Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Counterfeit God; Part I ❯ Chapter 10
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Shiratori-Strife Inc 
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Drama / Adventure / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.02.2006 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.8K | Visits: 147 | Status: Completed
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Drama / Adventure / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.02.2006 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.8K | Visits: 147 | Status: Completed
10
Marlene burst through the kitchen door and into the bar, Denzel hot on her heels. Both children seemed to sense that something was wrong. They had both just returned from playing with some of the other children. Vincent was standing at the foot of the stairs as if guarding them. They could hear voices upstairs where Cloud’s room was, meaning that he and Sirius were upstairs. Tifa was staring off into space like she had something much more important on her mind. Barret was pacing back and forth across the floor. Morghann, Reno, Yuffie and Cid were nowhere to be found.
“Tifa.” Marlene’s voice broke the silence. “Where’s Cid?”
The brunette looked up and gave the children a washy smile. “Cid’s going back to Rocket Town for a while. He wants to make sure things are okay with Shera.”
“Where’s Morghann and Reno then?” Denzel asked, not believing this explanation.
It was Vincent who answered them. “Morghann went with Cid. I don’t know if she’ll be coming back. Reno went back to Shinra.”
“Reno and Morghann got in a fight again, didn’t they?” Marlene asked.
Barret nodded at his daughter. “I don’t think she’s going to forgive him this time. He said some really hurtful things on the TV.”
Both children remained silent. What were Morghann and her baby going to do without Reno? Why hadn’t he tried to stop her? Denzel and Marlene were both confused and the boy wanted to ask Cloud about it, but figured that he was busy talking to Sirius about something important. Denzel made a mental note to ask the blonde about it later.
---
Sirius sat with her back facing the door, panting gently as she stared at the floor. Her long white hair hung down her back and over her shoulders, her bangs hiding her right eye. It killed her to know that Reno was telling the truth. Had she revealed what she’d learned, it would only cause more harm than good. The redhead, of course, couldn’t understand this. How could he? He was in such pain from Morghann’s tongue-lashing and she’d been hurt enough. Sirius made it a point to help the couple as much as she could, though she was sure that Reno would be angry with her and probably wouldn’t want to talk to her for some time, if ever. She sensed Cloud standing behind her, but never raised her eyes from the floorboards. It was then that she heard his heavy footsteps and felt the bed beside her sink a bit.
“What’s wrong, Sirius? You took off so suddenly.”
She seemed to hesitate before answering. “Reno. This whole thing with him. I feel horrible.”
“Why?” Cloud asked. “It’s not like it’s your fault.”
Sirius shook her head. “I feel like it is. I read his feelings and thoughts. He was telling the truth. Someone set him up.”
She could feel Cloud’s eyes on her. She had his full attention. “You had a reason for not revealing the truth, did you not?”
“Of course I did!” Sirius exclaimed quickly. “Reno won’t want to hear this logical explanation, but someone has to.”
“Go ahead.”
Taking a deep breath, she began her story, smiling as she felt Cloud’s arms wrap around her. “Morghann is convinced that Reno has been lying to her the entire time. With Morghann, she carries a grudge and doesn’t forget pain that has been inflicted upon her. If I were to tell her that Reno was telling her the truth, she’d have been convinced that I was in on this lie and she’d have said some very hurtful things to me, never forgiving me and thinking that until it was too late. Something bad is going on, Cloud. Someone is trying to distract us.”
It was the blonde’s turn to sigh. “So the tape was doctored? Something to draw attention away from something else perhaps? I don’t know, Sirius. I thought the fighting and the conspiracies were over.”
“It would appear not, Cloud. But, do you understand why I did what I did?” Sirius asked quietly. “I bring nothing but trouble, so it would seem.”
“I do understand, but Sirius, you didn’t cause this. Whatever these people are after has nothing to do with you.” Cloud told her, smoothing her hair. “You shouldn’t think that.”
“I did the right thing, didn’t I? I mean, by not telling the others and Morghann that Reno was telling the truth. It would’ve caused more harm than good, right?” Sirius sighed as she wrapped her arms around his waist. “I’m not so sure now.”
There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “Sirius. You did what you thought was right. There is no questioning it now. I believe in your decision. You should, too.”
Tilting her chin up, Cloud kissed her gently. He had the distinct feeling that in the very near future things would become chaotic. There would be fewer moments like these when it was just the two of them. He had a feeling that she’d be gone again. The blonde fought to keep his body from tensing and relaxed when he felt a gentle push in the corner of his mind. Sirius could read his thoughts after all. She was trying to reassure him without destroying the moment. Cloud silently thanked her for that.
---
The cell that they’d thrown her in was dark and damp. There was no source of light save the florescent bulbs shining in the hallway. Starved and dehydrated, she could barely move. She knew Eko was up to no good. This was merely his way of keeping her quiet. Not that she could do any harm down here. Shera wished desperately that Cid had been in Rocket Town to prevent this from happening. The people of Rocket Town believed that Shera had been possessed by the spirit of Sephiroth and thus agreed with Eko’s plan of an eight day fast. She remembered the events of the previous day clearly enough that they wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. Eko had deemed “unsafe to live amongst society.”
The rain had finally cooled Shera’s burned flesh after seven previous days of no cloud cover. Her stomach had ceased to rumble after the third day, but her throat felt as though it was on fire. Shera opened her eyes when she heard multiple footsteps come onto the altar’s platform. Cracking her eyes open, she saw Eko and two of his followers standing above her. A sinister grin had plastered itself on his visage.
