Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Where the lost ones go ❯ The countdown begins... ( Chapter 5 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Sulphurya 
You always harass your nurses?
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Suspense / Romance / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 05.11.2005 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.5K | Visits: 291 | Status: Completed
You always harass your nurses?
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Suspense / Romance / Hentai | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 05.11.2005 | Pages: 3 | Words: 5.5K | Visits: 291 | Status: Completed
5. The Countdown begins...
They heard the shooting a long way before they were close to the airship, but Cid instantly recognized the sound of the Highwind's cannons. Ice cold fear struck the pilot and he froze mid-step. "That's..." Over the tree tops, they could see the black smoke rising towards the sky. The pilot drew a sharp breath, "Shera!"
Rufus frowned, "someone's attacking the airship..."
"What? Why?" Tifa gazed horrified from one to the other, "who would want to hurt Shera?"
"Not Shera," Cid declared hoarsely, "they think I'm there..." Then the pilot set off in a wild dash towards the battle.
Sephiroth pulled out the Masamune, glanced over at Aeris, "stay with the others." And before she could reply, he ran after Cid. "Dammit, Highwind! You're probably running straight into a trap! It's what they want you to do!"
He got no reply, not that he expected one, but was surprised at the speed Cid was keeping. For a chain-smoking pilot, he certainly moved damn fast! The former general blinked surprised as Cid kicked off from the ground and climbed a mountain hill in three leaps. "Holy crap... Maybe it's the people from the work-out center in Wall Market who's out to get him out of jealousy that they can never get legs like that?"
Luckily, Sephiroth was capable of reaching the top of that same hill in four leaps, but he made a mental note to train a little after this ordeal so he would never be outdone in anything by Cid Highwind again.
The sound of the fighting got closer, and Sephiroth increased his own speed a little to catch up before the idiot ran in the middle of the line of fire.
Cid came to a scudding halt as he bolted out of the forrest and the Highwind was right in front of him.
Sephiroth halted beside him as well, slowly raising his gaze to the sight that met them.
The huge monster looked like someone had been told about Diamond WEAPON and tried to make a lookalike with spare parts of other monsters, the only thing that was keeping it together was the monster's own ignorance to being an impossibility. It was reaching for the airship, but the cannons were driving it back, leaving bleeding gashes that didn't seem to affect it at all. All it was focused on was to destroy the Highwind, and find what it was searching for.
The airship was slightly damaged from what obviously had been several close encounters with the fiend, at least two cannons out of order, and Cid knew the remaining ones might overheat at any moment.
If the cannons broke down, then the airship was helpless.
A hand landed on his shoulder as Cid took a step forward, and the pilot glared over at Sephiroth.
"Don't even think about it," the silver haired man drawled, tightening his grip almost painfully.
Cid tried to shake his hand off in vain, "let me go, Sephiroth, or I swear I'll kill you!"
Sephiroth didn't budge an inch, "you go near that ship and that thing will kill you. I'm not going to let that happen." It was as easy as that.
The blonde man cast a nervous glance back at the sizzling cannons, before focusing on Sephiroth again, "if I don't do anything, those cannons will overheat and break down. The ship will be a sitting duck! She wont stand a chance against that monster, and everyone inside will die! I have to do something!"
Gazing thoughtfully at the weapons, Sephiroth could see the metal almost glowing red, "I'll take out the monster. You stay here."
Cid blinked startled as Sephiroth released him, absently cutting the air with the Masamune, "you can't take down that thing on your own! Are you crazy?! I mean, I know you're crazy, just didn't know you were suicidal as well!"
"Cid Highwind?" Sephiroth turned to face the pilot.
Cid straightened, "yeah?"
"Stay, boy!" Sephiroth's fist connected with Cid's jaw, and the blonde man was sent flying to crash to the ground. A small circle of chocobo's could almost be seen circling merrily around his head. Smirking satisfied, the former general sauntered out to meet his new enemy. "Hey there, ugly! Over here!"
"I'm going to get you for that one, Sephiroth!" Cid grumbled as hands were helping him to sit up.
"Are you ok?" Aeris' face swam into focus in front of him. The others had obviously caught up.
The pilot gave an acid smile, "wonderful! I always wanted to be your psychotic boyfriend's punching bag!"
Then a familiar and thundering shot rang through the air and Cid started to his senses. The Highwind! Was she still fighting?!
Rufus quickly reached out and supported him as Cid got up and nearly lost balance, "he knocked you out, huh?"
"Caught me off guard," the blonde man declared in a sour tone.
The Highwind's cannons sounded again, and the monster lashed out another attack towards Sephiroth as the former general once again let the Masamune cut deeply into the grey flesh.
"We have to do something!" Aeris exclaimed, seeing how the silver haired man barely avoided the attack.
Cid bent down and picked up the Venus Gospel from where he'd dropped it at Sephiroth's sneak attack, "that's what I was trying to do!"
An amused snort was hear, and Cid turned to glare at Rufus.
"You're 'both' idiots," Rufus smirked, flicking back a lock of fiery hair.
"Cid, you better stay here," Vincent declared silently, checking the Death Penalty.
The pilot started, staring in disbelief at him, "what? Why?" It was him the monsters were after. It was his airship. His Shera. His trouble!
Placing a calming hand on his shoulder, Tifa met his eyes softly, "If you enter that field, the monster will focus all it's attacks on you, and we can handle it better without having to cover you."
Cid huffed agitated, "I don't need anyone covering me!"
"Don't be an even bigger idiot!" Rufus exclaimed angrily, "just stay here, keep your head down and let us handle it!"
Aeris placed her hand on Cid's other shoulder, "listen to your friends, Cid. We just want to help you."
Sighing, Cid's shoulders slumped under the gentle touches of Tifa and Aeris. "Fine."
Vincent glanced over at Aeris, "you should stay here as well."
Feeling the sting of helplessness again, Aeris could only give a sad nod. As much as she wanted to help, she knew she was no hand to hand fighter, and she had no weapon. Even her healing powers were diminished since the ancients left her.
Tifa was about to follow the former Turk as he trotted towards the battle when Rufus took a hold of her arm and pulled her close.
"If I ordered you to stay here, would you?" Rufus asked silently, his hand traveling up to take a gentle hold of her chin.
Tifa smiled, "not a chance, Mr ShinRa."
Stealing a soft kiss, Rufus mumbled against her lips, "just be careful, ok? I'm not loosing you ever again!"
Tifa met his lips gently, "just make sure you are careful as well, Rufus. I did not come back to be alone. Ok?"
Then the two ran over to join the battle, while Cid realised the Highwind had fallen silent. Not a good sign.
