Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ The Second Life ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )

"I didn't like the looks of him..." Vincent spoke in a cold, blunt tone.

Cloud frowned, set his drink down on the table and looked around. "Who?" What was he talking about? There was no one in the little burger stand who looked suspicious.

"That man by the water." He shook his head. "He reminded me of someone..."

Cloud stared down, remembering the guy by the water. He did kind of look familiar. His eyes, they looked familiar. They seemed to glow faintly, almost like his own eyes glowed. Maybe he was a member of SOLDIER, since the only people whose eyes glowed with Mako, like that man's did, were or had been members of SOLDIER. SOLDIER... they killed her... Cloud sighed softly and shook his head. Vincent stared at him, silent, umoving. Cloud looked to the ground. "I don't think it's anything to worry about, I mean..." He shook his head, wishing Vincent would say something, anything so he could stop thinking. Thinking always led back to Tifa, to Aeris. He put his arms on the table and rested his head on them, closing his eyes and drew in a deep breath.

Footsteps tapped their way over to the table, but Cloud didn't look. He heard Vincent shift a little in his seat, but it didn't alert him much. He didn't really care, why should he care? There was nothing to really care about anymore. The ones he loved... they were gone, his world was gone...

Vincent stood up and walked over to the person. There was a breif conversastion, and both of them walked closer to the table. Cloud looked up at them, noticing the other person was Cid. Cid. even though he was getting older, was a very big part of their group, AVALANCHE. He would check out things that might be a sign of a new task, talk to people, give their group a reputation. Cid looked down to Cloud, getting ready to bring up the subject that he and Vincent were discussing.

"Well, we have a job offer... if you want to take it up. Uh... Some person, an activist against Shin-Ra, needs our help. He said to meet him in Wutai tomorrow to discuss "buisness"," He paused for a moment, looking from Cloud to Vincent, then back to Cloud. "You up to it?"

Cloud shrugged. "Yeah, sure, why not? It's not like there's anything better to do."

Yuffie seemed to be the only one glad to be in Wutai. But then, nearly everyone enjoyed a visit to their hometown. Barret and Cid were talking to each other while playing cards at an outside table. Red XII, or Nanaki, was laying down in the shade that a building close by provided. Now and then his ears would perk up if he heard anything interesting going on, or he would look up to Vincent, who was right next to him, to start a short but meaningful conversastion. Cloud was talking to the anti Shin-Ra activist about the "buisness" and the job that he had to offer them.

"Shin-Ra has found a way to bring back people from the dead..." He said in a soft whisper. "And they planned on brining back their top SOLDIER so they could get things back to order."

Cloud frowned. "Top SOLDIER?" He must've ment Sephiroth... Didn't he see Sephiroth, at the church? No, he only dreamed he was at the church and saw him... Or at least it felt like a dream.

"Yup," the guy said with a nod. "And the former head scientist, Hojo"

Cloud clenched his fists. "Sephiroth... and Hojo?!"

The guy only nodded, seeing the anger in Cloud's eyes. He hoped that Cloud would take up this job, because his group of activists couldn't do it. They just weren't strong enough.

"So what do you need us to do?"

The man leaned over on the table, and whispered, "I need you to stop them... If both of those men get brought back and are under Shin-Ra's control... History will most likely repeat itself."

Cloud nodded, remembering what happened before. "Do you know where Shin-Ra's hiding?"

The man sat up straight again, going into deep consentration. "I think they might be hiding in Junon... Or in the Midgar area. Or even both."

"We'll see what we can do..." And with that, Cloud stood up called to the group together and they left Wutai. A price didn't matter for this task... Hojo and Sephiroth were going to be alive again, and god knows who else along with them...