✗vιctιм cσnvιεncε | ғғvιι ιc - 「øρεи」

[Ocular Penetration]

Business • as • usual.
°° R u f u s . S h i n r a ¤ ルーファウス神羅
'A little fear will control the minds of common people.
There's no reason to waste money on them.'

"We've approached President Shinra in response to yesterday's attacks but his office has yet to return our calls. Personally Tom, I think this is just another example of Shinra screwing us all over and not covering their own messes." Applause. Silence.

"Think you're right on this one John. Since the official hand-me-down after the attacks, 'We are working with the WRO to prevent future attacks', not a peep has been heard from the company. Not like you can expect anything from a company with a history of trying to destroy the world though. It's a wonder more meteors arn't baring down on our heads!"

The mysterious audience laughed again.

"You know in my father's day they would be arrested already. . .but I'm the devil."

The three monitors to the blond's right shared disturbed looks, as best you could between screens, and one of them coughed. He continued ignoring them in favor of the media. Not that they were saying anything particularly new or exciting. It was pretty much the exact same broadcast the station had been running since the terrorist attacks yesterday. Insult to injury was the scrolling bar across the bottom of the live feed that was listing what seemed like an endless name series of the deceased, both those on the train and those in the effected hospital vicinity. Somewhere out there in his employ was a person carefully jotting down each name, running a search, and doing an assessment to determine just how much 'sorrow money' to send the family of the deceased. Hell, it may have even been the same person who handled the Sector 7 tragedy.

"President," The person in question did not even c**k an eye. Not that she, Riveria Deling, new director of the Science Department, aptly [re]named 'Product Development and Security Assurance Division, minded too terribly much ", they do have a point. The people want an official statement and someone to blame - until then we will be taking all the heat. Might I advise that we step up security at our various facilities? If we are not attacked directly it is entirely possible that a copy cat will occur." Murmured agreement from the other two screens, Director of Finance and Director of Security specifically, the latter of whom seemed to not notice that his job was being done for him.

What? Where was the Vice President's monitor? Rufus knew better than to trust a VP.

After-all, he had been one of those once.

A button press put the television on mute while Rufus Shinra, President of Shinra, once-ruler of the world, turned to his constitutes and with a his usual even tone delivered a resounding, "Do what you want." Somewhere in that he even rolled his eyes. It was probably around the time he settled back into his chair and hit the button to unmute the news broadcast that was going over his finer qualities, namely his perchance for diplomatic relations by force and how he'd burn all of Midgar down before giving in to anyone. It was honestly endearing.

His employees did not seem to agree but then again they were not paid to be agreeable.

"Sir," It was Deling again. Rufus at least granted her a look. . .with both eyes! ", I think you are not taking this seriously enough. The people have not forgiven us yet for the Bahamut Sin incident-"

Finance jutted in, "They have no evidence to tie the President to that incident!"

Security, "You are forgetting eye-witness reports saying the Summon came from the building."

Finance, "Dubious at best."

Science, "Does not matter if it's true or not - they just need a reason to think bad of us."

Security, "Which is why we should-"

"Stop right there." Silence except for the TV announcer talking about the WRO updated report at the top of the hour. Rufus Shinra was full attention on his employees now. Granted, he looked no more interested than he had for the entirety of their 'committee meeting'. Really, apathetic boredom seemed to be the main emotion on the blond's handsome face. Maybe a bit of irritation too - that was especially looking prevalent too, that jaw set and sharp gaze that seemed to utter, 'How idiotic are you?' He got the same expression whenever his bumbling imbeciles made him miss the power hungry, crazed minions he'd inherited from his father.

God, what kind of person was he to miss Heidegger and Scarlet?

"You are all showing your inexperience here. You think this is the first time Shinra has been beset by terrorism?" Oh, they were cowled. Well except for Deling - she looked livid enough to actually mention that the terrorists, Avalanche, were now celebrated heroes. Oh, she knew better though, she knew better. Well known fact that one Rufus Shinra still held a little bit of a grudge over that particularity. Good for her career that she held it in. He went on, "We will be handling this incident in the fashion as dictated by precedent. We will not give into their demands and will stand our ground until the issue is resolved by alternative means." They looked confused and once again he felt the twinge of 'new employee irritation'. This was the scene where Scarlet would be cackling and Heidegger horse laughing while Hojo's screen would be black because really, did you think a man like that would report in? These three, the new three, seemed to be waiting for an explanation. He did not give them one.

They just needed to watch the rerun of the news later - they knew of his 'violent diplomacy'.

Delivered by the usual carriers of course, "I've already assigned the investigation to the Turks. I trust that Tseng will deliver a commendable report saying the situation is resolved soon." They did not look convinced. Then again these were the same people who had probably lived in fear of being shot by a Turk while they were working their way up the company. All intelligent Shinra employees lived in fear that they'd happen upon something they shouldn't and end up in an elevator with one of the black suits. Rumors abounded of numerous occasions it happened.

"This meeting is done. Return to your assigned duties. Show the public we are secure."