“My dear Shera, will you not forget your fight against us and leave my followers and I in peace? I can make it worth your while.” He whispered, leaning down next to her ear. Her face crinkled in distaste as she spit in his face. Eko’s face contorted in a mask of fury as he pulled away from her. “I can’t afford to have you ruin my plans after I’ve come so far.”
The two men undid Shera’s bindings and heaved her to her feet. The woman could barely stand as the hauled her toward the steps. In the background she heard Eko addressing the crowd.
“My children! This woman, Shera, had refused to release herself from Sephiroth’s grip! The eight days of fasting have proven unable to break his hold on her! Other measures must be taken! She must be destroyed before Sephiroth’s return is brought upon us!”
The crowd shouted madly in agreement as they began to force her down the stairs. At this point Shera began to fight against her captors with what little remaining strength she had left. “Fools! All of you are fools! Don’t you see? Eko’s using you to get some of the most powerful weapons in the world! What would you do if Cid were here, huh? He’d have known this was a trap from the start!”
Her rantings fell on deaf ears as she was dragged through the crowd. None of them cared what happened to her at this point for they would be safe; or so they thought. That was the last time she’d seen the outside world.
Shera pulled her eyes open to when she heard clicking on the stone floor. Eko stood in front of her with a pleased look on his face. She glared at him as she stared up at him from her position on the floor. Something was evidently going his way.
“I have good news.” Eko gloated, crossing his arms over his chest. “My informant in Midgar tells me something that indicates my plan is going perfectly.”
“And what would that be, you bastard?” she spat, her curiosity getting the better of her.
“A man by the name of Cid Highwind has just left Midgar and his heading to a few other destinations before returning to Rocket Town. That would leave Cloud Strife and the others unaware of what’s going on here. Pity you won’t be able to tell him.”
“What are you going to do to Cloud and Tifa! Tell me!” Shera shouted.
“Oh this Tifa is in no danger. I think it’s the Maelstrom girl you should worry about.” Eko laughed as he turned to head back down the corridor.
“Sirius is alive? Wait! What are you going to do to them? Tell me!”
Silence was the only thing that greeted her as she was left alone once more. Still, hope grew within Shera as a small smile placed itself on her lips. Cid was returning to Rocket Town. Hopefully he could save it before it was too late.
---
“I’m glad I could reach you on such short notice. This is Counterfeit God. There’s been a slight change in plans.”
“I’m listening, boss. Things are pretty quiet here in Midgar.”
“I realize that. Thanks to your doctored footage of that buffoon lap dog of Shinra’s, things are going according to plan. I commend you on such work.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“I want you to observe Rufus Shinra and the Turks while you’re there. There’s not doubt that that idiot Reno went back to the others and told them the story. They’ll be looking for any bit of information they can. If things start to get ugly, you know what to do.”
“Yes, sir. What about Strife? They’ll no doubt call him into play before long.”
“Make sure that they don’t. If the Turks are sent to Rocket Town, I’m busted. Also watch Valentine. He may be a Turk that’s been out of commission for a while, but he’s a Turk nonetheless.”
“And Maelstrom?”
“Nothing is to happen to my prize. Watch her, as before. Study her strengths; find out her weaknesses so we’ll know what to play off of when the time comes. Strife is no doubt one of them. In the mean time, I must find the person with a strong connection to the Lifestream. Otherwise my plans will fail. You have your orders, now see to them.”
“Yes, sir. It will be my pleasure.”
---
Rude rubbed his eyes wearily. How many hours had they been studying this damn tape? Sure it had been doctored, but whoever had done it sure knew their stuff. Tseng was handling the technical part of it, so there was less for him to worry about. Still, whoever had wanted to hurt Reno and Morghann had wanted to hurt them bad. This tape was damn near untraceable.
“You found anything yet, Tseng?”
Tseng shook his head. “The only thing I’ve discovered in the last half hour is that the tape was doctored with the help of a laptop, Pentium three processing unit, so they could’ve been anywhere.”
“There’s no way we can search all the laptops in Midgar’s database. That would take us weeks.” Rude sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“I just want to know who would want to split Reno and Morghann up so badly and why.” Tseng answered.
Both of the Turks were silent. Neither of them had an answer for this question. The only obvious answer was that someone was up to no good. Rude smirked. He thought Rufus had been the master of all dirty schemes. The incident with Kadaj had proven that Rufus could indeed occasionally do something for the good of mankind. By hiding Jenova’s head, he’d prevent the recreation of Sephiroth from the very beginning. If he could read minds the way that Sirius could, he’d see that Tseng was thinking the exact same thing he was. At that moment, the door to the small room cracked open. A certain redheaded Turk stepped through it.
“Find anything yet?”
Rude shook his head. “The tap was doctored with a laptop. The model that was used could be one of ten thousand that are in Midgar.”
Reno’s shoulder’s slumped. “I somehow knew you’d say that, Rude. Is there any hope in finding who did it or where?”
“Slim to none.” Was Tseng’s answer. “There’s one thing that’s obvious though, Reno. Either this person has a hidden agenda or their taking orders from someone else.”
“What would ruining my life have to do with a hidden agenda?” Reno snapped, still on edge.
Rude shrugged at this. “Maybe they wanted some type of distraction.”