Watching as the others launched their attacks against the huge monster, Cid clutched the Venus Gospel hard. He was aching to something. Anything! He could fight, he'd proven that! So what if the monster paid a little more attention to him? He could handle himself! It was not right that the others were fighting his fights! Glancing over, he could see Aeris pale with worry and knew he was the reason for it. If it hadn't been for his presence, then there wouldn't have been any fighting. The pilot focused on the battle again, while his mind was still scrambling to understand why someone would go to so much trouble just to kill him. It didn't make any sense! Hell, both Rufus and Sephiroth had countless more enemies than him, but did anybody send monsters after them? No!
Then the pilot saw the electricity crackling around two of the Highwind's cannons, and Cid suddenly felt ice cold.
Fired once more they would explode, and the fuel tank was right beneath them!
Cid ran.
The monster just kept comming! It was so damn big, and faster than the previous mutant monsters he'd been up against.
The former general was actually considering retreat as he was not fighting alone anymore. The four of them could possibly buy the Highwind enough time to take off, and then scramble to safety themselves. Chances for that plan to succeed were tiny, but still better than defeating this thing!
That was when the monster did an unexpected move, it's clawed paw shooting through the air while aiming for the figure running towards the airship.
Sephiroth started violently as he realised that it was in fact Cid, and didn't think as he sprinted towards the pilot.
The earth shook as the claws rammed into it, creating a crater at the violent impact, and Sephiroth heard Cid's surprised intake of breath as the silver haired man ran straight into him, shoving him harshly into safety.
For the second time that day, Cid crashed to the ground and the blonde man scrambled into a sitting position to stare wide eyed up at Sephiroth.
"Didn't I tell you to stay put, you moron!" Sephiroth screamed angrily, then realised Cid wasn't looking at him at all. The pilot was staring at something behind him.
Spinning around, Sephiroth managed to avoid the first lash of claws somewhat, but it did hit his arm and sent the Masamune careening from him. Pain was raging up his arm, but Sephiroth had barely time to register it before the claws came at him again, and this time he was too slow.
Cid started as the blood came sailing through the air, hitting his face, while he numbly watched Sephiroth being thrown through the air to slam against the Highwind.
He heard someone scream. Aeris. Heard someone call out Sephiroth's name. Rufus. Hear someone call out his own name. Tifa.
But all Cid Highwind could see was the monster looming over his, claws raised to strike.
Just let them get Shera to safety, was Cid's only thought as his brain shut down. So this what it was like to be scared out of your mind. He didn't like the feeling.
My friends will avenge me, you ugly shit! The pilot thought desperately, forcing himself not to tremble.
Then Rufus stepped between him and the monster, his shotgun raised. "Tifa! Get Sephiroth!"
The brunette nodded and ran over to the silver haired man slumped on the ground, a trail of blood down from where he'd hit the airship.
"Nite nite, asshole," Rufus smirked, firing off two rapid shots and the monster howled insanely, tossing it's head up in agony from the bullets ramming into it's eyes.
The fiery haired man then quickly crouched down beside Cid and grabbed his arm to wrap in over his neck, "come on, Cid! Move!"
Stumbling to his feet, Cid was still staring at the monster, "but... t-that thing..."
"It's under control," Rufus declared, pulling the dazed pilot with him over to where Tifa was kneeling by Sephiroth, Aeris by their side.
Cid was about to scream what the hell Rufus meant, when he saw the figure appearing behind the blinded monster.
Demonic wings were moving lazily, arms haughtily crossed, as Chaos charged it's powers.
Vincent had realised the secret, and the demon was their only hope at that moment.
Throwing out it's arms, Chaos gathered it's strength, and fired of the deadly attack known as Satan Slam. The compact energy as sharp as any blade, it cut straight through the thick skin and easily severed the head of the monster.
Swaying, the monster seemed to hesitate, then fell over with a thundering crash before it lay completely silent.
Several seconds passed.
Then a silent groan caught Cid's attention and he gazed quickly over to see Sephiroth sitting up, supported by Aeris and Tifa, while clutching his bleeding stomach. Swallowing hard, the blonde man walked over to stand in front of him, "I'm sorry..."
Sephiroth slowly and painfully got up on his feet, glaring furiously at Cid. "Didn't I tell you to stay there? Didn't I?! Haven't I told you these things are out to get you, and you alone?! What the hell were you thinking, running straight into the battle?!"
"The cannons were over heating! They would have exploded!" Cid defended himself angrily, the sight of Sephiroth's injuries making him sick with guilt. "I never asked you to protect my ass anyway!"
Sephiroth fought the urge to get the Masamune and kill the blonde himself. "Do you want to die then? Is that it?!"
Finally turning his eyes away from Sephiroth's, Cid slowly shook his head. "No..."
Aeris quickly supported Sephiroth as he swayed, "calm down, Sephiroth. Cid won't do something like this again. Let's just heal those wounds of yours first, then you can shout all you want. Ok?"
Cid turned and gave a weak wave to the Highwind's cheering crew hanging over the railing, just longing to hide in his cabin and curl up in Shera's lap for hours.
Shortly after, they were gathered on deck and Shera came bolting out to crash into the pilot's waiting arms. For once, Cid did not scold her, but held her close for his own sake as much as hers.
Aeris had draped Sephiroth's arm around her shoulders and the former general was leaning slightly on her. His wounds were closed thanks to the Restore materia, but it still hurt like hell and his body had yet to realise it wouldn't die. "So now what?" Sephiroth glanced from one to the other, "where to from here?"
"I suggest we return to Midgar," Rufus said silently, feeling everyone turning to look at him. "Think about it, we have no idea who is behind these attacks and our only chance to find out would be through my network, and I need to return to Midgar to do that."
Cid merely shrugged, feeling he'd disobeyed enough for one day.
Aeris drew a slow breath, hesitating to meet Rufus' blue eyes, "but... they attacked Midgar as well. They almost succeeded, remember?"
Flinching, Rufus unknowingly took Tifa's hand and found strength in her gentle squeeze of his hand in response. "I know that. I admit that this last year has been without any incidents so my security was lacking when the attack finally came. It has been taken care off. Turks are now ready to face any intruder foolish enough to try!"
"Good enough for me," Sephiroth mumbled, and Aeris finally nodded as well.
Vincent took a step towards them from his usual distance, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to meet you in Midgar in a couple of days..."
Blinking confused, Tifa reached out a hand like offering to apologize for whatever had upset the former Turk enough to make him leave. "But, Vincent, why?"
A wind played gently with his crimson cloak as Vincent backed up to the railing, "I have some unfinished business to deal with. I apologize, but this cannot wait. I will find you. Good luck."
And before anyone could demand a closer explanation, Vincent leaped over the railing and vanished.