"Of course sir." "Right, sir." "Affirmative." He killed the video chat. The screens went black, whirred to life, and retracted into the ceiling. Once the paneling closed over the monitors another whir signaled the steel blinds over the majestic office window opening up to allow the fresh, morning sun in. There - right behind the President's desk - was the city of Midgar, a once-sprawling metropolis on the road to recovery with some 'improvements'. Not that he particularly appreciated the view. If anything it was a reminder that his new office was room off the main hall of his 'Midgar Dreams' penthouse home on the sector five plate. Quite a difference between the plate and an office at the tip top of the Shinra tower where the city was pretty much invisibly far below unless you were a jumper.

. . .but at least it was not a wheelchair accessible recovery hut in the mountains.

Small graces.

♪You, In your shell
Are you waiting for someone to rescue you
From yourself
Don't be disappointed when no one comes. ♪

[Rob St Clair]

xxxxxxxxxxxxCloud Strife
クラウド・ストライフ

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxReclusive war hero

And this is how it looks
when I am standing on the edge
And this is how I break apart
when I finally hit the ground

And this is how it hurts
when I pretend I don't feel any pain
And this is how I disappear
when I throw myself away




Peace. That was all he wanted. Peace for himself, peace for Gaia and for Midgar...a chance to live his life...without the burdens of the safety of the world or even the citizens of Midgar on his shoulders, without the guilt of the death of those he had failed... Was it too much to ask?

This was what the Jenova war hero was pondering as he cast his gaze on the vast desert-like canyon from his higher vantage point. This landscape was the one thing that had been constant the entire time, through the catastrophes that Jenova had brought, first from the defection of the SOLDIER First Class Genesis Rhapsodos, Angeal Hewley...then Sephiroth. Was it wholly Jenova's fault? No, the greed of Shinra, the greed of human nature and the thirst to tamper with nature, that was what made the disasters so catastrophic.

It was cool and peaceful this morning but even the peace had been interrupted numerous times although it was hard to tell now. With a slow sigh, Cloud Strife pulled his riding goggles over his eyes and threw his leg over the bike and with one last glance back, he left the site of Zack's grave. Slinging the now clean buster sword , the legacy of his friend and mentor, into the holster over his shoulder he applied the throttle and took off toward Midgar. The wind swept his spiky blond hair about as the young man left a dust cloud trail behind him as he rode.

Some may not understand but the motorcycle ride was a ritual as was visiting the site where Zack Fair had saved him and ended up sacrificing his own life. He knew that everyone had been telling him that it wasn't his fault, that there was nothing he could have done, that he had done well by Zack, he could never rid himself of the guilt. He knew he had fallen apart at a crucial time and perhaps, just perhaps if he were stronger, both mentally and physically...then others wouldn't have to die...that Aerith would not have to die. It was the least he could have done for Zack...but the truth was, Cloud was helpless. He let her die...he probably even caused her death, dragging her into something that the flower girl should have been shielded from.

...And that was his next stop, Aerith's church in Sector 5 slums.

As he reached the gates of Midgar, Cloud hopped off of his bike and walked into the city. Midgar was quiet this time in the morning although signs of human life could be spotted from time to time. Lights would flicker on more and more of the houses he had walked past and the vendors were starting the trip to their shops in the market district. Cloud ignored them all, and they ignored his presence. It was almost ritualistic the way the young man walked, his bike beside him toward his destination. He had a glazed look in his eyes that could be seen if anyone were looking now that his riding goggles were off.

Forgiveness...even though he was assured was given to him, that was not what was troubling his mind. He could not forgive himself, no matter what the others had said. His mobile phone was, as usual...off, as he walked into the church from a back entrance. This was the only place where he could let himself feel peace, if only temporarily.




"Wait, I'm starting to suffocate
And soon I anticipate
I'm coming undone
What looks so strong, so delicate "

[S h o n a -- Waters]

___________________________________________

As usual, he didn't pick up. Tifa heaved out a sigh as she closed her mobile. She stared grimly at it. Now that Cloud ran a delivery service, Tifa figured that maybe she will hear from him more often. She hoped he was all right.

Speaking of which, she had just remembered about Marlene and Denzel! They were probably at the orphanage right now. Children like them are usually up and around, playing games like tag. These two kids were under her care at the moment, but they seem to get on quite fine without her. There might be a time where they wouldn't be needing her anymore. That very fact made Tifa feel more depressed somehow. She shook that thought away from her mind. She didn't want to think about them right now.

Tifa tried to think of where Cloud could have been, and the first thought that came into her mind was Aerith's church that was located in Sector 5 slums. That was a pretty good guess, seeing Cloud visit there before. There might be a chance that he will be there. Not wanting to stay here in her room at home, Tifa stood up from her bed she had been sitting on and worked her way out the door.

It was a beautiful day out. The stifling wind blew across her face, sweeping her hair around. It was good to be out and getting some fresh air. It was a relief that Tifa remembers where Aerith's church was, otherwise she will have some trouble in finding it. Not long now. She should be there soon. Her thoughts were slowly drifting away, until Tifa had stopped at the church. She stopped in her tracks. Was this the place? Yup. Had to be. Tifa took a deep breath. 'Well... here goes!' she thought taking long but slow strides towards the church.

As she walked into the church, Tifa had noticed a shade of blond hair around the corner. Her heart started to race a bit as she noticed who it was. Cloud! Was this for real? Tifa took a few steps making progress in approaching him. Cloud!" she called out, a happy edge to her voice. "I figured this is where you might be!" Tifa added.

