Rufus and Cloud

The seconds, minutes, and hours of each day went by without heed to the people that wished time could stand still. Time did not stop for anyone, from the most innocent child to the most demented, evil soul in the world. It was because of this that the wishes of a single Turk were not even considered by time. It was because of this that Rufus Shinra eventually awakened from his state of unconsciousness.

It had been four days since the Reunion at the Northern Crater.

Like any best friend, Reno was at the young President's side within an hour of hearing he was awake. He almost staggered in, weary with past worry and stiff with present satisfaction. Elena was right behind him, having pushed him through the doorway in her excitement. The two rushed to the bedside, eyes on the battered face of their friend. Bandages had been wrapped around his forehead and a cast adorned his right arm, but he managed a faint smile for the Turks.

"How're you feeling, Ruf?" Reno whispered, grinning slightly at the younger man. "Man, you had us worried there."

"I've felt better," Rufus replied. "To be completely honest, this is worse than that Jenova attack."

"I swear, Rufus, you're always throwing yourself right into danger," chided Elena, reaching down and squeezing the President's good hand. "Don't do that again, please."

Rufus chuckled dryly. "I'll try not to . . . but Cloud's always getting in trouble. As long as he's getting himself into a hot spot, I'll be keeping a record in the hospital."

"Stupid Ruf . . . always making jokes at the bad times and never the good times," Reno sighed, crossing his arms and shaking his head. "You've gotta work on your timing."

"Maybe when I'm not busy. . . What's been happening? What happened after I blacked out?"

"Heidegger got Cloud to take over the mission, and we hightailed it out of the crater," reported Reno. "AVALANCHE got on with us and we headed for Junon. All the execs and Cloud got off there with the rebels and Rude and I were ordered to bring you back here, to Midgar."

". . . Is that it? What about Sephiroth?" At the moment, AVALANCHE wasn't a large threat. Sephiroth had to be neutralized and, if necessary, destroyed utterly.

The two Turks gave each other troubled glances. It was Elena that spoke. "A large object has been seen in the sky since the incident at the crater."

Rufus looked skeptical. "A large object? What are you talking about. . .?"

Reno stepped away for a moment, picking up a manila folder he had left in the room the day before. He opened it and handed its contents to Rufus. "This, Ruf. This is what we're talking about."

Using his good hand, the President of Shinra shifted through the folder's contents, which were actually large pictures. They all captured the same object -- a huge, red sphere-like something that hung in the air and caused the sky to bleed a bright scarlet. ". . . What is it?" murmured Rufus.

"Hojo faxed the pictures over from Junon, along with some letters. . . He calls the thing . . . Meteor."

"Meteor?"

Elena answered with a nod. "A lot of people started panicking when they saw it. Cloud made a broadcast announcing that we'd do something to stop the Meteor."

Rufus frowned. "Insane."

"My thoughts exactly," Elena sighed. ". . . But we can talk about that unpleasant business later. How long did the doctors say you'll be in here?"

"Well. . ." Rufus trailed off, then let out a sigh. "They want me to stay in bed for another week. According to the x-rays, I almost broke my spine in the cave-in."

Reno winced visibly. "Ugh. That's not good."

Rufus' frown turned into a wry smile. "Tell me about it."

Hojo settled himself in the chair, making himself comfortable as the door to the office opened. He swiveled in the chair, smirking broadly as he saw Cloud Shinra and Scarlet Cassidi walk into the room. "Well, look who it is," he chuckled. "My loyal servants."

Scarlet walked over to the desk and stood before it while Cloud shut the door. He then walked over to the desk as well, even though it was his desk and chair that Hojo had taken over. The wily old scientist spun the chair again, turning it to face the ocean of Junon. No one spoke for a long moment. Then, "Well, out with it. . . What is AVALANCHE doing now?"

Cloud blinked slowly, then reported in an unemotional monotone, "Many of them have fled from the Junon headquarters. The only ones remaining in our custody are Barret Wallace, AVALANCHE leader, and Tifa Lockheart. She has been unconscious since the incident at the Northern Crater."

". . . Are they aware of the fact that they are actually prisoners?" queried Hojo. He adjusted the band on his wrist and played with the Manipulation Materia equipped in it.

"No," replied Scarlet, her voice lacking emotion as well. "They are completely unaware."

"Good. . . Perhaps it is time that we--" He was interrupted by a large explosion that rocked the whole base, sending him tumbling out of the chair and onto the floor. Cloud and Scarlet remained unperturbed by the explosion, quietly regaining their footing and standing still. "Dammit!" cursed the scientist, adjusting his glasses and glaring out into the water. "Is it that Weapon again??"

"Emergency! Emergency!" rang a voice over the intercoms. "The Weapon has been seem coming in the direction of Junon! All military personnel: take your positions! Repeat: take your positions! This is not a drill!"

"I don't believe this. . . This is the second time this week!" growled Hojo. "Cloud, Scarlet, go! No doubt Heidegger will come hunting you down. . ."

The two nodded vacantly, turned, and were out the door. Hojo returned his attention to the waters outside Junon, catching sight of the water's surface trembling. Sapphire Weapon had come once again.