There was a short silence, before Rufus cleared his throat, "yes, well, that was fun. Now, we've decided on Midgar?"
No objections were raised and the fiery haired man turned towards Cid, "then let's head back, mr Pilot!"
Cid gave a tired nod, then disappeared inside with a pale Shera trying to make him feel better with gentle words.
Rufus lifted a hand, motioning Tifa closer with a beckoning index finger, and the brunette obeyed with a smirk. The danger finally over for now, the young man sighed satisfied at the feeling when he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. He was never letting go again.
Aeris tilted her head and smiled softly at the sight. It was so romantic. She glanced up at Sephiroth, letting him see the tender look in her eyes. Didn't he find it beautiful? The love was so visible and not even a deep coma could keep the two apart. Aeris blinked confused as she merely saw Sephiroth raise a dry eyebrow, then turned back to find the pair expressing their affection in a serious lip-lock. Aeris turned beet-red.
Tifa had a hand placed against Rufus' chest, meaning to push him away and scold him for embarrassing her in public by taking the kiss so far, but it was so hard not to react to him. The hunger in his kiss, the closeness of his body and the intoxicating scent that was Rufus ShinRa.
"For crying out loud!" Sephiroth exclaimed, yanking the stuttering Aeris with him as he stalked inside. Aeris would have thrown him head first back into the Lifestream if he'd tried to pull a stunt like that! The former general didn't stop until they were safely inside their cabin and he shut the door loudly.
Aeris frowned at the sight of his blood soaked coat and walked over with a worried sigh, "you surely look a fine mess, mr great warrior..."
Biting back a pained groan as Aeris helped him remove his coat, Sephiroth let her undo his armour as well and sat obediently down on the bed. "Yeah, well, it's all that damn Cid Highwind's fault!"
Walking over to get a washcloth and soak it in water, Aeris glanced back at him, "it's not easy for him. He's just as proud as you are, you know!"
Grumbling, Sephiroth reached out and fumbled for a pack of gum on the night table, shoving a piece into his mouth. "Bah! I'm not like that!"
Aeris smiled softly as she returned, "actually... you are. Your pride is your greatest weakness, Sephiroth." She took in the sight of the silver haired warrior sitting on the bed, bared from the waist up, watching her grumpily while chewing his gum. Aeris was weakly aware of her hands trembling as she sat down beside him and reached out the cloth to wipe away the blood from the smooth skin.
Sephiroth sighed and gazed up at the ceiling, "when I saw him come running, I seriously thought the guy had a death wish, you know?" He glanced briefly at Aeris, who nodded absently, and then returned to stare at the ceiling. "The idiot. Just came running, without thinking about it could get him killed."
Giving a faint smile, Aeris watched as the cloth slid over the warm skin, moving along rippling muscles as Sephiroth spoke and breathed. "He wanted to protect Shera and his crew. You fought against Jenova for the same reason."
Sephiroth cut a face, "I guess..." Then he closed his eyes while enjoying the feeling of the warm cloth caressing away the blood. "But if he does a stupid stunt like that again, I'm going to kill him myself!"
Aeris nodded absently again, not really listening. She was realising that she would never cease to be amazed over the wonder that was Sephiroth's body. The warm skin over the hard muscles, the way they would dance under her hands. The strength stored inside, that could so easily hurt her, but never did.
Sephiroth kept talking and Aeris found herself free to keep studying him, keep wondering at how he managed to look so physically strong yet slender at the same time. Everyone seemed to think that all Aeris cared about was talking to the planet and picking flowers, but anyone with a pulse could not keep from a little innocent admiring when they had a half-naked Sephiroth on their bed. And with her pure image, Aeris was gleefully free to watch to her hearts content with the luxury of moving a wet cloth over the lovely sight.
Her silver haired companion didn't seem to notice that his whining was wasted on an absent minded Aeris, but rather enjoyed the attention she was giving him. This was how he liked it; just the two of them.
However, his voice quickly went quiet and Sephiroth flinched as she had run the washcloth a little too carelessly.
Blinking surprised under his glare, Aeris thought for a moment he'd caught her, but then her eyes wandered over to where she'd just washed and Aeris smiled sheepishly. That's right... Too wrapped up in her actions, she'd forgotten one thing about Sephiroth...
Ticklish.
"Sorry," she tried to keep the giggle out of her voice in vain. No touching his sensitive sides.
Eyeing her suspiciously, Sephiroth let her continue removing the final specks of blood on his chest. She'd started a little too guiltily. Was she planning something? Ever since she'd found out about his weakness, Aeris had only been too happy to use it against him! Sephiroth blew a bubble and popped it thoughtfully, his eyes still locked on Aeris. She certainly looked like she was enjoying herself, and suddenly Sephiroth realised that the comforting touch she was applying was lingering on the boarder of teasing caresses. Sephiroth forgot to chew.
"Having fun?" Sephiroth's smooth voice snapped Aeris out of her daydreams, and she quickly gazed guiltily up at him. By the look of his sparkling eyes and teasing smirk, Aeris knew he'd caught her ogling him.
Aeris turned beet-red and rushed over to the sink, wringing the blood stained cloth under the running water. "I t-think the blood is all g-gone now..."
She gasped softly as she felt his arms slide around her waist from behind her while his lips travelled up her neck. She hadn't even heard him move! Mindlessly tilting her head to grant him access, Aeris leaned back against him. "You always harass your nurses?"
Sephiroth chuckled against her skin, "only the ones who pretend to be so innocent, only to put ideas into a poor man's head with looks far from innocent."
Squirming embarrassed, Aeris swatted his left hand on her hip, "be nice or I wont show you what I was planning while sending you those 'looks'!"
Feeling a jolt shoot down his spine at the bait, Sephiroth knew stronger men than him had buckled under that kind of pressure. "Whatever the lady wishes," he declared silkily, for once very comfortable about letting someone else have the upper hand.
Vincent entered the house in Wutai while it was barely dusk, and he sighed a little relieved at the familiar smells. The concept of a house and a daughter waiting for him was still a little to strange for him to accept it completely, but there was a spark of satisfaction to find it hadn't been a dream. He could even hear Rain, the mother of his child, humming softly from one of the rooms. She always hummed while working. The dark haired woman who he'd only known for a little over a year, but knew him better than anyone else by now. Sometimes he wondered if she knew him better than himself. And other times he found himself wondering why she still stayed with him. Rain was an open and cheerful person. Vincent was not. Maybe she knew it would have destroyed the shell of a man he was if she'd taken their daughter and left?
"Vincent?" Rain was standing out in the hall way now, looking surprised at him.
Vincent frowned at the warm flicker of affection inside him at the sight of her. He didn't like that she made him feel. She almost made him forget that he was a monster.