[MiiSS HACHiiKO]

┏━━━━━━┓
gιsεℓℓε
┗━━━━━━┛

"Sir! Don't you think it's very...inhumane for us to do such a thing? Father! Don't you agree with me?"

Eyes widened at the pain of a screaming voice escaping in the testing chamber. Hands gripped on the white jacket in desperation, as eyes glared at her in anger. A cackling laugh escaped the lips of the taller, middle-aged scientist, watching the agony of the experiments that the young lady had participated in. Kneeling to the floor, the young lady felt tears forming in her eyes. A warm hand touched her shoulder, while a tiny smile formed on a baby faced young man who was with her. In other words, her own father.

"You shouldn't panic about this, Giselle. Yes, we work for a place, where we might hate for the rest of our lives, however, there is an upside about this. If you regret coming here, you can forget about your dream." he noted.

Flashes sparked within the room next door. The young lady named, Giselle Michaelis, aged twenty, was feeling the regret forming inside of her. She lived a dream of being surrounded by science, but she was about to crush her own dream, for being afraid. Lumps formed on the girl's throat, her hands shaking, her body feeling goosebumps slowly forming, as she nervously approached the tray full of injections. Her hands delicately gripped a needle, her face was showing signs of panic. This never happened to her before. Now, she's going to feel something was going to go on. She had a feeling something might happen if she went along with it.

"Giselle...Be careful.."

"...Dad..."

Wincing at the hot sun, a woman's body arose feeling sweat sticking her clothes to her body. Sitting up, brown eyes skimmed the darkened room thoughtfully, glancing left and right before sighing. Getting out of bed, the twenty five year old Giselle, slowly walked to the room next door. A room filled with toys, and colored bright blue, the woman noticed that the bed was empty. Searching around the room, she felt the panic getting to her. Furrowing her eyebrows, she ran out of the room, before stopping in the living room seeing some kids playing outside.

"G'Morning Miss Elle!" a kid shouted.

Escaping her living room, Giselle walked out in the blazing sun and lightly jabbed the boy in the back. Her hands were on her hips, glaring at him in anger. "How many times did I told you to not kidnap my kid when I'm still sleeping? Sheesh! He didn't even eat yet!" she openly scolded. The boy winced before sighing, and kicked the soccer ball to his friends. Walking into another house, a small boy was in the kitchen, happily eating cereal with an older woman smiling at him. She arose and nodded to Giselle, who in return smiled back.

"Alister~ Your Mommy's here." the woman stated.

The lively young boy looked at his mother with a huge grin on his face. He gave a huge smile to his mother, before hopping out of the chair and walking towards her with his arms extended out. Alister Michaelis was the boy's name, and being a two year old kid, he was quite the fiesty type. Even though he had Giselle's looks, the pain of seeing how he interacts people reminds her of her late boyfriend, or in other words, Alister's father. As she lifted him up, she thanked the woman, as they walked out into the blazing sun of Costa Del Sol.

A smile formed on Giselle's face, holding her two year old child in her arms. Bouncing her child around, she brought her child back to her home, turning on the television in the process. In Midgar, a train blew up in the Sector Six slums. The people called themselves, 'The Mako Victimization Survivors'. The former scientist knew something that she was involved with something related to it in the past. The problem was, would she leave the only home she had just to run? As she watched Alister running around, the woman sat on the couch feeling the heavy pain of the past getting to her. Covering her eyes, she sat there in silence, only hearing the tiny footsteps of her child running around the house.

"....What should I do?"

┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓

There is no hate, only joy
For you are beloved by the goddess
Hero of the dawn, Healer of worlds

Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul
Pride is lost
Wings stripped away, the end is nigh

-LOVELESS Act II

┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

[Rob St Clair]

xxxxxxxxxxxxCloud Strife
クラウド・ストライフ

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxReclusive war hero

And this is how it looks
when I am standing on the edge
And this is how I break apart
when I finally hit the ground

And this is how it hurts
when I pretend I don't feel any pain
And this is how I disappear
when I throw myself away




He remembered back to the first time he set foot in the Church...or rather, fell through the roofs. In a way, he almost felt like he would prefer it if he never recovered his memories. He would rather be the cocky SOLDIER first class, the persona he adopted when the trauma of Zack's death plus the years of Mako exposure and treatment that he had undergone had done to his fragile mental state. He wished that he could return to that time, when he had done nothing but felt like he could do anything. He was Cloud Strife, the pride of the SOLDIER program. It was never the case, as he was never even accepted into the SOLDIER program but the dream, his dream, was good while it lasted.

The slightest of smiles graced his lips as he stepped into the Church. The light, whether from the sun or elsewhere, now streaming down where the roof was never fixed from the numerous battles that took place there. The added lights from the stained glass windows added to the mysticism of the sanctuary. Aerith's flowers were still in bloom, the only place that could support life in the whole of Midgar slums. Cloud knelt down on one knee before the patch of yellow flowers, reaching out with his right hand and laying his hand on the cool petals of the yellow blossoms.

They still grew, even without Aerith tending to them, presumably supported by Aerith in the lifestream...or just the lifestream itself.

Cloud's posture stiffened, his Mako eyes regained their focus when he sensed another person's movements in the church. The light footsteps were familiar to Cloud, and he relaxed never lifting his gaze and soon the young woman, his childhood friend greeted him in her somewhat cheery voice. Why was Tifa here? Did he forget about a delivery? The blond man frowned and dismissed the thought. He might very well have missed a delivery but that wouldn't be why she was here.