Tseng whipped his head over to look at Rude. “That’s it! Rude, you’re a genius! They caused the problems between you and Morghann, Reno, to draw attention away from something else! But what, I wonder.”
Reno was now utterly confused by the turn the conversation had taken. “Who would they be distracting? Obviously myself and Morghann, but who else?”
“Think.” Tseng told him. “Who else do you interact with? Who else has a pretty notorious past?”
“Oh God, Cloud!” Reno exclaimed. “Vincent and Sirius too! Something’s going on that they don’t want any of them knowing about.”
“Exactly. Now we just have to figure out what.”
---
Pale light crept through the openings of the drawn blinds, giving light to the stale dark of the office. Rufus Shinra sat behind his desk, elbows resting gently on the wood with his fingers intertwined and his chin resting on them. Since his earlier conversation with Elena, a certain uneasiness had settled over him. Feelings like these had not touched him since he’d taken over the position as president of the once illustrious Shinra Power Company. Rufus snorted in distaste as he recalled past events. Cloud Strife and his misfit band had cost him everything and destroyed Shinra in one move. It was mostly his own fault though. He’d gotten involved with Sephiroth and Jenova and that whole mess with Meteor. Why the hell had he been so stupid? Power.
It was possible that Rufus was trying to protect his power once again. He’d sent Elena to search every possible media entry and death record that was even mildly related to Nobunaga Eko. The man had been positively insane when his father had banished him from Shinra for his “unorthodox” methods. However, he’d been trying what all of the other scientists had wanted to, but was the only one with the balls to actually do it. Rufus remembered that he’d wanted to see subject 55690, Sirius Maelstrom, quite often. Since his father was running Shinra at the point and not him, he’d granted Eko an hour pass to see the girl in all her scientific glory. Later they found out that he’d run all sorts of tests on Sirius within that hour and had gotten the information he wanted. Rufus also recalled an incident where Sirius was almost captured had it not been for the Turks.
Guns were pointed viciously at the subject’s captor. He wore a black mask to hide his face. Sirius was in the person’s arm squirming and wriggling in an attempt to get out. She couldn’t have been any older than six or seven. President Shinra and his son Rufus were standing in an adjoining corridor, watching how the situation turned out. Tseng was in front, followed by Elena, Reno, and Rude.
“Put the girl down and no one gets hurt.” Tseng ordered, taking a step forward.
“Just calm down, Sirius, we’ll have you back in your room in no time.” Elena assured the girl. Immediately, she stopped struggling.
Reno rolled his eyes. “I hate to admit it, but I’d be upset if anything happened to the brat ,yo.” He muttered under his breath. He’d already pulled out his rod and was waiting for the kidnapper to make a move.
Tseng trained his gun on the man’s head, but changed targets when the child was brought in front of it. His kneecap would suffice. Looking to Elena, he nodded. At the silent count of three, Tseng fired the shot while the female Turk rushed forward to secure the child. Reno and Rude also ran to the man who was now on the floor and the redhead ripped his mask off while Rude held him down. Tseng frowned as he looked down in front of him.
“Dr. Nobunaga Eko. What is the meaning of this?”
The fair-haired man looked up at the Turk and sneered. “I needed her for my greatest experiment of all time, but I wasn’t allowed near her. I’d almost had her too.”
“What did you want with Sirius?” Elena asked, holding the child in her arms, though she was surprisingly calm.
“She has the most advanced case of Geostigma that I’ve seen. With Jenova’s cells, and the person who can control the Lifestream, I can create a most terrible weapon.” Eko replied, laughing sardonically.
It was about this time that the president of Shinra and his son made their way down the hall. He glared down at Eko like he was some insect that had caused him much annoyance. Rufus stood silently beside him, attempting to take in this new information. Tseng, Reno, and Rude had the scientist in custody for the moment and had hauled him to his feet. Eko stared back at him with indifference.
“Good work. To think that he almost escaped with 55690 would’ve been dangerous. Make sure that he’s locked up and bring him to my office in three days.”
---
The office of President Shinra was quite posh. Tseng and Elena stood at either end of his desk while Rufus stood behind his father, who was seated behind it. The door pushed open slowly to reveal Eko escorted by Reno and Rude. He was brought to stand in front of the president with the two Turks on either side of him. President Shinra pounded a stack of papers on his desk casually and pushed his glasses up a little further on the bridge of his nose. The man that stood before him was dangerous.
“What ever possessed you to abandon your assigned work for your own goal?” he asked, genuinely curious.
Eko dared a barking laugh. “I saw what power you have, mister president, and decided I wanted that power for myself. The experiment was my own and I discovered the quickest way to obtain that power was to create the ultimate weapon. Nothing could’ve stood in my way.”
The president felt a shudder move through his body. “The it’s good that the Turks apprehended you when they did. That poor child would’ve been a subject in your experiment.”
“You’re a damn hypocrite, Shinra!” Eko roared. “Sirius was an experiment anyway! When she failed to create a successful Sephiroth clone, you tried to create Jenova instead! Hell, you’re using her as a weapon!”
“That’ll be enough!” Shinra shouted back. “For you dangerous experimenting, I hereby banish you, Nobunaga Eko, from Midgar and any and all of the outlying territories surrounding it. Reno and Rude will accompany you to your quarters so that you may pack your belongings and go. If you ever return to Midgar, I’ll have you shot on sight.”
