Taking Care of Reno: Nibelheim
Chapter 4: Everyone Loves a Surprise
Weston groggily levered himself out of the narrow split in the rocks, dragging himself into the early morning sun. He’d wedged himself into the tight space when it had finally grown too dark to risk continuing to clamber along the mountain path. It had, at least, provided him some protection from the wind and the cold… and from the creature that had killed Ai. It certainly hadn’t be a comfortable sleeping space, however. Not that he’d really gotten much sleep. What little he had managed had come mostly due to exhaustion.
The intern sighed and glanced upward, directing his gaze towards the peaks that towered over him. He’d climbed down to find his little hidey hole last night. There just hadn’t been any shelter higher up, and the wind blowing through the peaks felt freezing after awhile. The downside to seeking out a warmer location, however, was that now he was going to have to climb back up to get back to Nibelheim. He hadn’t realized it in the dark, but he was practically in the valley now. The path leading back to town was somewhere above him.
Where exactly was anyone’s guess… and that was yet another reason he needed to get higher. He couldn’t see his destination from here, but from one of those ledges, surely he could at least get some idea of which direction he should be heading. Even so, Weston hesitated. The creature was up on the mountainside. He was down in the valley. Logic dictated that keeping low was the safest course of action.
But logic also dictated that he didn’t have the faintest fucking clue where he was, and he needed to figure that out before he just blindly trudged off into the Shiva-be-damned wilderness.
He huffed, irritated, and tried to rub some warmth back into his arms. His stomach growled, unhappy that it had been empty for so long, and Weston found himself wishing, not for the first time in the last twelve hours, that he had never taken this blasted internship in the first place. Was a cushy job at Shinra Company really worth risking his life like this? There were other companies he could work for. Not as prominent, but they would almost certainly have snapped up someone with his credentials in no time flat lest they lose out on yet more talent to their much larger competitor.
Weston shook his head. That was just the hunger and the thirst and the fear talking. Shinra Company was the ideal place for him… and he’d worked his backside off for this opportunity. He wasn’t going to throw it away over what was, essentially, a lab accident.
He just… needed to get back. Once he was safely back at the lab in town, everything would be alright.
Reno closed his eyes and let himself savor the sensation of warmth that permeated his skin along his spine. When Kara had suggested this whole “hot stone massage” for his morning activity, he’d been skeptical. Getting massaged with rocks sounded like something Petra’d be into… and she was into some pretty weird shit, in his not so expert opinion. But it was starting to grow on him. The heat made him feel relaxed, and the massage itself was working out a lot of the tension that had built up in his shoulders and neck over the last few weeks.
He couldn’t help but wonder, though, what the rest of the team was up to while he was laying there, in a quiet, wooded copse of trees near the waterfall with birds chirping in the branches, getting a massage from a gorgeous brunette with hips that didn’t quit… because he was pretty sure that no matter what they were doing, they weren’t enjoying their morning as much as he was.
A part of him felt kind of guilty about that. After all, it’s not like this little vacation of his was planned in advance. As far as most of the others knew, he’d just noped right the hell out of Friday and started his weekend early. Sure, Tseng had probably told them he was out today and next week at the morning briefing, but he kind of wondered if he’d gone into detail as to why. And he wasn’t entirely sure whether he hoped his mentor had explained things, or had just left it vague.
It was a little humiliating, being shipped off to a luxury spa for the sake of his own physical and mental well-being. For Ifrit’s sake… he was supposed to be Second in Command of the Turks. He was supposed to help Tseng hold the team together. He was supposed to be a source of confidence and stability for the others.
Or at least that’s how he’d always viewed his mentor…
Nothing got to Tseng. Nothing stopped him from doing what needed to be done and being there for them all. Reno wanted to be that kind of Second. He wanted to be able to live up to the standard his mentor had set. And he constantly had to remind himself of Kai’s one-time admonition that even Tseng hadn’t become Tseng overnight. Even so, his own progress towards that goal felt painfully slow, and this latest speedbump annoyed him nearly as much as he was grateful for the respite it was giving him.