Slowly, he stood up, his back still to the bar owner as she approached him. "Tifa," He answered, always a loquacious one, "You are looking for me...any trouble?" He brushed his arms, still a bit dusty from the ride to Midgar and slowly turned his head toward Tifa. He wasn't worried that there was trouble, her tone did not sound urgent. He still wasn't sure why she would come looking for him although he had known that she had done that on occasion.

His solitude worried people, he was aware of that but that wasn't enough to change his ways. He preferred his solitude, he could be alone with his thoughts. No one understood and he did not expect or want anyone to. This was his fault, his burden alone to bear. It had nothing to do with anyone else...whether friend or foe.






"People tell me that my personality is divided.
I don't think so, but maybe it is. "

[S h o n a -- Waters]

___________________________________________

Before she talked to him, Cloud seemed to be very preoccupied. And Tifa was starting to feel a little bit guilty of distracting him. Maybe she should have left him there, instead of looking for him?

By his tone of voice, Cloud seemed to be disturbed. She totally didn't expect that answer coming right out of his mouth. Tifa was expecting more from his emotions. Couldn't he at least try to sound happy when around her? Well, it can't be helped. Tifa's mouth turned into a sly smile as she shook her head.

"No. I... I wanted to see you. You weren't picking up your phone." she said. She paused, seeing that look on his face. It indicated that he was depressed more likely. Tifa began to get more worried.

"Okay, Cloud. Tell me whats up." she said firmly. Perhaps he could share his feelings with her. There was absolutely no reason for him not to trust his own childhood friend, right? Cloud does know that he cannot hide anything from her. He was pretty glum these past months, and she couldn't blame him. He had a pretty rough life, what with Zack and Aerith dying. Tifa felt bad and is hoping to continue supporting him with whatever life throws at him. Maybe there was something she could do for him.

She continually waits for an answer from Cloud, patiently curling a thick piece of her thin black hair, as she studied his face. It was clear that he was in deep pain, although he never admits it. Tifa was used to his unsociability though, and his gloominess had worried her lots of times. She didn't know how to find the key of Cloud's happiness, nor what it was. One thing was for sure, Tifa was not going to back down so easily. She knew that there was something wrong, and she won't hesitate to find out what the problem was.

[Rob St Clair]

xxxxxxxxxxxxCloud Strife
クラウド・ストライフ

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxReclusive war hero

And this is how it looks
when I am standing on the edge
And this is how I break apart
when I finally hit the ground

And this is how it hurts
when I pretend I don't feel any pain
And this is how I disappear
when I throw myself away




Cloud knew that she tried and would continue to do so but what would Tifa know about how he felt and how he had suffered? She was always the popular one and he had watched her from afar when they were young. She was always so confident, cheerful and well liked. Tifa was someone he liked, and even envied and served to be his inspiration to better himself, making something of himself. They had called themselves 'childhood friends' but he knew better. Cloud had never fit into Tifa's circle and he had never forgotten that.

"...It's nothing, nothing is wrong..." He answered, keeping his gaze cast downward, as if mesmerized by how the colorful light patterns on the flower patch. He sighed softly, crossing his arms in front of him. He knew that she would not give up so easily...she was never one to give up. As much as he appreciated that she seemed to worry about him, he wondered why she wouldn't let him be. What did she think she could do? But as much as he thought and acted the way he did, Tifa's smiles kept him grounded, reminded him of his obligations and expectations but also that he's got friends.

He did not want to tell her, yet he knew he must say something. He could either talk now, convince her...tell her what she wanted to hear or drag this out. He knew that she would not give up but he did not want to talk, especially not about...

Cloud raised his glance and studied Tifa's expression for a moment before uttering under his breath, "It never ends, Tifa. I know that you know what's going on...with WRO and Shinra...SOLDIER..." He turned his gaze toward the back entrance, where he had left his bike and with the slightest motions, he moved his hand toward the direction of the exit. He knew she would see it, and follow him out. He turned toward the exit with one last glance at his friend, then started walking toward the door.

"It is only a matter of time before someone approaches Avalanche...or me." He spoke softly, his voice tinted with annoyance but also resignation. It was a partial truth. He was now the famed Cloud Strife, he defeated the great Sephiroth...something that even real SOLDIERS like Zack Fair couldn't do. It was necessary and he did his part and everytime he thought that it was over...his hopes were dashed.

Wasn't this what he wanted? He set out to join SOLDIER, become a hero and he had done that. He was unsuited for it though. Heroes were people like Zack and Sephiroth. They thrived in the spotlight...Cloud did not. Instead of taking up the reins of reconstruction and bask in the glory as the slayer of Sephiroth...twice, all he wanted was for things to return the way they were...a quiet life in Nibelheim.

"Heading back?" He grasped the bike, looking back the way he came. He had no intentions of going back to Tifa's bar that day but what else could he do? Besides, it had been a while since he had seen Denzel and Marlene. It was expected of him and in order not to raise any more question about how he was, he would at least act like everything was normal.







"It's not my problem."