Smiling warmly, Rain walked over to place a light kiss on his lips, "you're home?" The simple act made the tension leave him, the cloak sinking slightly as his shoulders lowered from their defensive position.
"I had business in Wutai," Vincent explained simply, "and I wanted your advice."
Rain blinked surprised, "my advice?" What on earth could he need her advice for? Motioning him to follow her into the kitchen, Rain absently put on some tea water. "I'll try to help if I can, Vincent. What is the problem?"
Walking over to gaze out the window, Vincent sighed silently. "Sephiroth."
Rain spun around to face him, "he's back?!"
"It would appear that nor he or Aeris was killed a year ago, but have lived peacefully in a small town in the icelands up north," Vincent explained absently. "He's no longer a threat to us. The threat is an unknown enemy this time, and Sephiroth is our ally now."
Not looking completely convinced, Rain sank down to sit by the table. "What about Sephiroth then?"
There was a short silence, then Vincent turned to look at her with an unreadable look on his pale face, "should I tell him that his mother is in fact alive?"
Lucrecia. A name Rain wanted to hate, but could only pity. A year ago, the woman had manipulated Chaos into taking over Vincent and kidnapping Rain to her cave behind the waterfalls. The once so brilliant scientist wanted the child growing inside Rain, hoping to make it into the child she'd lost. The child she'd called Sephiroth.
"I can understand why you hesitate," Rain admitted silently. "If Sephiroth is, like you claim, on our side now, Lucrecia might do more damage than good. The Jenova cells has done much harm to her, both physically and mentally. You said so yourself, that Lucrecia is not the one you knew."
"That be as it may," Vincent shifted uneasily, "she is still his mother. Doesn't he have the right to know?"
Rain got up and walked over to place a gentle hand on his shoulder, "I guess it depends on how much damage she can do compared to what good it will do. Just don't let your feelings for Lucrecia cloud up your judgement..."
Turning his face away, Vincent gave a slight nod. Her words stung him, but he knew they were true. Painfully true. That was why he sought her advice. Rain cared for him, maybe even loved him, but she always spoke the truth. Unlike everybody else, his darkness did not frighten her. A gentle tug on his human arm brought him back to reality, and Rain tried a smile.
"You have a mission here in Wutai?" She asked, walking over as the tea water began to boil.
Vincent gazed out the window again, seeing the temple in the distance. "Yes... I never used to believe in fairy tales, but... it's amazing what you can do if you only want it strong enough, no?"
Rain gave a faint smile, wondering if her will was strong enough to make her wish come true some time. "Are you leaving this evening, or are you staying until morning?"
"I have to leave tonight, I'm afraid," Vincent declared silently, "but I would very much like to see Dawn."
After all, he didn't know when, or even if, he would ever see his daughter again.
The air was almost unbearably warm as Cid stood out on deck on the Highwind, watching Midgar approach in the distance. He was slightly surprised that his head didn't ache from all the thinking he'd done! His brain hadn't been pushed to these limits in years! Yet the pilot could not think of a single person who would go to such extremes to kill him! It was like some crazy dream! Who would wanna bother killing Cid Highwind? What was there to gain? Nothing! It didn't make any sense!
And for the first time in his life, Cid was afraid.
Whoever it was, it didn't look like they were going to give up any time soon, and the monsters would just keep comming! And despite his friends silly promise to protect him, the thought of them getting killed by a monster comming after him was almost worse than the thought of the monster succeeding in killing him. Someone was out to kill him and he was putting everyone around him in danger. Cid considered lighting up a cigarette, but decided against it. It was just too damn hot!
Then the door opened and Cid tensed as he prepared to yell for Shera to get her ass back inside, instead Rufus sauntered up to lean on the railing on his left side and Sephiroth halted on his right side. The blonde eyed them suspiciously in turn.
"You ok?" Rufus asked, peering down at the ground over the railing.
Cid sighed and returned to stare at Midgar, "I guess..." They were his allies, no need to waste energy arguing with them.
"Haven't you wondered how the monsters were able to find you?" Sephiroth gazed sideways at the pilot, seeing the blue eyes widen with worry.
Cid stared nervously from one to the other, "I've been so busy tryin' to figure out 'who' is out t' get me, and I completely forgot 'how'!" He rubbed his neck thoughtfully, then started. "Finding us at our camp on our way to the ancient city... That's not just bad luck! They knew I was there! But... then why attack Highwind? Unless... the monster thought I was there, meaning it did not communicate with it's multi-headed snake buddy. My scent! They gotta be following that!" Cid started even worse, "Rocket Town! That's the first place they'll go! It doesn't matter that I left, the monsters will destroy that town! We gotta warn them!"
Sephiroth shook his head, "don't bother with the town. Hold out your arm."
Cid took a step back, glancing over at the passive Rufus, before glaring at Sephiroth, "the fuck do you mean that I shouldn't bother?!"
Loosing his temper, the silver haired man stalked over and yanked out Cid's arm, ignoring the yelp, and removed a materia from the 4-slot-armour. "This," Sephiroth held up the summon Bahamut materia, "is how they found you. And will keep finding you if you don't get rid of it!"
Cid shook his head confused, "my materia? But... how?"
Rufus straightened and held out a second materia, the summon Knights of the Round materia he had removed from one of Cid's weapons lying in his cabin, "take a closer look..."
Leaning closer, Cid saw the speck of blackness in the crimson red, "what... is that?"
Sephiroth shook his head, "I don't know. They're... infected somehow... They act like a beacon to the monsters, and I wouldn't recommend trying to use the summons."
"The summons would turn on us?" Cid asked nervously, staring at the summon Knights of the Round materia Rufus was casually tossing and catching mid-air.
Sephiroth cut a face, "most likely. I suggest we don't find out."
Then Cid's PHS rang, and the pilot blinked confused before pulling up the device to see who was trying to contact him. His blue eyes widened in surprise and he quickly answered it. "Hey, blockhead! Where the hell are you?!"
There was a short silence as the person answered, and suddenly Cid was hanging over the railing while grinning, "yeah, I see you!"
Sephiroth and Rufus glanced over the railing as well, seeing a vehicle moving at high speed below them heading for Midgar as well.
Cid straightened and suddenly looked a lot more cheerful, "gotta tell the pilot to land! We're picking up a passenger!"
Rufus sent Sephiroth a quick glance before gazing suspiciously at Cid, "who?"
"It's Cloud!" Cid declared cheerfully, and darted inside.
Rufus only watched as Sephiroth slowly turned to clutch the railing, hard, and the former general's eyes were dangerously narrow.
"So the time has come, Cloud..." The silver haired man whispered, the railing creaking with complaint as he tightened his grip. "We meet again."