He really wished Tseng hadn’t confiscated his phone, though. How the hell was he supposed to relax and stop thinking about work when he couldn’t check in and make sure everything wasn’t going to hell or something?
Reno suddenly moaned contentedly as his masseuse managed to release a particularly stubborn knot.
He was being ridiculous, and he knew it. He didn’t need to check in constantly. It wasn’t as if some massive catastrophe had struck the second he left town. Hell, given that Rufus was on a business trip and thus not likely to cause problems for anyone but Petra for awhile, it was probably going to be a nice, lazy Friday for most of the team back at the office, anyway…
Sparks erupted from an overhead light as one of the little monstrosities, in its zeal to make a quick escape into the stairwell, slammed into the fixture. The impact was followed by a dull thud as the bat-like… thing… landed on the floor at Zephyr’s feet. She leapt back in surprise, eyes going wide.
“S-sir?” she stammered, glancing over at Tseng. The Turk leader shook his head and watched as the chaos unfolded. He’d could see at least eight of them. They were, indeed, bat-like, but certainly not bats of any species he was aware of. The animals were close to three feet from wingtip to wingtip, with mottled gray-green fur and a long, whip-like tail. Their eyes reminded him more of an insect’s than anything mammalian, however… as did the extra set of spindly limbs on the underside of their body.
“I have absolutely no idea what they are. And I don’t care. Just keep them contained to this floor.”
From across the small lobby, a young woman in a white lab coat ran, shrieking, towards one of the elevators. One of the creatures dive-bombed her as she cowered, jabbing frantically at the call button. Fortunately, the automatic lockdown protocols had already set the elevators to bypass the thirty-ninth floor. The only way in or out was the stairwells.
“Rude,” Tseng intoned, nodding to the victim of the attack. The bald Turk wordlessly rushed to her aid. “Remy, see if you can find someone who knows just how many of those things are loose and what, if any, danger they pose. The rest of you, evacuate all remaining non-security personnel down to Thirty-Eight.”
As his team hurried to carry out his orders, Tseng couldn’t help but groan internally at the sight that lay before him. Building security was, in essence, simply chasing the escaped lab specimens from one hallway to another in what he could only assume was an effort to “herd” them back into the lab. There was little organization to be seen. It was… less than effective.
The one that had crash landed was dazed, but beginning to recover, and so he took the opportunity to take at least one of their number out of the equation. The Turk leader slipped his jacket off, and threw it over the downed animal, trapping it in a prison of fabric. He gathered it up, locking his arms around it to secure the wings and carried it away from the door to the stairs just as Ryu was returning with a group of three scientists.
“Do not let the lab specimens get into the stairwells,” he cautioned the rookie, as Ryu was ushering them out.
“Yes, sir!” Ryu replied.
Remy returned moments later, a frown etched across her face.
“I’m not going to like this, am I?” Tseng sighed, in resignation.
“The chief lab technician says there are forty-three of them. Building security has managed to corner two of them in a conference room, but the rest are all over the floor at this point. They also –”
She was cut off as the Turk leader’s prisoner suddenly surged forward in his arms, trying to fight its way out of the impromptu net, and emitted a high pitched shriek so loud that Tseng very nearly released the animal to cover his ears. Instead, he wrestled with it for several seconds until it calmed down again.
“… They also do that,” Remy said, hesitantly uncovering her own ears.
“Perfect,” Tseng sighed, “Well, it seems two are already contained and I have number three right here. Just forty more to go…”
Rufus closed his eyes, taking a small sip of coffee from the cup he’d had his driver stop for on their way into the office that morning. Really, he could have simply instructed the executive copter to pick him up at home… but he’d had a craving for his usual order from the shop near Company headquarters, rather than plain, home-brewed coffee from the kitchen.
Besides… he’d been up late preparing for the meeting he was presently traveling to attend. The caffeine was most welcome at this point.
The Board had approved quite a generous budget for this little project. Not surprising, given the profit it would generate over the next 5 years. It was actually even more than he’d initially recommended for the purchase… though he had no intention of spending it all if he didn’t have to.