[S h o n a -- Waters]

___________________________________________

In answer to Cloud's stubbornness, Tifa crossed her arms across her chest in annoyance. For one thing, he appeared to be so quiet. And for another matter, he seemed to be avoiding the topic of discussion. Tifa was ready to protest.

"No, its not nothing! Cloud, please tell me whats wrong! You do trust your childhood--" she stopped her self, in mid sentence. Tifa shook her head. It was clear that Cloud didn't want to talk about this, and she didn't want to continue further, in order to get on his nerves. So if that was what Cloud wanted, then that's fine.

She perked up, seeing that he was saying another thing. That weariness from his voice... Cloud was in a far worse mood of solitude than she thought.

As he mentioned the WRO, Shinra, and SOLDIER, Tifa recalled the events from the past. After hearing him speak once again, Tifa tried to catch on in what he was saying. It was clear that Cloud was afraid.

She let out a sigh. "You won't know if they will come for you, Cloud. Much less, Avanlanche." she said, shaking her head once more. She looked up to see Cloud walking out the back entrance climbing into the motor engine. Tifa's gaze followed through the back entrance where Cloud and his engine was.

"Yes. I think that's a good idea. Marlene and Denzel are waiting for me...." she said, thoughts of the orphanage and Seventh Heaven clouding into her mind. Nonetheless she made her way out the back entrance, sauntering towards the engine, climbing on the back.

[Rob St Clair]

xxxxxxxxxxxxCloud Strife
クラウド・ストライフ

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxReclusive war hero

And this is how it looks
when I am standing on the edge
And this is how I break apart
when I finally hit the ground

And this is how it hurts
when I pretend I don't feel any pain
And this is how I disappear
when I throw myself away




It wasn't often that he asked her to ride with him. In fact, he had not seen much of Tifa at all since Bahamut SIN and Sephiroth were defeated. He had thought that Aerith's words of forgiveness would set him free from his guilt but he wasn't at all sure that it was actually her any longer. Was he so desperate for forgiveness that he imagined the whole thing? It seemed very likely in the mind of the spiky haired blond. Or maybe, he didn't feel that he deserved to be forgiven. However, it was still important to him that he remain strong, maintain an aloof exterior, even to someone he had grown up with.

With an almost imperceptible nod, Cloud squeezed the throttle and took off, flying through the outskirts of Midgar, back to Tifa's bar. The journey back was almost free of conversations since it was quite noisy and difficult at the speed he was going at. It was just as well... He did not want to discuss what was wrong with him. He was just fine and he did not need anyone to look after him. He wasn't that type of man. Cloud Strife had always been an outcast, a loner even in his childhood. And now, even though he defeated Sephiroth and prevented the destruction of the planet, his Mako eyes, a sure sign of SOLDIER, made him stand out and people eyed him with suspicion. He was not a part of anything, not Shinra, not AVALANCHE, not WRO...he was alone.

They soon arrived at the from door of Seventh Heaven and Cloud relaxed slightly. Tifa was less likely to press him with the children around, although Denzel and Marlene were surprisingly perceptive at times. Putting away his bike after both he and Tifa got off, Cloud took a deep breath and walked into the bar. He immediately went to the bar and got himself a drink.

His sat down at the bar, his brows furrowed in concentration. Cloud feared nothing but he also wanted no part of what was going on with the conflict between SOLDIER and the Shinra b*****d who had victimized them. He did not want to take a side, although he had a feeling he would not have a choice. Just when he thought things would settle down, something else always came up. It was his burden, his punishment...that elusive peace was something he could never find.

Cloud almost slammed the glass on the counter when he downed the drink. He did not, only pushed it away from him. "Give me something hard." He said, then cast his gaze down on the counter. He was a delivery boy now, the fate of Gaia...it was not his problem.







"What does that have to do with me?"

[S h o n a -- Waters]

___________________________________________

Through out the ride, there was hardly any chatter. Cloud was not one for conversations being the preocuupied guy he was. Tifa pretty much knew where they were headed for. In fact she bet Seventh Heaven was their next destination.

Even at this time of day, many people still come there. Which was to be expected. Tifa thought about Marlene and Denzel and how they were doing. They were probably at Seventh Heaven waiting for her to arrive. But they won't be expecting Cloud. It had been a while since they saw him. Denzel will be so happy to see him again in such short notice. In fact, he will sprout tears of joy. Marlene was a little bit quiet, so she might not be as happy to see Cloud as Denzel.

Time seems to pass so quickly, and they soon arrived at the bar. Tifa climbed out the engine, and before she could do anything, Cloud had hurried over to Seventh heaven and disappeared inside. She had to admit; he was fast. She quickly made a mental note about that, and continued on her way to the bar.

Tifa was back to serving the customers drinks. It was one of her routines as the owner of the bar. Of course, that was the job for several other workers here.

She glanced up seeing Cloud getting up from the table and heading over to the bar. He gently laid the empty glass and demanded for something hard. At first, Tifa didn't quite get what he was saying. Then it finally hit her that 'something hard' meant cold liquor. She glanced down at his empty glass, then nodded. "Okay." Tifa said calmly, taking the glass that was lying peacefully on the counter.

A second later, she returned with a full glass of cold liquor. "Here you go." Tifa said, placing it in reach for Cloud.