Eko let out a maniacal peel of laughter. His whole body seemed to quiver. “You think you’re so smart, Shinra. This won’t be the last of me! I’ll complete my experiment, don’t you worry about that! Nobunaga Eko will create the ultimate weapon! Then you can witness your own downfall as I take over everything!”
Rufus felt a shiver crawl up his spine as he recalled that insane look that had crossed Eko’s face as Reno and Rude drug him from the office, those maniacal peels of laughter echoing all the way down the hall. The man was certifiably crazy. The current president of Shinra jumped as the phone on his desk rang. He swiftly grabbed it and placed the receiver to his ear.
“Rufus Shinra speaking. Elena. Did you find anything?” he asked. A frown marred his lips at the reply. “No, I don’t want you to quit. Go to all the cities and towns surrounding Midgar and search their records as well. I want to know if Eko’s dead or not. If he’s not, this could be a great problem. He may finally be carrying out his promise.”
---
Pressing the digits into her phone and pressing send, Sirius held it to her ear. It had been a while since she’d heard from Morghann, so she thought it best to call and check on her. When she’d left, Sirius had felt the pain swarming her mind completely as Morghann walked out the door with Cid. God, how she wished she could go back and change all that had happened in the past few days. She knew that that was one wish that would never be granted.
“Hello?”
“You know who this is, Morghann.” She said in a playful tone.
“I don’t know, Sirius, it could’ve been a stalker.” Came the giggle-riddled reply from the other end.
There was a pause in the conversation before Sirius spoke again. “How are you holding up, Morghann? I haven’t talked to you since you left. Is everything alright?”
There was a tired sigh. “As well as can be expected. I just don’t believe him, Sirius. Reno makes a statement like that and expects me not to be angry. I just don’t believe him.”
It was Sirius’s turn to sigh. “I know, Morg. I don’t know what to tell you. Things will work themselves out, I have a feeling. Cliché, I know, but it’s the truth. You shouldn’t worry so much. Reno’s kicking his own ass about this right now. I do believe that Shinra’s got some big search going on for this woman who supposedly did the interview.”
“Is that so? Shinra has to help out his lapdogs every once in a while. What gets me is that Shinra was crazy enough to believe Reno’s story. It pisses me off to know that he chose Shinra over the baby and I.”
“It could be that he’s under pressure.” Sirius told her, pinching the bridge of her nose between her thumb and index finger. “This whole thing with rebuilding Shinra may have him disoriented.”
“Bull shit!” Morghann exclaimed so loud that Sirius had to pull the phone away from her ear. “Don’t take up for him. I know you’re a nice person, Sirius, but I have to draw the line. Reno knew exactly what he was saying and it hurt me. If he thinks that his son and I are a distraction, then I’m removing the distraction. End of story.”
“How’s the baby?” the white-haired woman asked, deciding to change the subject.
“He’s fine. He’s starting to be more active, so I haven’t been sleeping much. I’m glad the Sierra’s a big ship. I have plenty of space to walk. Cid’s way too over protective though.” There was a pause from Morghann’s end. “I’d better go. They’re announcing dinner here and I want to get there before the crew beats me to it. My son needs to eat.”
Sirius let out a soft laugh. “Okay, I’ll let you go eat, Morghann. Call me if you need anything at all, alright? I can still sense your thought pattern, you know.”
It was Morghann who laughed. “I know. I will. Goodnight, Sirius. Keep Cloud in line.”
“Oh Morghann, if you only knew.” She giggled. “Goodnight.”
Sirius closed the phone and stared at it for a while. She wasn’t lying when she’d said that she could still feel Morghann’s thought pattern. There was turmoil intermingled with sadness and pain. She shook her head as she flopped down on the bed that she and Cloud now shared. The blonde had caught wind of Rufus Shinra’s search for the missing reporter and the scouring of all of Midgar’s death records. It had made him uneasy. Who could blame him though? With a quick glimpse of Rufus’s thoughts, she’d found out that he was searching for death records pertaining to one Nobunaga Eko. Sirius shuddered at the thought. She’d never forgotten the man who’d done secret tests on her and then tried to steal her from the compound that she called home for twelve years of her life. She prayed with all her might that Rufus and the Turks would find his name among those that had rejoined the Lifestream. If they didn’t, there was a chance that there could be trouble.
---
Lighting a fresh cigarette, Cid watched the passing clouds from his place on the bridge. He still wanted to beat that redheaded son of bitch to a bloody pulp. That was wrong what he did to Morghann. Sighing, he thought it best not to think of it. He knew that Cloud and Barret both had been upset with him leaving with Morghann in her current condition, but the woman had insisted on going. Who was he to tell her no? Shrugging it off, he ran his list of errands through his head for the millionth time. If he figured it right, it would take about two months to complete the list before making it to Rocket Town. Cid figured that it would be easiest to start with the closest place.
“Alright, boys. Set our bearings to the north. We’re heading to Kalm.”
“Kalm? Why Kalm?” the navigator asked.
“Hell, I don’t know, boy, because it sounds so pretty.” Cid snapped. “Just do it!”
“R-right.” The young man muttered.
Good help was getting so hard to find these days. Cid took another drag of his cigarette. He’d call Cloud or Tifa or even Sirius in a few days to see how things were going. He wouldn’t dare call Yuffie. That brat annoyed him. He wanted to keep a close eye on Shinra’s movements in the next month or so. Cid didn’t trust Rufus Shinra at all.