Really, he was hoping he wouldn’t have to spend any of it. Shinra already owned prime real estate in Mideel. The only problem was that it was on the wrong side of the island. Rufus was hoping to broker a trade for, rather than an outright purchase of, the little spit of land on the southwestern coast. After all, the Company acreage on the northeast coast was next to useless to Shinra. It had been part of a long ago business deal with the individual who’d sold them a small mythril mine, also in the northern part of the island nation. An apple farm, that had been thrown in with the mine to up the price… though not of the variety that grew the far more lucrative Banora Whites. It had been a reasonably profitable venture at the time… Still was, actually. But, ultimately it wasn’t an investment his father had wanted to pursue any further. Shinra Company was not in the agriculture business, after all.
Rufus was hoping for a simple swap. The man he was meeting, Luden Brohmr, had unprofitable land in the location Shinra needed. Shinra had profitable land in a location that was completely ill-suited for their intended project. It was an excellent deal for both parties, and if he had half a brain in his head, Luden would jump at the opportunity… and it would cost Shinra Company virtually nothing. The farm had already paid for itself and then some in the years since they’d taken possession of it.
He smiled faintly at the thought. If this deal went as easily as it looked like it was going to, the business part of this business trip would potentially be concluded before the day was even out. Which would leave him time for other pursuits.
“You’re in a good mood this morning…”
Rufus glanced up from the drafted contract he’d been reading over, and found his security escort smiling warmly at him. Well… “security escort” being Petra’s official reason for accompanying him, anyway.
“I don’t wish to jinx myself… but if things go to plan with Luden, we’ll have more than a little free time this afternoon. What would you say to a short excursion later today?” he queried, “Followed by dinner.”
“That sounds lovely,” she answered, with a soft laugh.
If his father knew he was suggesting such plans, he’d likely have an aneurysm… though probably not before he’d fired Petra and viciously berated his son. Dating “below his station” was outright forbidden, and not to be tolerated. Not that the issue had ever really come up before, but the senior Shinra had made his position on the matter quite clear. In spite of his constant insistence that his heir produce an heir of his own, Rufus’ father had a entire list of criteria any potential partners had to have before he would bestow his blessing on a romantic relationship. It was, in fact, partly why Rufus had never bothered with such things in the past, beyond barely tolerating his father’s attempts at setting him up. He wasn’t interested in shopping for a spouse… particularly not one of the brain-dead idiots high society tended to produce.
Petra was… the first woman who had ever truly piqued his interest, though he still hadn’t entirely decided what was between them, or how far it might go. He knew that he cared for her enough to not wish risking her career on a relationship that might ultimately go nowhere, however. Thus, as much as he would have loved to have had the satisfaction of informing his father that he was seeing an employee, they’d both agreed to keep things under wraps for the time being.
Though to be fair… it was less his father’s reaction that concerned him than it was Tseng’s. The recently-promoted Turk leader would not be amused if and when he learned of this. He certainly hadn’t been happy to hear about it when he’d found out that all he and Petra had done was kiss. Something told him that, if things progressed to the point that they were more open about their relationship, the Turk leader would be utterly irate. With them both. If it did come to that, Rufus was going to have to choose his approach very carefully.
Perhaps he could use the Slum Rat somehow in that regard. The redheaded idiot didn’t particularly approve of such fraternization, either… but he was significantly more likely to at least listen to explanations before going off on them. He had at least shown that much courtesy when he’d caught them on the Highwind, even if he had been decidedly peeved over it at the time. Besides which… he’d never seen Tseng truly angry with his precious protege. If anyone were capable of breaking the news and surviving it, it was Reno. It was something to think about, at least.
For now, however, he was perfectly content with their more clandestine relationship. And Petra being his go-to security escort now that Reno was running about the building like a chocobo with his head cut off most days, made for the perfect cover. He doubted they’d have to worry about confessing to anything any time soon.
“Don’t let them back into the hallway!” Liam cried, somewhat panicked, as three of the lab specimens turned their flight path back toward the doorway. Zephyr slammed her hand against the sliding door’s control panel on the wall, abruptly cutting off their escape. Ryu yelped and hit the floor as they arced back in his direction and proceeded to divebomb him.