[Akai Papillon]

”…and here we have footage of the attack…”

"Forgive me, was I not clear when I said to pay attention to where you derailed the train?" a woman with cloudy eyes sent a sharp and piercing gaze at several men and women that seemed to be standing at something similar to attention. She knew many of them as fellow victims, and some were even former comrades of hers, but she also knew that they were desperate for Oxy or Isotopin. Neither was available readily, and she knew what happened when their bodies ran out of it. She was, after all, one of them. She turned towards the television that was once again replaying the attack and would probably move to the broadcast later and then turned back to the misfits she had been speaking to earlier. "We may be fighting a war, but we will still need some inkling of support. Sending a derailed train into a medical facility that has nothing to do with Shinra or the WRO will not aid us in getting that support.

"But Saphii, we had to--!"

"You did not have to send a train careening into a medical facility,” the once-was SOLDIER cut in sharply. The one who had spoken meekly backed down in an instant, slightly intimidated by the woman. Her mako-clouded eyes swept over the group again and noted that they were shrinking back a little, knowing that she was the one in charge, and that she was the one that knew best. Pleased to see that they had gotten the general message, the warrior turned her back to her comrades. ”But regardless, we have already reached our goal. They know what we want now, and now we have a starting point.”

”Seraphyne, we have news!”

There was a crackle of static as the not-so-great television of the dingy “lair” that was being used crackled to life on a different channel. Seraphyne felt her hand twitch slightly at the sudden sound, but did nothing more than turn her attention to the television. A faint pang of surprise shot through the ex-SOLDIER’s system as she looked at the ticker rolling across the bottom of the screen. Her clouded eyes then shot up to the reporter speaking and her ears practically perked up to hear the words more clearly.

”We've approached President Shinra in response to yesterday's attacks but his office has yet to return our calls. Personally Tom, I think this is just another example of Shinra screwing us all over and not covering their own messes.”

”So they’re blaming Shinra for this, are they?” the woman questioned softly to herself, no smile pulling across her face. She needed to plan her next move carefully. She didn’t want Shinra completely eliminated. They still had chemicals for Isotopin. Further than that, she needed to pull the WRO deeper into the web, and fast. Shinra was easy to make take the blame. They were the ones that created the Mako Victimization Survivors, so it was easy to make them take the fall. The WRO needed to be involved faster though. It was then that the magical words floated into Seraphyne’s ears.

”'We are working with the WRO to prevent future attacks.'”

Those words. Seraphyne felt a smile tug at the corner of her lips. That one phrase had been what she had been looking for. Now, if Reeve Tuesti (ah, she remembered Reeve. He was a talker, he was) made the next move, then she could easily formulate a plan. Her eyes glanced over at her subordinates. She knew their names and faces, but for people so low in the ladder, that was all they were to her. The ex-SOLDIER made a soft noise and dismissed them without another word. They didn’t hesitate for a moment to listen to her orders. The one who had changed the channel remained alone, unsure of whether she was speaking to him or not. Seraphyne looked at him with mako-clouded eyes.

”Marino, tell our hacker to keep an eye on broadcasts by the WRO,” the ex-SOLDIER commanded. Her voice had softened slightly from before, which was probably the reason why her subordinate had relaxed. Well, not entirely, but enough so that he hesitated long enough to ask a stupid question.

”What will you be doing?”

The question was greeted with a harsh look that made Marino flinch and almost scurry for the door, but something told him not to. Seraphyne made a noise of distaste while crossing her arms and keeping her gaze on Marino as if debating whether to tell him what she would be doing. Suddenly remembering that he too was once a servant of Shinra, she turned away from him. She could practically feel his muscles relaxing. ”That is information you don’t need to know, Marino. Just do as you’re told.”

There was no doubt that the man was going to escape as soon as he could. Seraphyne closed her eyes, waited for a few moments, and then checked the dying clock on the wall. Stretching her arms, she stepped onto the deck of the boat just as it was tied down by workers at the harbor. Sunlight beat against her skin, but she didn’t really feel it. It was the withdrawal symptoms acting up again, and the dark-haired warrior felt almost cold despite the ideal beach weather. She turned towards a few of her more trusted subordinates and made a motion. Instants later, they were walking off in different directions towards the same destination. One ex-Shinra scientist. Giselle Michaelis. The ex-SOLDIER had managed to get the information out of Shinra’s database not long ago—true, she wasn’t looking for the woman, but the occupation read one and the same. She was a scientist, and it was very, very likely that a scientist would know how to make Oxy. The woman slowed her pace and stopped in front of a house and waited a few moments.

’This is the address, no doubt,’ the woman thought to herself. She stared at the door for a long moment. She knew that she didn’t want to cause a commotion in Costa del Sol while she still needed the boat to take her back to Midgar later. That meant kicking down the door and putting up a fight was a definite no. Seraphyne calmly strode up to the doorway, waited again, knowing that by then her “backup” had surrounded the house and kept a watch on all the exits. Preparing herself for the upcoming task, Seraphyne knocked on the front door of the house.

What an anti-climactic kidnapping.

"Uninstall, uninstall...
Osore wa shiranai
Senshi no youni
Furumau shikanai
Uninstall..."

[MiiSS HACHiiKO]

▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁

Ｒ Ｅ Ｎ Ｏ
▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁

❝ Looks like today we're clockin' out early.❞

"Our only long break was after that guy with the silver hair was defeated...Kadaj...? Or something like that, yo."

