Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Who's John ShinRa? ❯ The Prince ( Chapter 2 )

Note: I do not own Final Fantasy VII. Boogity boogity-boo!

Chapter 2: The Prince

 

Rufus ShinRa walked back to his office in Junon and scanned the various bits of paper on his desk. He needed to work, but something nagged at the pit of his stomach. He was familiar with this emotion but always had to conceal it for Rufus ShinRa never bled or cried; or so the rumors said. But he knew better because Rufus ShinRa was afraid. Though his face never gave any indication of his fear, his body trembled slightly as he looked out the window at the large meteor gradually descending closer to the earth. He realized that even with John in Midgar, he would still perish should the giant rock slam into the ground.

 

All his hopes now lie in the hands of a rebel group called AVALANCHE. A small smirk appeared while thinking about the AVALANCHE Group. They had such simple needs and wants. Granted, they also practiced their ideals through force and violence, the only difference was that they did it because they cared about the welfare of planet.

 

He remembered the first time he ever met the AVALANCHE group. That was when he had heard the news about his father's death. He wanted to see for his own eyes that his father had indeed been killed by Sephiroth. Augustus ShinRa, the man who ruled his company with an iron-fist. His father never had any faith in anything except money and power. He even cheated on Rufus's mother and bore many bastard sons, one of them being his half-brother John. Hatred was not a strong enough word to describe his feelings for that man.

 

He wanted to change the company when he finally took office. He even called himself the `New Age President ShinRa,' but ShinRa's reputation always preceded his intent. Rufus knew that he could do more for the company: to reform it from what his father had done. He wanted to settle the long debate whether he was different from his father: that he didn't inherit the old man's nature. But he followed in his father's footsteps proving that nature had won the battle and he was indeed the son of the devil.

 

Rufus stared at the marbled floors and modern architecture that graced all offices of ShinRa to ostentatiously display the company's greatness. ShinRa walls are not made with honesty and hard work. Rufus knew that it was all a façade to hide the blackmail, deceit and fraud that had been built into the infrastructure. There was nothing that ShinRa couldn't obtain through either money or force. He stood behind his desk where he was capable of wielding the greatest power in the world with only a word; however, Rufus ShinRa felt helpless.

 

Rufus's silent reveries were interrupted when a ShinRa guard came to his office to report the current situation. “President ShinRa, sir,” the guard saluted.

 

Rufus turned to face the guard and his face soured as he saw the trepidation resounding through the young boy's body. The ShinRa name struck fear into his soldier's hearts and he hated it.

 

“At ease solider. The President is on his way to Midgar. I'm his body-double,” Rufus said to ease the tension, relieved that no one except the Turks could tell the difference between the two and even fewer knew that John was his brother.

 

“Oh, sorry sir,” the guard said as he relaxed. “I guess they left you here just in case, huh?”

 

“Yeah, I guess,” Rufus shrugged.

 

“But in case you need to know, intelligence reports that the AVALANCHE group have recovered their leader, Cloud Strife,” the guard said as he stood slouched, a position he would never attempt if he were around President ShinRa. “I wonder what that group is up to? Hopefully our guys will get them.”

 

“Yes, hopefully,” Rufus said as he digested the information carefully. He knew that the group was trying to stop Sephiroth, but he didn't think it was possible.

 

“But I best be getting back to my post,” the guard sighed. He lazily saluted and left Rufus alone in his office.

 

Left with nothing else to do, Rufus resigned to make his way to his brother's apartment and wait until he received any communications from him. It was the standard procedure that they had agreed upon should there be an emergency of this scale. John had been the one who took the initiative to formulate this secondary precaution. Unfortunately they had to finally execute it. ShinRa always had protocols to ensure the safety of their executives, the President being the top priority. He never thought that this day would come.

 

Rufus finally made it to John's apartment in Upper Junon and opened the door with the key he was given. The room was very simple and neat. There were numerous books on economics and politics on his bookshelf and several supplies of blond-hair dye to bleach John's naturally light brown hair. Rufus was envious of the normal life his brother led. John was never pressured with the obligation of having to run a large corporation. He never had his actions analyzed and ridiculed by his father. John also had the freedom to choose his own destiny, but Rufus was named the head of his father's company falling deeper into the prison his father built for him.

 

Walking towards the various shelves, Rufus studied the spines of all the books looking for anything that might spark his interest. He was only able to scan a few books when a knock on the door interrupted him. He opened the door only to find another ShinRa guard standing outside saluting.

 

“John, I have orders from President ShinRa for you,” the solider said as he kept his stiff posture.

 

“Go ahead,” Rufus said as he leaned against the doorframe.

 

“The President asks that you return your hair back to your natural color and stay in your residential quarters in Upper Junon until the Meteor threat has been disposed of,” the solider said in almost one breath.

 

Rufus stared blankly at the solider after hearing these orders. It was strange to get this message from John since it didn't quite seem to follow the protocol they had agreed to. “May I speak with President ShinRa?”

 

“Unfortunately, I can not allow that, sir. He has specifically ordered me to keep you under house-arrest and to keep a communication block for your protection,” the solider again spouted out.

 

“Very well, you may go then,” Rufus sighed in defeat, tempted to scold the solider for prohibiting communications, but didn't want to raise any suspicion over his true identity.

 

The guard saluted and left Rufus at John's apartment, but not before posting another guard at the door as ordered.

 

Rufus stood in the room perplexed by the recent turn of events. He remembered that the precautionary procedures he and his brother agreed to state that the Turks should escort the President, posing as his own body-double, to the Lower Junon bunker. Rufus wanted to call one of the guards and ask him to take him to the bunker, but right now he wasn't the President who was giving the orders. What are you planning John?

 

(continued…)