---
End chapter
Marlene burst through the kitchen door and into the bar, Denzel hot on her heels. Both children seemed to sense that something was wrong. They had both just returned from playing with some of the other children. Vincent was standing at the foot of the stairs as if guarding them. They could hear voices upstairs where Cloud’s room was, meaning that he and Sirius were upstairs. Tifa was staring off into space like she had something much more important on her mind. Barret was pacing back and forth across the floor. Morghann, Reno, Yuffie and Cid were nowhere to be found.
“Tifa.” Marlene’s voice broke the silence. “Where’s Cid?”
The brunette looked up and gave the children a washy smile. “Cid’s going back to Rocket Town for a while. He wants to make sure things are okay with Shera.”
“Where’s Morghann and Reno then?” Denzel asked, not believing this explanation.
It was Vincent who answered them. “Morghann went with Cid. I don’t know if she’ll be coming back. Reno went back to Shinra.”
“Reno and Morghann got in a fight again, didn’t they?” Marlene asked.
Barret nodded at his daughter. “I don’t think she’s going to forgive him this time. He said some really hurtful things on the TV.”
Both children remained silent. What were Morghann and her baby going to do without Reno? Why hadn’t he tried to stop her? Denzel and Marlene were both confused and the boy wanted to ask Cloud about it, but figured that he was busy talking to Sirius about something important. Denzel made a mental note to ask the blonde about it later.
---
Sirius sat with her back facing the door, panting gently as she stared at the floor. Her long white hair hung down her back and over her shoulders, her bangs hiding her right eye. It killed her to know that Reno was telling the truth. Had she revealed what she’d learned, it would only cause more harm than good. The redhead, of course, couldn’t understand this. How could he? He was in such pain from Morghann’s tongue-lashing and she’d been hurt enough. Sirius made it a point to help the couple as much as she could, though she was sure that Reno would be angry with her and probably wouldn’t want to talk to her for some time, if ever. She sensed Cloud standing behind her, but never raised her eyes from the floorboards. It was then that she heard his heavy footsteps and felt the bed beside her sink a bit.
“What’s wrong, Sirius? You took off so suddenly.”
She seemed to hesitate before answering. “Reno. This whole thing with him. I feel horrible.”
“Why?” Cloud asked. “It’s not like it’s your fault.”
Sirius shook her head. “I feel like it is. I read his feelings and thoughts. He was telling the truth. Someone set him up.”
She could feel Cloud’s eyes on her. She had his full attention. “You had a reason for not revealing the truth, did you not?”
“Of course I did!” Sirius exclaimed quickly. “Reno won’t want to hear this logical explanation, but someone has to.”
“Go ahead.”
Taking a deep breath, she began her story, smiling as she felt Cloud’s arms wrap around her. “Morghann is convinced that Reno has been lying to her the entire time. With Morghann, she carries a grudge and doesn’t forget pain that has been inflicted upon her. If I were to tell her that Reno was telling her the truth, she’d have been convinced that I was in on this lie and she’d have said some very hurtful things to me, never forgiving me and thinking that until it was too late. Something bad is going on, Cloud. Someone is trying to distract us.”
It was the blonde’s turn to sigh. “So the tape was doctored? Something to draw attention away from something else perhaps? I don’t know, Sirius. I thought the fighting and the conspiracies were over.”
“It would appear not, Cloud. But, do you understand why I did what I did?” Sirius asked quietly. “I bring nothing but trouble, so it would seem.”
“I do understand, but Sirius, you didn’t cause this. Whatever these people are after has nothing to do with you.” Cloud told her, smoothing her hair. “You shouldn’t think that.”
“I did the right thing, didn’t I? I mean, by not telling the others and Morghann that Reno was telling the truth. It would’ve caused more harm than good, right?” Sirius sighed as she wrapped her arms around his waist. “I’m not so sure now.”
There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “Sirius. You did what you thought was right. There is no questioning it now. I believe in your decision. You should, too.”
Tilting her chin up, Cloud kissed her gently. He had the distinct feeling that in the very near future things would become chaotic. There would be fewer moments like these when it was just the two of them. He had a feeling that she’d be gone again. The blonde fought to keep his body from tensing and relaxed when he felt a gentle push in the corner of his mind. Sirius could read his thoughts after all. She was trying to reassure him without destroying the moment. Cloud silently thanked her for that.
---
The cell that they’d thrown her in was dark and damp. There was no source of light save the florescent bulbs shining in the hallway. Starved and dehydrated, she could barely move. She knew Eko was up to no good. This was merely his way of keeping her quiet. Not that she could do any harm down here. Shera wished desperately that Cid had been in Rocket Town to prevent this from happening. The people of Rocket Town believed that Shera had been possessed by the spirit of Sephiroth and thus agreed with Eko’s plan of an eight day fast. She remembered the events of the previous day clearly enough that they wouldn’t be going away anytime soon. Eko had deemed “unsafe to live amongst society.”
The rain had finally cooled Shera’s burned flesh after seven previous days of no cloud cover. Her stomach had ceased to rumble after the third day, but her throat felt as though it was on fire. Shera opened her eyes when she heard multiple footsteps come onto the altar’s platform. Cracking her eyes open, she saw Eko and two of his followers standing above her. A sinister grin had plastered itself on his visage.