It was madness. Sure, Rufus Shinra wanted to help restore the world that the company had driven to the ground, still another group who claimed to be experiment survivors began to rebel. To the Turk, it was like re-living the life four years ago, he had to hunt down some people with his partner, and end up getting into a few brawls. Frankly, he preferred the life protecting his boss and running around protecting those kids...He didn't want to remember that. He had to face some freaks who were with Kadaj and blew them up with an explosive.

Ironically, it was quite lonesome being alone for once. The redheaded Turk noticed his partner went missing after going off on his own. The Turks were still stationed in the Shinra Building in their usual place that they hung out. Tseng, Elena, and Rude were gone for the time being, and Reno was given the job to be stationed in their area just in case new orders had suddenly popped out from Tseng's mouth. Shoving a hand into pocket of his black slacks, his eyes slid towards the ticking clock with impatience. At the moment, he really wished this whole calamity shouldn't have been as destructive compared to AVALANCHE's reign.

Really now, a train blowing up, while Reeve Tuesti was giving a speech was being hacked into. A bit extreme wasn't it?

Riiiiing. Riiiiing. Riiiiiiiiiiiing.

Slipping the phone out of his pocket, the Turk placed it to his ear, listening carefully to Tseng's orders. Nodding in brief agreement, Reno had proceeded out to meet up with his fellow Turk members. Immediately, he was rushing to the scene, probably, he was ditched. Or so he had suspected. It took the man quite some time to head to the scene, practically hopping into a helicopter and flying down into the slums. From the air, the Turk could notice that the place was practically a ruin now.

▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁


"Wonder how much those guys had with them. Seems like they wanted this to go all out."

Every piece of material in the facility was charcoal black. Despite it being a day passed since that explosion, the place still had heavy scent of gunpowder. Reno had walked quietly through the place, inspecting it. Kicking down some metal, the Turk found traces of an explosive. Inspecting it from afar, it looked similar to the explosives that Rude would normally make. A crappy looking, yet flashy explosive. Furrowing his eyebrows, the Turk felt a bit defeated at the moment. Nearly the evidence from that explosion were already burnt to a crisp. Nothing much he had to report to Tseng, only that it's been burnt.

Yet, another phone call had rang. This time from his partner, Rude. They had a few leads from some anonymous people who had told Rude at the sake of not being hurt by Elena. Now, a few other Turks were dispatched to find out more information. One saying they might track down a former scientist, while another saying they're probably planning something else. Either way, the Turk had to either go to where that scientist is, or probably get into a fight later on. Still on the phone with his partner, he would probably go find this 'scientist' that used to work for Shinra. Hopping into the helicopter, the Turk was planning to head where this supposebly 'scientist' is.

Costa Del Sol.

[MiiSS HACHiiKO]

┏━━━━━━┓
gιsεℓℓε
┗━━━━━━┛

The woman felt...pissed, in a way. She knew working for that strange scientist would lead her into a horrible path when she got old. After all, if she didn't work for Shinra, she wouldn't do experiments on people. If she didn't do experiments, then she wouldn't have met her boyfriend. If she didn't meet her boyfriend, Alister wouldn't have been born. Well, she was overjoyed she even got a kid in the first place. As her child ran throughout the house, she couldn't help, but to drift off into her own world.

"Alister! Don't get hurt okay?" she shouted.

"Okay, Mama!" her son responded.

Rubbing her temples, Giselle sat there deep in thought. A gentle knock on the door snapped the woman back into reality. Her eyes fluttered, as her eyebrows furrowed. Quietly putting on her shoes, and quickly picking up the playing Alister, Giselle gently went to the door. Her son was sitting in his mother's arms gazing around the place, before noticing some people going around the house. Suspicion arose in Giselle's mind, forcing her to tilt her head thoughtfully. Was it the kid who keeps snatching her child? Or was it...?

Slowly opening the door, Giselle saw a young woman in front of her. Her eyebrows furrowed, as she tried to formulate a clear image of the woman in her head. Did she even see this girl before? She did recall her from somewhere, but couldn't pinpoint where exactly. Her eyes closed for a moment, before feeling her son's tiny fingers jabbing at her face. "I don't know why I don't even remember where I saw her before..." she muttered to herself thoughtfully. Despite it only being two years, she had a feeling it was Shinra-related, then again, she had a feeling it wasn't. By the way her son was looking around, it already seemed like she was going to get captured.

Taking a deep breath, she poked an eye open, looking at her thoughtfully. "Whatever you're here for, kidnapping me or whatever, can you please be careful? I don't want you to hurt my son." she stated with a bit of a blunt tone. Her son tilted his head, as he gently rested his head on his mother's lap. "I'm willing to oblige to whatever, just allow me to take my son with me. He doesn't have any other family who's willing to take him in." she stated, hoping this would just go off good.

┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓

There is no hate, only joy
For you are beloved by the goddess
Hero of the dawn, Healer of worlds

Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul
Pride is lost
Wings stripped away, the end is nigh

-LOVELESS Act II

┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛

[Akai Papillon]

She didn't have to wait long after knocking on the door. Seraphyne crossed her arms, wondering exactly how she was going to do the entire ordeal without so much of a commotion that there would be undue resistance to her leaving. The ex-SOLDIER didn't have long to think. There was a small knife hidden under a fold of clothing that she was certain could have been helpful if all else failed. No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than did the door open to a young woman that looked quite familiar. There was a moment of silence between the two, Seraphyne didn't move her arms, knowing that she would probably be faster at whipping out her weapon if the scientist before her tried to do anything. Mako-clouded eyes stared down the brunette.

