creature had charged them from the sea. Things had the potential to be bad down there… a concern that was given credence when the Gelnika was told to circle rather than being given clearance to land.
Thankfully, they were only in the air an extra twenty minutes or so… and the redhead could make out the sight of tiny figures frantically clearing debris from one of the base’s runways. After what seemed, to him at least, an eternity, they were finally given the all-clear to set down. The Gelnika bounced slightly as it’s wheels came in contact with the airstrip, and he felt the familiar sensation of deceleration as it braked to a halt.
When he stepped off the plan, the chaos became apparent… though not quite of the variety he was expecting. There was damage, yes… and minor injuries were being treated in makeshift triage areas, while the worst cases were carted off to the main medical bay… but there was no sense of looming panic, no rippling fear in the crowds. If anything, there was a far more excited undercurrent in their demeanor.
“Reno!”
The Turk turned immediately at the sound of a familiar voice, and spotted Viridia weaving her way toward him through a throng of people headed for the barracks. As she drew closer, he noticed the blood… It started at her hairline and ran down the left side of her face, saturating the collar of her uniform shirt.
“Vir! You alright?” he asked, closing some of the distance between them. She gestured dismissively.
“I got thrown up against a bulkhead during the attack. It’s not as bad as it looks,” the security chief replied.
“Weapon again?”
She looked vaguely surprised. “You missed it up there? Yeah, it was Weapon. And we finally showed him what the Shinra Army is made of. That bastard’s rotting at the bottom of the ocean… minus a head,” she answered, grinning with no small amount of pride, “I didn’t realize you guys were due back already… Could’ve used you about an hour sooner.”
Reno mentally groaned. He wasn’t exactly in the mood to explain. “I’m the only one here… Ward’s orders. ‘Lena and Rude are still on assignment. It’s a long story.”
“Well… unfortunately, I don’t have time for long stories right now. Or short ones, for that matter. But if you’re headed up to medical anyway… would you mind checking in on Tseng for me? I’m not going to get away from this any time soon.”
“Yeah, sure thing… I’ll let him know you’re alright.”
“Thanks, Reno,” Viridia said, flashing him a grateful smile before disappearing back into the flow of personnel. Reno sighed softly and shook his head, picking out a path of his own and steeling himself for the inevitable. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to enjoy explaining himself.
~fin~
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