“My dear Shera, will you not forget your fight against us and leave my followers and I in peace? I can make it worth your while.” He whispered, leaning down next to her ear. Her face crinkled in distaste as she spit in his face. Eko’s face contorted in a mask of fury as he pulled away from her. “I can’t afford to have you ruin my plans after I’ve come so far.”
The two men undid Shera’s bindings and heaved her to her feet. The woman could barely stand as the hauled her toward the steps. In the background she heard Eko addressing the crowd.
“My children! This woman, Shera, had refused to release herself from Sephiroth’s grip! The eight days of fasting have proven unable to break his hold on her! Other measures must be taken! She must be destroyed before Sephiroth’s return is brought upon us!”
The crowd shouted madly in agreement as they began to force her down the stairs. At this point Shera began to fight against her captors with what little remaining strength she had left. “Fools! All of you are fools! Don’t you see? Eko’s using you to get some of the most powerful weapons in the world! What would you do if Cid were here, huh? He’d have known this was a trap from the start!”
Her rantings fell on deaf ears as she was dragged through the crowd. None of them cared what happened to her at this point for they would be safe; or so they thought. That was the last time she’d seen the outside world.
Shera pulled her eyes open to when she heard clicking on the stone floor. Eko stood in front of her with a pleased look on his face. She glared at him as she stared up at him from her position on the floor. Something was evidently going his way.
“I have good news.” Eko gloated, crossing his arms over his chest. “My informant in Midgar tells me something that indicates my plan is going perfectly.”
“And what would that be, you bastard?” she spat, her curiosity getting the better of her.
“A man by the name of Cid Highwind has just left Midgar and his heading to a few other destinations before returning to Rocket Town. That would leave Cloud Strife and the others unaware of what’s going on here. Pity you won’t be able to tell him.”
“What are you going to do to Cloud and Tifa! Tell me!” Shera shouted.
“Oh this Tifa is in no danger. I think it’s the Maelstrom girl you should worry about.” Eko laughed as he turned to head back down the corridor.
“Sirius is alive? Wait! What are you going to do to them? Tell me!”
Silence was the only thing that greeted her as she was left alone once more. Still, hope grew within Shera as a small smile placed itself on her lips. Cid was returning to Rocket Town. Hopefully he could save it before it was too late.
---
“I’m glad I could reach you on such short notice. This is Counterfeit God. There’s been a slight change in plans.”
“I’m listening, boss. Things are pretty quiet here in Midgar.”
“I realize that. Thanks to your doctored footage of that buffoon lap dog of Shinra’s, things are going according to plan. I commend you on such work.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“I want you to observe Rufus Shinra and the Turks while you’re there. There’s not doubt that that idiot Reno went back to the others and told them the story. They’ll be looking for any bit of information they can. If things start to get ugly, you know what to do.”
“Yes, sir. What about Strife? They’ll no doubt call him into play before long.”
“Make sure that they don’t. If the Turks are sent to Rocket Town, I’m busted. Also watch Valentine. He may be a Turk that’s been out of commission for a while, but he’s a Turk nonetheless.”
“And Maelstrom?”
“Nothing is to happen to my prize. Watch her, as before. Study her strengths; find out her weaknesses so we’ll know what to play off of when the time comes. Strife is no doubt one of them. In the mean time, I must find the person with a strong connection to the Lifestream. Otherwise my plans will fail. You have your orders, now see to them.”
“Yes, sir. It will be my pleasure.”
---
Rude rubbed his eyes wearily. How many hours had they been studying this damn tape? Sure it had been doctored, but whoever had done it sure knew their stuff. Tseng was handling the technical part of it, so there was less for him to worry about. Still, whoever had wanted to hurt Reno and Morghann had wanted to hurt them bad. This tape was damn near untraceable.
“You found anything yet, Tseng?”
Tseng shook his head. “The only thing I’ve discovered in the last half hour is that the tape was doctored with the help of a laptop, Pentium three processing unit, so they could’ve been anywhere.”
“There’s no way we can search all the laptops in Midgar’s database. That would take us weeks.” Rude sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“I just want to know who would want to split Reno and Morghann up so badly and why.” Tseng answered.
Both of the Turks were silent. Neither of them had an answer for this question. The only obvious answer was that someone was up to no good. Rude smirked. He thought Rufus had been the master of all dirty schemes. The incident with Kadaj had proven that Rufus could indeed occasionally do something for the good of mankind. By hiding Jenova’s head, he’d prevent the recreation of Sephiroth from the very beginning. If he could read minds the way that Sirius could, he’d see that Tseng was thinking the exact same thing he was. At that moment, the door to the small room cracked open. A certain redheaded Turk stepped through it.
“Find anything yet?”
Rude shook his head. “The tap was doctored with a laptop. The model that was used could be one of ten thousand that are in Midgar.”
Reno’s shoulder’s slumped. “I somehow knew you’d say that, Rude. Is there any hope in finding who did it or where?”
“Slim to none.” Was Tseng’s answer. “There’s one thing that’s obvious though, Reno. Either this person has a hidden agenda or their taking orders from someone else.”
“What would ruining my life have to do with a hidden agenda?” Reno snapped, still on edge.
Rude shrugged at this. “Maybe they wanted some type of distraction.”
Tseng whipped his head over to look at Rude. “That’s it! Rude, you’re a genius! They caused the problems between you and Morghann, Reno, to draw attention away from something else! But what, I wonder.”