AN
Once again there pops up an unintended cliffhanger, but will have the next chapter up shortly, so just stay tuned!Yes, the great showdown is finally here, and the truth will be revealed to Cloud!
Converting /tmp/phpli5Ghf to /dev/stdout
They heard the shooting a long way before they were close to the airship, but Cid instantly recognized the sound of the Highwind's cannons. Ice cold fear struck the pilot and he froze mid-step. "That's..." Over the tree tops, they could see the black smoke rising towards the sky. The pilot drew a sharp breath, "Shera!"
Rufus frowned, "someone's attacking the airship..."
"What? Why?" Tifa gazed horrified from one to the other, "who would want to hurt Shera?"
"Not Shera," Cid declared hoarsely, "they think I'm there..." Then the pilot set off in a wild dash towards the battle.
Sephiroth pulled out the Masamune, glanced over at Aeris, "stay with the others." And before she could reply, he ran after Cid. "Dammit, Highwind! You're probably running straight into a trap! It's what they want you to do!"
He got no reply, not that he expected one, but was surprised at the speed Cid was keeping. For a chain-smoking pilot, he certainly moved damn fast! The former general blinked surprised as Cid kicked off from the ground and climbed a mountain hill in three leaps. "Holy crap... Maybe it's the people from the work-out center in Wall Market who's out to get him out of jealousy that they can never get legs like that?"
Luckily, Sephiroth was capable of reaching the top of that same hill in four leaps, but he made a mental note to train a little after this ordeal so he would never be outdone in anything by Cid Highwind again.
The sound of the fighting got closer, and Sephiroth increased his own speed a little to catch up before the idiot ran in the middle of the line of fire.
Cid came to a scudding halt as he bolted out of the forrest and the Highwind was right in front of him.
Sephiroth halted beside him as well, slowly raising his gaze to the sight that met them.
The huge monster looked like someone had been told about Diamond WEAPON and tried to make a lookalike with spare parts of other monsters, the only thing that was keeping it together was the monster's own ignorance to being an impossibility. It was reaching for the airship, but the cannons were driving it back, leaving bleeding gashes that didn't seem to affect it at all. All it was focused on was to destroy the Highwind, and find what it was searching for.
The airship was slightly damaged from what obviously had been several close encounters with the fiend, at least two cannons out of order, and Cid knew the remaining ones might overheat at any moment.
If the cannons broke down, then the airship was helpless.
A hand landed on his shoulder as Cid took a step forward, and the pilot glared over at Sephiroth.
"Don't even think about it," the silver haired man drawled, tightening his grip almost painfully.
Cid tried to shake his hand off in vain, "let me go, Sephiroth, or I swear I'll kill you!"
Sephiroth didn't budge an inch, "you go near that ship and that thing will kill you. I'm not going to let that happen." It was as easy as that.
The blonde man cast a nervous glance back at the sizzling cannons, before focusing on Sephiroth again, "if I don't do anything, those cannons will overheat and break down. The ship will be a sitting duck! She wont stand a chance against that monster, and everyone inside will die! I have to do something!"
Gazing thoughtfully at the weapons, Sephiroth could see the metal almost glowing red, "I'll take out the monster. You stay here."
Cid blinked startled as Sephiroth released him, absently cutting the air with the Masamune, "you can't take down that thing on your own! Are you crazy?! I mean, I know you're crazy, just didn't know you were suicidal as well!"
"Cid Highwind?" Sephiroth turned to face the pilot.
Cid straightened, "yeah?"
"Stay, boy!" Sephiroth's fist connected with Cid's jaw, and the blonde man was sent flying to crash to the ground. A small circle of chocobo's could almost be seen circling merrily around his head. Smirking satisfied, the former general sauntered out to meet his new enemy. "Hey there, ugly! Over here!"
"I'm going to get you for that one, Sephiroth!" Cid grumbled as hands were helping him to sit up.
"Are you ok?" Aeris' face swam into focus in front of him. The others had obviously caught up.
The pilot gave an acid smile, "wonderful! I always wanted to be your psychotic boyfriend's punching bag!"
Then a familiar and thundering shot rang through the air and Cid started to his senses. The Highwind! Was she still fighting?!
Rufus quickly reached out and supported him as Cid got up and nearly lost balance, "he knocked you out, huh?"
"Caught me off guard," the blonde man declared in a sour tone.
The Highwind's cannons sounded again, and the monster lashed out another attack towards Sephiroth as the former general once again let the Masamune cut deeply into the grey flesh.
"We have to do something!" Aeris exclaimed, seeing how the silver haired man barely avoided the attack.
Cid bent down and picked up the Venus Gospel from where he'd dropped it at Sephiroth's sneak attack, "that's what I was trying to do!"
An amused snort was hear, and Cid turned to glare at Rufus.
"You're 'both' idiots," Rufus smirked, flicking back a lock of fiery hair.
"Cid, you better stay here," Vincent declared silently, checking the Death Penalty.
The pilot started, staring in disbelief at him, "what? Why?" It was him the monsters were after. It was his airship. His Shera. His trouble!
Placing a calming hand on his shoulder, Tifa met his eyes softly, "If you enter that field, the monster will focus all it's attacks on you, and we can handle it better without having to cover you."
Cid huffed agitated, "I don't need anyone covering me!"
"Don't be an even bigger idiot!" Rufus exclaimed angrily, "just stay here, keep your head down and let us handle it!"
Aeris placed her hand on Cid's other shoulder, "listen to your friends, Cid. We just want to help you."
Sighing, Cid's shoulders slumped under the gentle touches of Tifa and Aeris. "Fine."
Vincent glanced over at Aeris, "you should stay here as well."
Feeling the sting of helplessness again, Aeris could only give a sad nod. As much as she wanted to help, she knew she was no hand to hand fighter, and she had no weapon. Even her healing powers were diminished since the ancients left her.
Tifa was about to follow the former Turk as he trotted towards the battle when Rufus took a hold of her arm and pulled her close.
"If I ordered you to stay here, would you?" Rufus asked silently, his hand traveling up to take a gentle hold of her chin.
Tifa smiled, "not a chance, Mr ShinRa."
Stealing a soft kiss, Rufus mumbled against her lips, "just be careful, ok? I'm not loosing you ever again!"
Tifa met his lips gently, "just make sure you are careful as well, Rufus. I did not come back to be alone. Ok?"
Then the two ran over to join the battle, while Cid realised the Highwind had fallen silent. Not a good sign.