“This is ridiculous!” the Wutaiian rookie grumbled, scrambling back to his feet.
“Ryu! Heads up!” Victor called out to him from the opposite side of the lab, and the younger Turk turned, eyes wide as he saw the creatures making a second run at him. He wasn’t fast enough to duck this time, however, and instead instinctively turned to the materia slotted into the bracer on his wrist. The orb flared bright green for a moment, and the next thing any of them knew, two of the three animals were encased in ice.
This seemed only to serve to anger the third of their number, however. It had peeled away from the attack formation at the last second, only narrowly avoiding sharing its compatriots’ fate… and now it had its sights set firmly on Ryu. The rookie found himself in the midst of frenzied flapping as it descended on him, teeth snapping at him as he tried to fend it off, with little success.
“A little assistance would be appreciated!” he managed to shout. The bat-like creature snapped at him again, this time scoring a direct hit on his forearm. Ryu swore loudly as its fangs sunk into his flesh, and flung it bodily into the wall. It connected with a dull thud and slid to the floor, where it lay, dazed.
“You alright?” Victor asked, having finally reached him.
“Hmph… So long as they’re not venomous, I’m fine,” Ryu groused, pushing his sleeve up and studying the injury.
“I’d be more worried about it turning me into a vampire…” Liam snickered. He sobered quickly, however, eyeing the lazily bleeding bite wound. “But… maybe you ought to go get that looked at. We’ll take care of these three.”
Ryu shook his head and quickly waved him off. “It’s not serious. I’ll tend to it once we’ve finished here.”
“Your funeral…” Liam shrugged, as he helped Zephyr lift one of the frozen-solid lab specimens.
This was the fucking life, Reno mused. He presently found himself naked and sequestered in the soothing heat of the resort’s sauna. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wood paneling of the wall.
It was nice. To be honest, he’d never really understood the whole point of a sauna before. But the one back at headquarters, across from the pool locker rooms, always seemed to be rather busy. It was hard to find a time when it wasn’t occupied by at least a few people, usually discussing the current gossip of whatever department they happened to work for, and you could virtually never get in alone. Now that he’d experienced having one all to himself, he could see the appeal.
He was having a hard time finding anything to dislike about Healin, actually. His morning thus far had consisted of breakfast made to order and brought directly to his cabin, followed by a visit from his “personal concierge”, Kara, and a brief overview of everything the place had to offer… and then a massage that had left him feeling more relaxed than he’d ever thought possible, and now this whole sauna thing. And it wasn’t even noon yet!
A part of him felt bad for enjoying it so much. Especially since Remy, Kai, and Rude were stuck picking up his slack back home. Another part of him was pointedly telling that first part to shut the hell up and enjoy it while he could… because as much as he was enjoying fantasizing about it, he couldn’t stay at Healin Lodge forever. Eventually, he had to go back.
Reno sighed and reminded himself – only for about the millionth time, by his count – that it was going to take time. He wasn’t going to be on his mentor’s level overnight, and he had to learn to be more patient.
But dammit, he hated being patient!
More than anything, he wanted to be good at this new role. But the longer his training dragged on, the less qualified he felt. Every time he thought he’d just about gotten a handle on one thing, Tseng dumped a dozen more items on his plate. And he knew that it was because they were trying to cram two or three years worth of training into a matter of months, but it was just so much all at once, and it never freaking stopped.
He’d never admit it to anyone… but there had been more than a few times in the last few weeks when he’d thought about giving up and telling Tseng that he just couldn’t do it. That he’d never measure up, and that this whole idea had been a stupid mistake and Tseng should have made Remy Second in Command, like he’d initially tried to, and not him. And every time, he felt like an asshole for even considering it, because the whole reason he was in this mess was because his mentor needed him.
If he just had more time. That was all he needed, really. How the hell was he supposed to memorize executive security codes and attend a weekly Board meeting, and figure out how to navigate all the bullshit red tape they had to cut through with the budget, and train the rookies, and… every other goddamn thing that Tseng had somehow made look simple when it was still his job?