Reno was now utterly confused by the turn the conversation had taken. “Who would they be distracting? Obviously myself and Morghann, but who else?”
“Think.” Tseng told him. “Who else do you interact with? Who else has a pretty notorious past?”
“Oh God, Cloud!” Reno exclaimed. “Vincent and Sirius too! Something’s going on that they don’t want any of them knowing about.”
“Exactly. Now we just have to figure out what.”
---
Pale light crept through the openings of the drawn blinds, giving light to the stale dark of the office. Rufus Shinra sat behind his desk, elbows resting gently on the wood with his fingers intertwined and his chin resting on them. Since his earlier conversation with Elena, a certain uneasiness had settled over him. Feelings like these had not touched him since he’d taken over the position as president of the once illustrious Shinra Power Company. Rufus snorted in distaste as he recalled past events. Cloud Strife and his misfit band had cost him everything and destroyed Shinra in one move. It was mostly his own fault though. He’d gotten involved with Sephiroth and Jenova and that whole mess with Meteor. Why the hell had he been so stupid? Power.
It was possible that Rufus was trying to protect his power once again. He’d sent Elena to search every possible media entry and death record that was even mildly related to Nobunaga Eko. The man had been positively insane when his father had banished him from Shinra for his “unorthodox” methods. However, he’d been trying what all of the other scientists had wanted to, but was the only one with the balls to actually do it. Rufus remembered that he’d wanted to see subject 55690, Sirius Maelstrom, quite often. Since his father was running Shinra at the point and not him, he’d granted Eko an hour pass to see the girl in all her scientific glory. Later they found out that he’d run all sorts of tests on Sirius within that hour and had gotten the information he wanted. Rufus also recalled an incident where Sirius was almost captured had it not been for the Turks.
Guns were pointed viciously at the subject’s captor. He wore a black mask to hide his face. Sirius was in the person’s arm squirming and wriggling in an attempt to get out. She couldn’t have been any older than six or seven. President Shinra and his son Rufus were standing in an adjoining corridor, watching how the situation turned out. Tseng was in front, followed by Elena, Reno, and Rude.
“Put the girl down and no one gets hurt.” Tseng ordered, taking a step forward.
“Just calm down, Sirius, we’ll have you back in your room in no time.” Elena assured the girl. Immediately, she stopped struggling.
Reno rolled his eyes. “I hate to admit it, but I’d be upset if anything happened to the brat ,yo.” He muttered under his breath. He’d already pulled out his rod and was waiting for the kidnapper to make a move.
Tseng trained his gun on the man’s head, but changed targets when the child was brought in front of it. His kneecap would suffice. Looking to Elena, he nodded. At the silent count of three, Tseng fired the shot while the female Turk rushed forward to secure the child. Reno and Rude also ran to the man who was now on the floor and the redhead ripped his mask off while Rude held him down. Tseng frowned as he looked down in front of him.
“Dr. Nobunaga Eko. What is the meaning of this?”
The fair-haired man looked up at the Turk and sneered. “I needed her for my greatest experiment of all time, but I wasn’t allowed near her. I’d almost had her too.”
“What did you want with Sirius?” Elena asked, holding the child in her arms, though she was surprisingly calm.
“She has the most advanced case of Geostigma that I’ve seen. With Jenova’s cells, and the person who can control the Lifestream, I can create a most terrible weapon.” Eko replied, laughing sardonically.
It was about this time that the president of Shinra and his son made their way down the hall. He glared down at Eko like he was some insect that had caused him much annoyance. Rufus stood silently beside him, attempting to take in this new information. Tseng, Reno, and Rude had the scientist in custody for the moment and had hauled him to his feet. Eko stared back at him with indifference.
“Good work. To think that he almost escaped with 55690 would’ve been dangerous. Make sure that he’s locked up and bring him to my office in three days.”
---
The office of President Shinra was quite posh. Tseng and Elena stood at either end of his desk while Rufus stood behind his father, who was seated behind it. The door pushed open slowly to reveal Eko escorted by Reno and Rude. He was brought to stand in front of the president with the two Turks on either side of him. President Shinra pounded a stack of papers on his desk casually and pushed his glasses up a little further on the bridge of his nose. The man that stood before him was dangerous.
“What ever possessed you to abandon your assigned work for your own goal?” he asked, genuinely curious.
Eko dared a barking laugh. “I saw what power you have, mister president, and decided I wanted that power for myself. The experiment was my own and I discovered the quickest way to obtain that power was to create the ultimate weapon. Nothing could’ve stood in my way.”
The president felt a shudder move through his body. “The it’s good that the Turks apprehended you when they did. That poor child would’ve been a subject in your experiment.”
“You’re a damn hypocrite, Shinra!” Eko roared. “Sirius was an experiment anyway! When she failed to create a successful Sephiroth clone, you tried to create Jenova instead! Hell, you’re using her as a weapon!”
“That’ll be enough!” Shinra shouted back. “For you dangerous experimenting, I hereby banish you, Nobunaga Eko, from Midgar and any and all of the outlying territories surrounding it. Reno and Rude will accompany you to your quarters so that you may pack your belongings and go. If you ever return to Midgar, I’ll have you shot on sight.”
