Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Legend of the Final Materia ❯ Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Upon arriving to the conference room, Shukera stepped inside and casually looked around. Three other guys were sitting around the table and looked up at her. She shot them a forceful look, her annoyance clearly shown on her face.

The first guy, Leo, hit the second guy, Ryan, on the shoulder and snickered, "Look, it's the Ice Queen herself. I bet she's colder than Shiva!!" She ignored the comment and took her seat at the table. She waited impatiently for the meeting to start as she thought about the mentality of the new guys joining Soldier lately. All of them seemed pathetically immature.

Several minutes later, Sephiroth walked through the door holding a file in his hand. His presence demanded everyone's undivided attention, which quickly brought silence to the room.

"We are being sent to a place far from here to investigate a problem that has surfaced. This problem concerns our world and theirs." Sephiroth paused as he glanced up to make sure they were paying attention. Leo had a habit of nodding off during briefings, which utterly annoyed him.

Pleased that Leo was still awake, he continued, "We have been invited to meet and learn about an organization called See D. They are asking our assistance in this small matter, which, if not controlled now, can explode into something that we may not be able to handle."

Shukera glared at him as she thought, "What are they up to now??" Adding a cold edge to her voice she snapped, "I see no point in going to some world that has nothing to do with us. It's totally ludicrous."

Sephiroth gazed at her disappointedly, "I was going to ask you to volunteer for this one. You are always complaining that you wanted a mission that was different. Well, this is what you have been waiting for, isn't it?"

Shukera held her hand up in protest. "We are not some political figures who need to be in the middle of logistics or anything like that! We are trained fighters, Soldiers! I think this is something that Turks should be working on!"

The other two soldiers traded a glance. Shukera always complained about the misuse of Soldier during every meeting they had. She was placed in command during Sephiroth's absence, which led to the meteor incident. Her title was immediately stripped from her upon Sephiroth's return. Some of the Soldiers, like Harris, the third Soldier sitting at the table, still addressed her as commander and regarded her as the best commander Soldier ever had. He glared at the others sitting at the table. The misuse of Soldier angered him also.

Sephiroth said nothing as he slid the brown folder to Shukera. She picked up the folder and opened it. Inside were several pictures that had writing on them, explaining who was pictured in each one. Shukera shuffled through them showing no interest. She regarded this whole thing as a waste of time.

"I still don't see and point in us going over there and getting involved with this!" She started to say something else, but froze when she stared at the picture that spread out in front of her. A blonde headed guy, hair cropped short to his head, gray eyes, and a cocky grin. He held a mischievous look about him.

Shukera stared at the picture, studying the face that looked back at her. The picture read: "Seifer Almassy- A strong, gifted fighter who recently returned to Balamb Garden where he is kept under close surveillance for his actions in joining with the Sorceress Ultimecia and almost destroying our world. He is the head of the disciplinary committee."

Shukera stared at the picture as a nagging feeling began building inside her. Something bothered her about this whole thing as a small voice told her this wasn't right.

Shukera's attention became completely focused on the picture as she gently grazed it with her fingertips. She was overcome by an enormous desire to meet this guy. Her fingers remained on the picture as she thought, "A guy who almost destroyed their world…Shin Ra is up to no good again!"

The trance was interrupted when Sephiroth called her name. The edge he carried in his voice quickly grabbed her attention. "Shukera", he snapped, "I said are you going to volunteer for this one?!?!"

Without taking her gaze away from the picture, she answered, "Yeah, I'm going." There was no way she was going to sit back and let Shinra get away with what ever they were planning now!!

Sephiroth eyed her suspiciously, sensing something was up. He thought as he prepared a report. "Why the sudden change of heart? Why do I have the feeling that I cannot trust you with the true intention of this mission?" He narrowed his eyes, a clear sign that he was annoyed. "I guess I will have to take care of this myself."

He gathered the paperwork that lay on the table front of him. "Well, I guess I will have to go to since no one else is volunteering." He gazed at Shukera as she continued to stare at the pictures in her hand. He added sharply, "We are going together Shukera. I suggest you start packing as soon as this briefing is over." Annoyed and angry, Sephiroth left the room.