Reno huffed and wiped away the sweat that was running down his face. He was supposed to be relaxing. Not obsessing over all the things that had him so stressed out to begin with.
And really… it wasn’t time he needed, he somewhat sardonically thought to himself. What he fucking needed was another Reno, and he vaguely wondered if the Biologics lab had figured out how to clone a person yet. As much as he disliked Hojo, that might be one experiment he’d be willing to submit himself to…
Tseng was forced to take cover beneath a long table laden with laboratory equipment and glassware as two of the specimens circled and dove at him, shrieking their ear-splitting screech. He winced as the sound left his ears ringing. The glassware above him shattered from the auditory assault, raining down from above.
Over the past hour and a half, between the combined efforts of the Turks and Building Security, they’d managed to round up and contain thirty-seven of the little bastards. That left only six still on the loose, but those final six were proving to be one hell of a headache. Several security officers had been bitten, as had at least one of the lab workers who’d been brave enough to remain and assist… and if they weren’t all rendered half deaf by the time they managed to corner the remaining creatures, it would be a minor miracle.
“Ahhh! Tseng! Help!” a voice suddenly cried out, and the Turk commander peered out from his makeshift shelter just in time to see Kai hit the floor a few feet away from him. One of the little monsters had latched onto her calf, claws and teeth holding itself firmly in place. “Ugh! Get off of me!” she growled, kicking viciously at the winged abomination with her free leg.
Tseng lunged at it, seizing it’s wings, and attempted to pull it away from his friend. It fought him for several seconds, but then, without warning, released its grip on Kai all at once and turned against him instead. He suddenly found himself under direct assault, wings flapping angrily in his face as the specimen tried to escape his grasp. One of of the spindly appendages on the underside of its body managed to score a hit, clawing him in the face and, he was fairly certain – though he didn’t have time to actually check at just that moment – drawing blood.
Kai recovered from her own attack and joined him in wrestling the animal to the ground.
“Somebody get a Shiva-be-damned cage!” she called out to anyone who happened to be nearby. The several ensuing seconds felt like an eternity, but, at last, Victor appeared with the requested item, and between the three of them, they were able to corral the damned thing. For a moment, Tseng could only sit, sprawled on the cold tile and breathing heavily as he eyed the creature with no small amount of malice. It returned his glare tenfold.
“How many more?” he asked.
“Three, I think, sir,” Victor replied. “Liam and Ryu just froze two more of them over in the conference room.”
Tseng nodded and picked himself up off the floor. He briefly pressed a hand to his stinging cheek and noted the blood on his fingers when he drew it away, scowling. Of course…
“Are you badly injured?” he asked, turning to Kai. She was using the lull in excitement to examine her own wounds.
“I’d like to say no, if only be allowed to stick around and get some revenge on these fuckers… but that thing tore a nice big chunk out of my leg,” she grumbled, hand pressed against the injury site in an attempt to stem the bleeding. “Think I’m going to have to bow out and take care of this…”
“Victor, escort Kai down to Medical, please,” the senior Turk ordered.
“Yes, sir,” the rookie replied, though he paused before helping the injured Turk to her feet, “Ryu was bitten, too. He says he’s okay, but… just thought you should know.”
Tseng nodded, and the pair made their way towards the stairs, leaving him and the rest of the team to deal with the remaining creatures. Three more. Just three more.
“Leviathan give me strength…” he breathed as he plunged back into the fray, narrowly avoiding one of the winged beasts as it exited one of the offices to his left and streaked off down the hallway. Rude and Remy were hot on its heels, darting around the Turk leader without ever breaking stride.
“I got one!” Zephyr’s voice cried triumphantly from the opposite direction, and he adjusted his own course to see if he could lend a hand. Before he could reach her, however, she gave a startled shout. “No, I don’t!”
Half a second later, the young rookie was hauled bodily out into the hallway as one of the lab specimens flapped furiously, dragging her along behind itself. She’d planted her feet and was doing everything in her power to hang on… but Zephyr didn’t weigh enough to hold it in place. Had he not been entirely done with the whole debacle at this point, Tseng might have found the sight more than a little comical.