Eko let out a maniacal peel of laughter. His whole body seemed to quiver. “You think you’re so smart, Shinra. This won’t be the last of me! I’ll complete my experiment, don’t you worry about that! Nobunaga Eko will create the ultimate weapon! Then you can witness your own downfall as I take over everything!”
Rufus felt a shiver crawl up his spine as he recalled that insane look that had crossed Eko’s face as Reno and Rude drug him from the office, those maniacal peels of laughter echoing all the way down the hall. The man was certifiably crazy. The current president of Shinra jumped as the phone on his desk rang. He swiftly grabbed it and placed the receiver to his ear.
“Rufus Shinra speaking. Elena. Did you find anything?” he asked. A frown marred his lips at the reply. “No, I don’t want you to quit. Go to all the cities and towns surrounding Midgar and search their records as well. I want to know if Eko’s dead or not. If he’s not, this could be a great problem. He may finally be carrying out his promise.”
---
Pressing the digits into her phone and pressing send, Sirius held it to her ear. It had been a while since she’d heard from Morghann, so she thought it best to call and check on her. When she’d left, Sirius had felt the pain swarming her mind completely as Morghann walked out the door with Cid. God, how she wished she could go back and change all that had happened in the past few days. She knew that that was one wish that would never be granted.
“Hello?”
“You know who this is, Morghann.” She said in a playful tone.
“I don’t know, Sirius, it could’ve been a stalker.” Came the giggle-riddled reply from the other end.
There was a pause in the conversation before Sirius spoke again. “How are you holding up, Morghann? I haven’t talked to you since you left. Is everything alright?”
There was a tired sigh. “As well as can be expected. I just don’t believe him, Sirius. Reno makes a statement like that and expects me not to be angry. I just don’t believe him.”
It was Sirius’s turn to sigh. “I know, Morg. I don’t know what to tell you. Things will work themselves out, I have a feeling. Cliché, I know, but it’s the truth. You shouldn’t worry so much. Reno’s kicking his own ass about this right now. I do believe that Shinra’s got some big search going on for this woman who supposedly did the interview.”
“Is that so? Shinra has to help out his lapdogs every once in a while. What gets me is that Shinra was crazy enough to believe Reno’s story. It pisses me off to know that he chose Shinra over the baby and I.”
“It could be that he’s under pressure.” Sirius told her, pinching the bridge of her nose between her thumb and index finger. “This whole thing with rebuilding Shinra may have him disoriented.”
“Bull shit!” Morghann exclaimed so loud that Sirius had to pull the phone away from her ear. “Don’t take up for him. I know you’re a nice person, Sirius, but I have to draw the line. Reno knew exactly what he was saying and it hurt me. If he thinks that his son and I are a distraction, then I’m removing the distraction. End of story.”
“How’s the baby?” the white-haired woman asked, deciding to change the subject.
“He’s fine. He’s starting to be more active, so I haven’t been sleeping much. I’m glad the Sierra’s a big ship. I have plenty of space to walk. Cid’s way too over protective though.” There was a pause from Morghann’s end. “I’d better go. They’re announcing dinner here and I want to get there before the crew beats me to it. My son needs to eat.”
Sirius let out a soft laugh. “Okay, I’ll let you go eat, Morghann. Call me if you need anything at all, alright? I can still sense your thought pattern, you know.”
It was Morghann who laughed. “I know. I will. Goodnight, Sirius. Keep Cloud in line.”
“Oh Morghann, if you only knew.” She giggled. “Goodnight.”
Sirius closed the phone and stared at it for a while. She wasn’t lying when she’d said that she could still feel Morghann’s thought pattern. There was turmoil intermingled with sadness and pain. She shook her head as she flopped down on the bed that she and Cloud now shared. The blonde had caught wind of Rufus Shinra’s search for the missing reporter and the scouring of all of Midgar’s death records. It had made him uneasy. Who could blame him though? With a quick glimpse of Rufus’s thoughts, she’d found out that he was searching for death records pertaining to one Nobunaga Eko. Sirius shuddered at the thought. She’d never forgotten the man who’d done secret tests on her and then tried to steal her from the compound that she called home for twelve years of her life. She prayed with all her might that Rufus and the Turks would find his name among those that had rejoined the Lifestream. If they didn’t, there was a chance that there could be trouble.
---
Lighting a fresh cigarette, Cid watched the passing clouds from his place on the bridge. He still wanted to beat that redheaded son of bitch to a bloody pulp. That was wrong what he did to Morghann. Sighing, he thought it best not to think of it. He knew that Cloud and Barret both had been upset with him leaving with Morghann in her current condition, but the woman had insisted on going. Who was he to tell her no? Shrugging it off, he ran his list of errands through his head for the millionth time. If he figured it right, it would take about two months to complete the list before making it to Rocket Town. Cid figured that it would be easiest to start with the closest place.
“Alright, boys. Set our bearings to the north. We’re heading to Kalm.”
“Kalm? Why Kalm?” the navigator asked.
“Hell, I don’t know, boy, because it sounds so pretty.” Cid snapped. “Just do it!”
“R-right.” The young man muttered.
Good help was getting so hard to find these days. Cid took another drag of his cigarette. He’d call Cloud or Tifa or even Sirius in a few days to see how things were going. He wouldn’t dare call Yuffie. That brat annoyed him. He wanted to keep a close eye on Shinra’s movements in the next month or so. Cid didn’t trust Rufus Shinra at all.
---
End chapter