Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Legend of the Final Materia ❯ Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Once back in her own apartment she realized that everything was beginning to make sense. Tears of anger stung her eyes and burned her face as they fell leaving a damp trail down her cheeks. She was finally able to explain that nagging feeling she held inside for so long. Somehow she knew this was going to happen…eventually. A part of her blamed herself for being the stupid one who trusted and believed in him.

"NOT ANYMORE!!" She told herself. Sephiroth had shown his true colors and for that she was thankful. She had the sudden urge to burst into his apartment and thank him for opening up her eyes. At last she was able to see the great Sephiroth for what he was, deceitful, manipulative, and down right evil.

Standing there in her tears, Shukera decided her mission to Balamb would be to protect Seifer and everyone who lived there. They had used her, betrayed her, and now it was her turn to pay them back. Shin Ra would never have Seifer or Rinoa if she had anything to do with it!! It was time for Shinra's enemy number one to make their appearance.

She dried her tears and grabbed her phone; the time for crying was over. She angrily punched a number and sighed when it took too long for them to answer. After a few rings the person on the other end answered. "Yeah?"

Shukera spat into the phone, "Idiot!! What fucking took you so long to answer the damned phone?? You know I was going to call!!" She sighed knowing she was wasting her breath on him. "Anyway, I need to meet with you like right now! It's urgent! Same place, fifteen minutes, AND DON'T BE LATE!!" She slammed her phone shut and bolted out the door, mumbling about the people she had to work with. "Stupid!! I should have known better than to trust that ass with this!!"

Shrouded by the darkness of the night, Shukera headed to the slums and what was left of Sector 7. Images of what Shin Ra did that night flashed in her head. It was senseless! She was glad that everyone was at least evacuated before the plate dropped. Her reports said as much, though she often wondered. "Goddamned Shin Ra!!"

Shukera passed the destruction of Sector 7, blocking the rubble from her sight. It was just another strike against Shin Ra and became part of the many she had collect and kept track of.

"Get out of my way Idiot!!" She shoved the guy standing outside the Wall Market Inn out of her way and he fell to the ground cursing her. She paid him no mind as she made her way to the pub that sat in the back of the small shabby market place.

Shukera paused as she looked up above her. It still amazed her how quickly Shin Ra rebuilt Midgar. After the Meteor attack, they immediately set out and began reconstruction. After a year Shin Ra quickly moved in and one again claimed the sky by building that damned steel pizza. With nowhere else to go, people once again began moving into the slums, returning to their desolate lives. "Not for long!!" she vowed as she entered the bar.

The owner recognized her right away and without speaking led her to the door to the hidden room, which was reserved for "special" meetings. The owner then set two bottles of liquor on the table and disappeared.

Quickly she took her seat at the table and nodded to the waiting party. "Hey guys, thanks for meeting on such a short notice." She faced them as she lowered her voice, "I have information that needs to be addressed right away. Something I overheard being discussed between Sephiroth and Scarlet."

The three across from her nodded and traded a glance. The scarlet red head spoke up first as he poured himself a drink and snickered, "I was wondering how long it would take that sleazy broad to get her claws into Sephiroth." He downed the shot in one gulp.

Shukera snapped as she grabbed his shirt collar, "Shut the hell up asshole, before I knock you out!!"

The second guy with them who sat with his arm around the girl pulled her hand from his friend's shirt. "Let's get on with it. What did you hear??" He sat back down and once again draped his arm around the girl's shoulder.

Shukera lowered her voice despite the fact that they were the only ones in the room. Walls have ears and shadows carried tales. "We are getting ready to leave for a place called Balamb, on another world. Shin Ra wants some girl named Rinoa and a guy named Seifer, both of which live in this Balamb place. Plus, they want to take over a force known as See D. What can you tell me about that??"

The girl spoke up first, "I can't prove it, but I heard that Hojo is still alive. I heard he has been conducting more experiments with Maco. One of our associates said they saw him recently, or what they think is him. They are trying to get their hands on one of his journals to see if maybe it can tell us where he is."

Shukera gasped, "Hojo?? I thought he died in the meteor attack. How did he stay out of sight for all these years?? No way am I going to believe this!"

The girl shrugged, "From what I hear it's true."

The other guy sitting with them leaned forward and spoke in a low tone, "Rumor has it your friend Aerith was involved in an experiment as well, after her death. She was to be used but she disappeared."

Shukera gasped, "Aerith is alive?? This is crazy! She was killed!!"

The guy shook his head, "That may be true but we have been ordered to find her and bring her back. Someone knows that Aerith is alive and they want her back."

Shukera shook her head in shock, "No!! Aerith is dead!! She was my best friend, if she was alive; she would have contacted me by now!!" The memories of Aerith remained fresh in her mind.

The girl whispered, "You may not know this, but they never found her body. We have been ordered to resume the search to find her because she is believed to still be alive."

Shukera's eyes were wide with shock and disbelief. She had grieved for three years for her friend. One way or the other, she was going to find out who killed her friend, and get revenge for her death. None of her reports were clear on what actually happened to Aerith. Her death remained a mystery.

The girl interrupted her thoughts, "Not if she was hiding out from Hojo. If he is still alive you know he would want her to complete this experiment and you know he will stop at nothing to get her, even if it meant he had to kill her." The girl sighed, "I don't know what it is, but everyone on the streets are talking about it."

Shukera sighed, "I know how much he would want to get his hands on her. It has never changed!! Aerith is an ancient, the only survivor of the entire race."

The guy with his arm draped around the girl's shoulder shook his head. "I'm afraid that's not completely true. That's the other bit of news we had to give you. There is another reason the search was resumed. We don't have concrete evidence, but rumor has it that Aerith has a sister, a twin sister that Shin Ra managed to get their hands on while she was still a baby. Right now we don't have a clue as to who it is or even if it's true."