“I got it!” Liam called out, and Tseng instinctively ducked as the magical energy of an ice spell zipped past him, a bit closer than he would have liked. The creature froze – literally – and dropped to the floor with a loud clunk. The younger Turk paused when he reached his commander, looking a little sheepish.
“I hope the aim on that spell was the result the of your recent dedicated training with Ryu and not sheer luck,” Tseng commented, not entirely amused, “I have little to no desire to have to defrost any of my Turks… or myself… later…”
“Er… sorry, sir,” Liam replied, rubbing the back of his head, “I’ll be more careful.”
“Well, at least that’s one more that won’t be causing us any further trouble,” he said, shaking his head.
“Make that two,” Sykes said, as he and Ryu approached with a similarly subdued specimen.
“Excellent. If Victor’s count was correct, that just leaves the one Remy and Rude were chasing down,” the senior Turk replied, “Sykes, Zephyr… take those two back to containment with the others. Ryu and Liam… you’re with me. Let’s see if we can’t assist in finally putting an end to this.”
Rufus sat motionless, his face unreadable, his posture straight. Waiting.
He was impatient for an answer… not that anyone would have ever guessed. Years of practice had given him the almost uncanny ability to keep his expression neutral and his body language fully under his control in most situations. People simply did not “read” Rufus Shinra. He’d taken great care to ensure that.
It was a skill that came in handy from time to time.
And it was a skill that Luden Brohmr, did not possess. At least not in any great abundance. Oh, he’d certainly tried to adopt a similar countenance. But Rufus could see it in his eyes. He wanted this deal as badly has the Shinra vice president did. In fact, the only thing that was stopping him from signing the contract was greed. He was hoping that, by holding out, Rufus might… sweeten the pot, so to speak.
Unfortunately for Mr. Brohmr, Rufus wasn’t one to be wasteful. He knew what the Shinra-held land was worth. He knew what Brohmr’s land was worth. The “pot” was as sweet as it was going to get, unless the man had the testicular fortitude to walk away from the table. Rufus was willing to bet that he didn’t. He’d already hinted at making that gamble once, and backed down almost immediately.
Truth be told, this was the part of business negotiations Rufus liked best. The waiting. The knowing that he had his opponent right where he wanted him and that victory was inevitable… whether the other party realized it or not. It was something he liked to savor, like a fine wine, and if Brohmr wanted to sit here for another hour, hoping make him blink, well… Rufus was perfectly content to enjoy the wait a little more. Not even the prospect of dinner with Petra was enough to tempt him away from it. At least, not just yet.
Luden snorted softly and shook his head.
“Alright, yeh smug bastard. Yeh win,” he chuckled, holding out his hand, “Where do I sign?”
Rufus smiled coolly and extended his own hand, holding out a pen and tapped the line at the bottom of the agreement with it. Luden obligingly scrawled his name in the designated spot. When he was done, Rufus did the same on the line below it. He picked up the contract, folding it neatly.
“A pleasure doing business with you, Luden,” he said, offering his hand a second time. The Mideelian snorted in laughter and shook it heartily.
“Hmph… and I thought yer father was a tough negotiator…” he mused, before smiling widely, “Well… I can’t say I’m displeased with the deal. That orchard’ll turn a nice wee profit fer me. Better than that shite spit o’ land ta the south ever did, ta be sure.”
“Rest assured, Shinra Company will put it to good use,” Rufus replied, tucking the signed contract into an envelope. “I’ll see to it that you get your copy of the agreement by the end of the day.”
“Aye, yeh do that,” Luden responded, “And in the mean time, would yeh care ta join me fer a drink or two? ‘Tis tradition, after all…”
Rufus stood and brushed a strand of hair out of his eyes, tucking it back behind one ear.
“I’m afraid I already have plans for the remainder of the day, actually,” he replied, casually, and Luden smirked.
“Partakin’ a wee bit o’ the local gals, are yeh?” he asked, teasingly.