Watching as the others launched their attacks against the huge monster, Cid clutched the Venus Gospel hard. He was aching to something. Anything! He could fight, he'd proven that! So what if the monster paid a little more attention to him? He could handle himself! It was not right that the others were fighting his fights! Glancing over, he could see Aeris pale with worry and knew he was the reason for it. If it hadn't been for his presence, then there wouldn't have been any fighting. The pilot focused on the battle again, while his mind was still scrambling to understand why someone would go to so much trouble just to kill him. It didn't make any sense! Hell, both Rufus and Sephiroth had countless more enemies than him, but did anybody send monsters after them? No!
Then the pilot saw the electricity crackling around two of the Highwind's cannons, and Cid suddenly felt ice cold.
Fired once more they would explode, and the fuel tank was right beneath them!
Cid ran.
The monster just kept comming! It was so damn big, and faster than the previous mutant monsters he'd been up against.
The former general was actually considering retreat as he was not fighting alone anymore. The four of them could possibly buy the Highwind enough time to take off, and then scramble to safety themselves. Chances for that plan to succeed were tiny, but still better than defeating this thing!
That was when the monster did an unexpected move, it's clawed paw shooting through the air while aiming for the figure running towards the airship.
Sephiroth started violently as he realised that it was in fact Cid, and didn't think as he sprinted towards the pilot.
The earth shook as the claws rammed into it, creating a crater at the violent impact, and Sephiroth heard Cid's surprised intake of breath as the silver haired man ran straight into him, shoving him harshly into safety.
For the second time that day, Cid crashed to the ground and the blonde man scrambled into a sitting position to stare wide eyed up at Sephiroth.
"Didn't I tell you to stay put, you moron!" Sephiroth screamed angrily, then realised Cid wasn't looking at him at all. The pilot was staring at something behind him.
Spinning around, Sephiroth managed to avoid the first lash of claws somewhat, but it did hit his arm and sent the Masamune careening from him. Pain was raging up his arm, but Sephiroth had barely time to register it before the claws came at him again, and this time he was too slow.
Cid started as the blood came sailing through the air, hitting his face, while he numbly watched Sephiroth being thrown through the air to slam against the Highwind.
He heard someone scream. Aeris. Heard someone call out Sephiroth's name. Rufus. Hear someone call out his own name. Tifa.
But all Cid Highwind could see was the monster looming over his, claws raised to strike.
Just let them get Shera to safety, was Cid's only thought as his brain shut down. So this what it was like to be scared out of your mind. He didn't like the feeling.
My friends will avenge me, you ugly shit! The pilot thought desperately, forcing himself not to tremble.
Then Rufus stepped between him and the monster, his shotgun raised. "Tifa! Get Sephiroth!"
The brunette nodded and ran over to the silver haired man slumped on the ground, a trail of blood down from where he'd hit the airship.
"Nite nite, asshole," Rufus smirked, firing off two rapid shots and the monster howled insanely, tossing it's head up in agony from the bullets ramming into it's eyes.
The fiery haired man then quickly crouched down beside Cid and grabbed his arm to wrap in over his neck, "come on, Cid! Move!"
Stumbling to his feet, Cid was still staring at the monster, "but... t-that thing..."
"It's under control," Rufus declared, pulling the dazed pilot with him over to where Tifa was kneeling by Sephiroth, Aeris by their side.
Cid was about to scream what the hell Rufus meant, when he saw the figure appearing behind the blinded monster.
Demonic wings were moving lazily, arms haughtily crossed, as Chaos charged it's powers.
Vincent had realised the secret, and the demon was their only hope at that moment.
Throwing out it's arms, Chaos gathered it's strength, and fired of the deadly attack known as Satan Slam. The compact energy as sharp as any blade, it cut straight through the thick skin and easily severed the head of the monster.
Swaying, the monster seemed to hesitate, then fell over with a thundering crash before it lay completely silent.
Several seconds passed.
Then a silent groan caught Cid's attention and he gazed quickly over to see Sephiroth sitting up, supported by Aeris and Tifa, while clutching his bleeding stomach. Swallowing hard, the blonde man walked over to stand in front of him, "I'm sorry..."
Sephiroth slowly and painfully got up on his feet, glaring furiously at Cid. "Didn't I tell you to stay there? Didn't I?! Haven't I told you these things are out to get you, and you alone?! What the hell were you thinking, running straight into the battle?!"
"The cannons were over heating! They would have exploded!" Cid defended himself angrily, the sight of Sephiroth's injuries making him sick with guilt. "I never asked you to protect my ass anyway!"
Sephiroth fought the urge to get the Masamune and kill the blonde himself. "Do you want to die then? Is that it?!"
Finally turning his eyes away from Sephiroth's, Cid slowly shook his head. "No..."
Aeris quickly supported Sephiroth as he swayed, "calm down, Sephiroth. Cid won't do something like this again. Let's just heal those wounds of yours first, then you can shout all you want. Ok?"
Cid turned and gave a weak wave to the Highwind's cheering crew hanging over the railing, just longing to hide in his cabin and curl up in Shera's lap for hours.
Shortly after, they were gathered on deck and Shera came bolting out to crash into the pilot's waiting arms. For once, Cid did not scold her, but held her close for his own sake as much as hers.
Aeris had draped Sephiroth's arm around her shoulders and the former general was leaning slightly on her. His wounds were closed thanks to the Restore materia, but it still hurt like hell and his body had yet to realise it wouldn't die. "So now what?" Sephiroth glanced from one to the other, "where to from here?"
"I suggest we return to Midgar," Rufus said silently, feeling everyone turning to look at him. "Think about it, we have no idea who is behind these attacks and our only chance to find out would be through my network, and I need to return to Midgar to do that."
Cid merely shrugged, feeling he'd disobeyed enough for one day.
Aeris drew a slow breath, hesitating to meet Rufus' blue eyes, "but... they attacked Midgar as well. They almost succeeded, remember?"
Flinching, Rufus unknowingly took Tifa's hand and found strength in her gentle squeeze of his hand in response. "I know that. I admit that this last year has been without any incidents so my security was lacking when the attack finally came. It has been taken care off. Turks are now ready to face any intruder foolish enough to try!"
"Good enough for me," Sephiroth mumbled, and Aeris finally nodded as well.
Vincent took a step towards them from his usual distance, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to meet you in Midgar in a couple of days..."
Blinking confused, Tifa reached out a hand like offering to apologize for whatever had upset the former Turk enough to make him leave. "But, Vincent, why?"
A wind played gently with his crimson cloak as Vincent backed up to the railing, "I have some unfinished business to deal with. I apologize, but this cannot wait. I will find you. Good luck."
And before anyone could demand a closer explanation, Vincent leaped over the railing and vanished.
There was a short silence, before Rufus cleared his throat, "yes, well, that was fun. Now, we've decided on Midgar?"
No objections were raised and the fiery haired man turned towards Cid, "then let's head back, mr Pilot!"