Seraphyne was impressed, really. She was expecting more of a reaction. Like screaming. Or rocks. Both would have been reasonable, actually. The dark-haired woman would have focused more on her target, but there was something smaller and more adorable to her perspective. A little boy, young and looking somewhat uneasy. A slight smile tugged at the corners of Seraphyne's mouth as she watched him look around, and she resisted her motherly impulses to pick the boy up. Instead, she turned her attention back to who was undoubtedly the mother. Yes, she could see some of the similarities, but the boy...he looked so familiar in other aspects as well. Seraphyne vaguely wondered what it was that triggered that thought.

"So...you know what I came for..." the women stated coldly. Her mako-clouded eyes sharpened slightly as the scientist made her demands. Seraphyne weighed the thoughts of both sides heavily in her mind. If she brought the child, undoubtedly, there would be issues of having to care for the child, but leaving it there would definitely bring other problems. Like, for instance, "Where is the mother if the child is here?" It was certainly not something that Seraphyne could afford to risk. The ex-SOLDIER gave a slight sigh and then shut her eyes. "I hope you realize that you are not, in fact, in any position to be making demands..." and here there was a moment of hesitation. Her eyes fell onto the two year old boy that the scientist called her son. Another motherly urge that Seraphyne couldn't help but blame on her gender. She looked back at the scientist she was about to abduct. "...but I am not foolish enough to turn you against us. Bring him."

Alright, so it wasn't entirely because she wasn't willing to turn the scientist against the victims, but it was at least partially because of that. There were a few movements as some of the expendables that Seraphyne had brought came into view. A few made as though they were about to grab at their target, but a single hand motion from Seraphyne made the group back down. She shot a look at the scientist. "Follow me. Try anything, and I will not hesitate to make you remember what a SOLDIER can do," Seraphyne claimed with a hint of chilliness tinting the tone of her voice. Things went surprisingly better than expected, really. The ex-SOLDIER suddenly hesitated, stopping in her tracks. It was likely that Shinra was going to send out Turks to check up on scientists, regardless of whether they were "ex"-scientists or not. A scoff escaped from Seraphyne's lips.

"Once a Shinra dog, always a Shinra dog..." she muttered to herself while taking a brisk pace back towards the harbor. She knew that better than most. A throb of pain shot through her head, powerfully enough to make her wince. Regardless, she continued walking, as though nothing had happened.

"Uninstall, uninstall...
Osore wa shiranai
Senshi no youni
Furumau shikanai
Uninstall..."

[Ocular Penetration]

Like making a deal with the devil, sans the horns and tail. More like aNathanial McGrew, the Gnat



What do you caught it when you spent all night awake on high tension alert?

Exhaustion? Hm, hardly seems fitting, near death? Perhaps a little too dramatic, hm.

Nathanial McGrew, once Shinra Grunt turned WRO bodyguard, almost died by swallowing a cigarette when a heavy hand clapped on his back. "Why you gotta look so glum Gnat?! We kept any danger from coming to the higher ups last night! A damn good job done I say, eh, eh?!" The speaker near-coworker-assassin was a big [muscular not fat] guy with guns the size of boulders and bad teeth, his real name was Kaci, but he went by Case saying it was more manly. People called him Rock-Head too, he took it as a compliment, it wasn't.

Then again - was Gnat a better nickname? A question to ponder.

"Of course we kept them alive and fine - no one ever attacked them." All of two people at the loud, rambuctious table of ten stopped to listen to him, Case was not one of those. He was too busy talking loudly about Tifa Lockhart's excellent tits despite the fact that she was totally within hearing distance. As stated, Rock-Head. "Had an actual SOLDIER attacked we would have probably been torn limb from limb and thrown into the trash or something." His face was as code flat-lined as ever while speaking. His audience of two, one a piss drunk coworker and the other Case's lady of the afternoon who not-so-secretly found the piss drunk coworker attractive, just looked at him oddly and then rejoined the group conversation.

McGrew finished his cigarette and lit another with the burning embers of the fallen one.

Seventh Heaven was loud as always - never mind that he was tacked onto the loudest group.

Puff. He had vacation time coming up - Wutai would look nice this time of year.
Puff. Case clapped his back again and McGrew agreed Lockhart had a nice butt, he wasn't listening.
Puff. The cell in his jacket pocket had yet to vibrate which meant his bosses did not need him.
Puff. Not surprising - it was still early in the day, suits never seemed to get out before evening.
Sip. . .or not, his drink was empty, damn.

"Hey Tifa, can I get another bourbon?"

Loudest he'd spoken all evening - empty glass in the air and waving to and fro, cigarette dangling.

It was never too early in the day to be piss drunk if you stayed up all night.

"Why don't you flash 'im while serving his drink Tifa? Heard that's a special offer, he wants it!"

. . .Apparently Rock-Head was much drunker than McGrew, who at least had decency to look sheepish.

Not that he would really mind said special service.

One tries to fly away and the other watches and frowns.


xx