“No,” Rufus deadpanned, standing up, “Good afternoon, Luden. It’s been a pleasure.” He motioned to Petra, who’d been standing watch by the door, and she quickly fell into step behind him as he exited.
“Tseng!”
The unexpected… greeting… was accompanied by a loud bang as the door to the Turk leader’s office was rather violently thrown open. It was only due to years of practice that the Wutaiian Turk managed not to jump half out of his skin at the sudden fright. It was a very close thing, however…
“Yes, sir? Something I can do for you?” he calmly replied, turning his gaze on the man now occupying most of the doorframe. Heidegger smirked and strode into the room. A much smaller figure accompanied him inside, somewhat more respectfully.
“This is Theo Martinez,” the department head said, gesturing towards the young man, and drawing Tseng’s attention to him instead of his superior.
He was quite young – perhaps eighteen or nineteen – with distinctly Costan features and a self-assured bearing. But what stood out the most to Tseng was his clothing. The senior Turk frowned slightly, and looked questioningly at his superior.
“May I ask why he appears to be wearing a Turk uniform, sir?” he inquired, suspicion blatant in his tone. He had a feeling he already knew the answer to that question, and he was not happy about it. Heidegger had tried once before, years ago, to assert his dominance and recruit a Turk without Veld’s approval. It had ultimately been shot down when Veld had gone over his head, directly to the President… but it seemed that, now that the Turks had a new commander, he’d decided to give it another go. Tseng felt his right eye twitch in irritation.
“Because… as you have failed to fill the position vacated by your former commander in a timely manner, I’ve decided to do it for you,” the executive decreed.
Tseng’s eye twitched again. Vacated? Veld had been murdered. He hadn’t simply left the Leviathan-be-damned company!
“I see…” he responded, biting down on the rather colorful response he wanted to make, though he found that he was unable to keep all of the ice out of his voice. The young man behind Heidegger visibly flinched.
He really didn’t need this right now. The team had only just finished clearing up the mess downstairs. In fact, Remy was still there, supervising while the lab was put back in order – and the specimens were put back in secure containment rather than their temporary cages.
It was no coincidence Heidegger had chosen now to spring this on him, either. The workday was nearly over. The President had almost certainly left for the weekend, as he often left a bit early on Fridays. Rufus was out of town on business. The Turk commander held little to no sway with the other Board members.
There was no one Tseng could take his grievances to until Monday at the very earliest, and by then the paperwork would have been, he was sure, pushed though, assuming it hadn’t been already… expedited at the request of a member of the Board of Directors.
Heidegger had planned this entirely too well. Even if Tseng did lodge a complaint, the boy was quite possibly already officially a Turk… at least on paper. And technically the son of a bitch had the authority to pull this sort of stunt – and after the last time, had probably cleared it with the Board first, as well, just to cover all of his bases.
Which begged the question… just who was this Theo Martinez, anyway? Tseng didn’t recall seeing his name on the list of candidates currently in recruitment. So, either he was very new to the program, or Heidegger had brought him in from an outside source. Tseng wasn’t thrilled about either idea.
Nor did he like having, literally, no information on this person who was suddenly being granted security clearance higher than the vast majority of company employees.
Heidegger was now grinning nastily at his senior-most Turk.
“I’ll just leave the two of you to get acquainted,” he said, before turning on his heel and leaving Tseng with his… newest Turk.
By the time the sun was beginning to set, Reno had settled into his little mountain bungalow quite comfortably. He felt kind of like mush at the moment. Between the massage and the sauna and the post-sauna shower thing that had blasted water at him from just about every angle, he honestly couldn’t even remember feeling so relaxed in his entire life. And it was only the first day! He had an entire week of this coming.
He couldn’t deny that he was enjoying being pampered. The staff at Healin had hardly let him lift a finger since his arrival. They brought his meals directly to him. They took care of his schedule for the day. They showed up to escort him to his “treatments”, as they called them. He barely had to think… and after weeks doing far too much of that lately, it was nice change of pace.
The redhead lazily lifted his head at the sound of a surprisingly unobtrusive chime from the direction of the door, and grinned as he got to his feet. Dinner was here.
~end chapter 4~
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