Cid gave a tired nod, then disappeared inside with a pale Shera trying to make him feel better with gentle words.
Rufus lifted a hand, motioning Tifa closer with a beckoning index finger, and the brunette obeyed with a smirk. The danger finally over for now, the young man sighed satisfied at the feeling when he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. He was never letting go again.
Aeris tilted her head and smiled softly at the sight. It was so romantic. She glanced up at Sephiroth, letting him see the tender look in her eyes. Didn't he find it beautiful? The love was so visible and not even a deep coma could keep the two apart. Aeris blinked confused as she merely saw Sephiroth raise a dry eyebrow, then turned back to find the pair expressing their affection in a serious lip-lock. Aeris turned beet-red.
Tifa had a hand placed against Rufus' chest, meaning to push him away and scold him for embarrassing her in public by taking the kiss so far, but it was so hard not to react to him. The hunger in his kiss, the closeness of his body and the intoxicating scent that was Rufus ShinRa.
"For crying out loud!" Sephiroth exclaimed, yanking the stuttering Aeris with him as he stalked inside. Aeris would have thrown him head first back into the Lifestream if he'd tried to pull a stunt like that! The former general didn't stop until they were safely inside their cabin and he shut the door loudly.
Aeris frowned at the sight of his blood soaked coat and walked over with a worried sigh, "you surely look a fine mess, mr great warrior..."
Biting back a pained groan as Aeris helped him remove his coat, Sephiroth let her undo his armour as well and sat obediently down on the bed. "Yeah, well, it's all that damn Cid Highwind's fault!"
Walking over to get a washcloth and soak it in water, Aeris glanced back at him, "it's not easy for him. He's just as proud as you are, you know!"
Grumbling, Sephiroth reached out and fumbled for a pack of gum on the night table, shoving a piece into his mouth. "Bah! I'm not like that!"
Aeris smiled softly as she returned, "actually... you are. Your pride is your greatest weakness, Sephiroth." She took in the sight of the silver haired warrior sitting on the bed, bared from the waist up, watching her grumpily while chewing his gum. Aeris was weakly aware of her hands trembling as she sat down beside him and reached out the cloth to wipe away the blood from the smooth skin.
Sephiroth sighed and gazed up at the ceiling, "when I saw him come running, I seriously thought the guy had a death wish, you know?" He glanced briefly at Aeris, who nodded absently, and then returned to stare at the ceiling. "The idiot. Just came running, without thinking about it could get him killed."
Giving a faint smile, Aeris watched as the cloth slid over the warm skin, moving along rippling muscles as Sephiroth spoke and breathed. "He wanted to protect Shera and his crew. You fought against Jenova for the same reason."
Sephiroth cut a face, "I guess..." Then he closed his eyes while enjoying the feeling of the warm cloth caressing away the blood. "But if he does a stupid stunt like that again, I'm going to kill him myself!"
Aeris nodded absently again, not really listening. She was realising that she would never cease to be amazed over the wonder that was Sephiroth's body. The warm skin over the hard muscles, the way they would dance under her hands. The strength stored inside, that could so easily hurt her, but never did.
Sephiroth kept talking and Aeris found herself free to keep studying him, keep wondering at how he managed to look so physically strong yet slender at the same time. Everyone seemed to think that all Aeris cared about was talking to the planet and picking flowers, but anyone with a pulse could not keep from a little innocent admiring when they had a half-naked Sephiroth on their bed. And with her pure image, Aeris was gleefully free to watch to her hearts content with the luxury of moving a wet cloth over the lovely sight.
Her silver haired companion didn't seem to notice that his whining was wasted on an absent minded Aeris, but rather enjoyed the attention she was giving him. This was how he liked it; just the two of them.
However, his voice quickly went quiet and Sephiroth flinched as she had run the washcloth a little too carelessly.
Blinking surprised under his glare, Aeris thought for a moment he'd caught her, but then her eyes wandered over to where she'd just washed and Aeris smiled sheepishly. That's right... Too wrapped up in her actions, she'd forgotten one thing about Sephiroth...
Ticklish.
"Sorry," she tried to keep the giggle out of her voice in vain. No touching his sensitive sides.
Eyeing her suspiciously, Sephiroth let her continue removing the final specks of blood on his chest. She'd started a little too guiltily. Was she planning something? Ever since she'd found out about his weakness, Aeris had only been too happy to use it against him! Sephiroth blew a bubble and popped it thoughtfully, his eyes still locked on Aeris. She certainly looked like she was enjoying herself, and suddenly Sephiroth realised that the comforting touch she was applying was lingering on the boarder of teasing caresses. Sephiroth forgot to chew.
"Having fun?" Sephiroth's smooth voice snapped Aeris out of her daydreams, and she quickly gazed guiltily up at him. By the look of his sparkling eyes and teasing smirk, Aeris knew he'd caught her ogling him.
Aeris turned beet-red and rushed over to the sink, wringing the blood stained cloth under the running water. "I t-think the blood is all g-gone now..."
She gasped softly as she felt his arms slide around her waist from behind her while his lips travelled up her neck. She hadn't even heard him move! Mindlessly tilting her head to grant him access, Aeris leaned back against him. "You always harass your nurses?"
Sephiroth chuckled against her skin, "only the ones who pretend to be so innocent, only to put ideas into a poor man's head with looks far from innocent."
Squirming embarrassed, Aeris swatted his left hand on her hip, "be nice or I wont show you what I was planning while sending you those 'looks'!"
Feeling a jolt shoot down his spine at the bait, Sephiroth knew stronger men than him had buckled under that kind of pressure. "Whatever the lady wishes," he declared silkily, for once very comfortable about letting someone else have the upper hand.
Vincent entered the house in Wutai while it was barely dusk, and he sighed a little relieved at the familiar smells. The concept of a house and a daughter waiting for him was still a little to strange for him to accept it completely, but there was a spark of satisfaction to find it hadn't been a dream. He could even hear Rain, the mother of his child, humming softly from one of the rooms. She always hummed while working. The dark haired woman who he'd only known for a little over a year, but knew him better than anyone else by now. Sometimes he wondered if she knew him better than himself. And other times he found himself wondering why she still stayed with him. Rain was an open and cheerful person. Vincent was not. Maybe she knew it would have destroyed the shell of a man he was if she'd taken their daughter and left?
"Vincent?" Rain was standing out in the hall way now, looking surprised at him.
Vincent frowned at the warm flicker of affection inside him at the sight of her. He didn't like that she made him feel. She almost made him forget that he was a monster.
Smiling warmly, Rain walked over to place a light kiss on his lips, "you're home?" The simple act made the tension leave him, the cloak sinking slightly as his shoulders lowered from their defensive position.
"I had business in Wutai," Vincent explained simply, "and I wanted your advice."
Rain blinked surprised, "my advice?" What on earth could he need her advice for? Motioning him to follow her into the kitchen, Rain absently put on some tea water. "I'll try to help if I can, Vincent. What is the problem?"
Walking over to gaze out the window, Vincent sighed silently. "Sephiroth."
Rain spun around to face him, "he's back?!"
"It would appear that nor he or Aeris was killed a year ago, but have lived peacefully in a small town in the icelands up north," Vincent explained absently. "He's no longer a threat to us. The threat is an unknown enemy this time, and Sephiroth is our ally now."
Not looking completely convinced, Rain sank down to sit by the table. "What about Sephiroth then?"
There was a short silence, then Vincent turned to look at her with an unreadable look on his pale face, "should I tell him that his mother is in fact alive?"
Lucrecia. A name Rain wanted to hate, but could only pity. A year ago, the woman had manipulated Chaos into taking over Vincent and kidnapping Rain to her cave behind the waterfalls. The once so brilliant scientist wanted the child growing inside Rain, hoping to make it into the child she'd lost. The child she'd called Sephiroth.
"I can understand why you hesitate," Rain admitted silently. "If Sephiroth is, like you claim, on our side now, Lucrecia might do more damage than good. The Jenova cells has done much harm to her, both physically and mentally. You said so yourself, that Lucrecia is not the one you knew."
"That be as it may," Vincent shifted uneasily, "she is still his mother. Doesn't he have the right to know?"
Rain got up and walked over to place a gentle hand on his shoulder, "I guess it depends on how much damage she can do compared to what good it will do. Just don't let your feelings for Lucrecia cloud up your judgement..."
Turning his face away, Vincent gave a slight nod. Her words stung him, but he knew they were true. Painfully true. That was why he sought her advice. Rain cared for him, maybe even loved him, but she always spoke the truth. Unlike everybody else, his darkness did not frighten her. A gentle tug on his human arm brought him back to reality, and Rain tried a smile.
"You have a mission here in Wutai?" She asked, walking over as the tea water began to boil.
Vincent gazed out the window again, seeing the temple in the distance. "Yes... I never used to believe in fairy tales, but... it's amazing what you can do if you only want it strong enough, no?"
Rain gave a faint smile, wondering if her will was strong enough to make her wish come true some time. "Are you leaving this evening, or are you staying until morning?"
"I have to leave tonight, I'm afraid," Vincent declared silently, "but I would very much like to see Dawn."
After all, he didn't know when, or even if, he would ever see his daughter again.
The air was almost unbearably warm as Cid stood out on deck on the Highwind, watching Midgar approach in the distance. He was slightly surprised that his head didn't ache from all the thinking he'd done! His brain hadn't been pushed to these limits in years! Yet the pilot could not think of a single person who would go to such extremes to kill him! It was like some crazy dream! Who would wanna bother killing Cid Highwind? What was there to gain? Nothing! It didn't make any sense!
And for the first time in his life, Cid was afraid.
Whoever it was, it didn't look like they were going to give up any time soon, and the monsters would just keep comming! And despite his friends silly promise to protect him, the thought of them getting killed by a monster comming after him was almost worse than the thought of the monster succeeding in killing him. Someone was out to kill him and he was putting everyone around him in danger. Cid considered lighting up a cigarette, but decided against it. It was just too damn hot!
Then the door opened and Cid tensed as he prepared to yell for Shera to get her ass back inside, instead Rufus sauntered up to lean on the railing on his left side and Sephiroth halted on his right side. The blonde eyed them suspiciously in turn.
"You ok?" Rufus asked, peering down at the ground over the railing.
Cid sighed and returned to stare at Midgar, "I guess..." They were his allies, no need to waste energy arguing with them.
"Haven't you wondered how the monsters were able to find you?" Sephiroth gazed sideways at the pilot, seeing the blue eyes widen with worry.
Cid stared nervously from one to the other, "I've been so busy tryin' to figure out 'who' is out t' get me, and I completely forgot 'how'!" He rubbed his neck thoughtfully, then started. "Finding us at our camp on our way to the ancient city... That's not just bad luck! They knew I was there! But... then why attack Highwind? Unless... the monster thought I was there, meaning it did not communicate with it's multi-headed snake buddy. My scent! They gotta be following that!" Cid started even worse, "Rocket Town! That's the first place they'll go! It doesn't matter that I left, the monsters will destroy that town! We gotta warn them!"
Sephiroth shook his head, "don't bother with the town. Hold out your arm."
Cid took a step back, glancing over at the passive Rufus, before glaring at Sephiroth, "the fuck do you mean that I shouldn't bother?!"
Loosing his temper, the silver haired man stalked over and yanked out Cid's arm, ignoring the yelp, and removed a materia from the 4-slot-armour. "This," Sephiroth held up the summon Bahamut materia, "is how they found you. And will keep finding you if you don't get rid of it!"
Cid shook his head confused, "my materia? But... how?"
Rufus straightened and held out a second materia, the summon Knights of the Round materia he had removed from one of Cid's weapons lying in his cabin, "take a closer look..."
Leaning closer, Cid saw the speck of blackness in the crimson red, "what... is that?"
Sephiroth shook his head, "I don't know. They're... infected somehow... They act like a beacon to the monsters, and I wouldn't recommend trying to use the summons."
"The summons would turn on us?" Cid asked nervously, staring at the summon Knights of the Round materia Rufus was casually tossing and catching mid-air.
Sephiroth cut a face, "most likely. I suggest we don't find out."
Then Cid's PHS rang, and the pilot blinked confused before pulling up the device to see who was trying to contact him. His blue eyes widened in surprise and he quickly answered it. "Hey, blockhead! Where the hell are you?!"
There was a short silence as the person answered, and suddenly Cid was hanging over the railing while grinning, "yeah, I see you!"
Sephiroth and Rufus glanced over the railing as well, seeing a vehicle moving at high speed below them heading for Midgar as well.
Cid straightened and suddenly looked a lot more cheerful, "gotta tell the pilot to land! We're picking up a passenger!"
Rufus sent Sephiroth a quick glance before gazing suspiciously at Cid, "who?"
"It's Cloud!" Cid declared cheerfully, and darted inside.
Rufus only watched as Sephiroth slowly turned to clutch the railing, hard, and the former general's eyes were dangerously narrow.
"So the time has come, Cloud..." The silver haired man whispered, the railing creaking with complaint as he tightened his grip. "We meet again."
AN
Once again there pops up an unintended cliffhanger, but will have the next chapter up shortly, so just stay tuned!Yes, the great showdown is finally here, and the truth will be revealed to Cloud!
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