". . . Damn."

Elena looked up from where she was getting coffee for herself, seeing Reno on his PHS. She neared him, shooting him a questioning look as he continued to listen to whoever it was over on the other end. After a few moments, the red-haired Turk turned off his PHS and looked at her seriously. "That was Heidegger," he sighed.

"What did he want?" asked Elena.

"He just wanted to let me know that Junon was attacked again . . . by that damned Weapon. Thankfully, no one was hurt this time."

The young woman bit her lip, remembering the number of casualties there had been the first time the Weapon had attacked. "Does Rufus know?" she managed, adjusting her grip on her cup. "I mean . . . about the Weapon?"

Reno shook his head. "'Never told him," he admitted. "Maybe I should have, huh?"

". . . That would have been a good idea," agreed the rookie Turk. She turned to walk down the hall. "Come on. Let's go tell him together."

Frowning, Reno followed silently, unable to think of a joke during such a time. I get the bad feeling that these are gonna be dark days for Shinra Incorporated. . ., he thought glumly.

The week finally ended, things slowly returning to normal. The Weapon attack had knocked out most of the power in Junon, slowing down Hojo's plans even further. By the end of the week, three days after the last Weapon attack, power had been completely restored to the city.

Sadly, Monday brought no luck for the Shinra.

"Uhhnn. . ."

"Huh?" Barret Wallace straightened, hurrying to the girl that was moaning.

Tifa Lockheart threw her hand over her eyes, trying to protect her vision against the powerful lights that loomed over her. "The glare. . ."

"You'll be better soon," assured the dark-skinned man, laying his one hand on her forehead. "You've been asleep a long time."

"I'm hungry. . ."

Barret was quiet for a moment, his Tifa felt his hand leave her forehead. Then, "Hey, why don't you ask?" His voice was farther away, but still audible. "About him. . . You're just stalling."

The twenty-year old sighed, rubbing her eyes as she sat up. Barret had walked over to the far wall of the metal room they were in, leaning against it with his arms crossed. She rubbed one arm awkwardly. ". . . Because I'm scared."

"Don't worry. I don't know what happened to Zack either." Barret sighed and scratched his head, frowning sadly. "Guess I shouldn't tell you not to worry. . . None of them know if he's all right or not."

"He's still . . . alive, right?" She watched the man pause, then nod. Not good. He had no idea if Zack truly was and was only trying to comfort her. She decided not to press with the matter, changing the subject easily. "How long . . . was I asleep?"

"Must've been about seven days. 'Was afraid you'd never wake up."

". . . . What about Sephiroth?"

Barret again walked over to the bed, smiling grimly at his friend and companion. "You ain't over it yet. Remember that huge light, in the Northern Crater?" Tifa was slowly nodding, shifting into a more comfortable position on the table she had been sleeping on. "Since then, the crater's been surrounded by a huge barrier of light. Everyone knows Sephiroth sleeps in that big hole, protected by the barrier. We can't do a damn thing about it. We just gotta wait 'til he wakes up." Barret crossed his arms and turned away, his dark eyes glaring into the wall. "And on topa that, some huge monster called Weapon's been on a rampage."

Tifa blinked in confusion. ". . . Weapon?"

Barret nodded and turned to face her again. "Remember that huge monster that was made with Sephiroth, at the bottom of the crater? Well, it's up here now. They say it's some legendary monster from the past."

"Weapon . . . is protecting Sephiroth?"

The rebel leader shook his head. "We dunno. But he's up here goin' around tearin' shit up. Right now that Shinra kid's fightin' it. I hate to say it, but he's got guts. We shoulda been the ones to destroy it, but we ain't got no time. . ."

"Shinra. . ." Tifa snapped her head up. "Cloud? Isn't it Cloud Shinra?"

A frown marred the older man's face, but he nodded gruffly. "The other one's back in Midgar."

". . . He was hurt," Tifa remembered. "He-- he saved Cloud." She took a deep breath, trying to figure out her thoughts. "Barret, tell me. . . Do you think Shinra's workers are evil?"

"Kinda hard not to think that," muttered Barret. "They suck the life outta the Planet."

"But . . . but Rufus saved Cloud." Tifa bit her lip worriedly. "Evil people don't save each other, do they? They'd only care about themselves, wouldn't they?"

". . . . . ." Barret snorted. ". . . . Ya might wanna see this." He walked a little farther away and pushed a button in the wall, the window shades sliding open in response. Tifa's eyes widened as she gazed up at a frightening ball of fire that hung in the sky, burning brightly. "Meteor."

She swallowed hard. "Do we have to give up?"

The other was silent for a long moment. ". . . Dunno."

The door abruptly hissed open, a familiar form walking in. Cloud glanced at the two uncaringly, crossing his arms over his chest. "I thought Zack would show up to save you all. . . Professor Hojo wanted to check up on him, too."

Tifa stiffened, gripping the table underneath her as she gazed at the spiky-haired young man. He really couldn't be that much older than her. . . Maybe a year older? "What are you going to do to Zack?"

"Sephiroth's alter ego. . .," Cloud muttered, almost to himself. A faint smirk found its way to his lips. "Meteor has been summoned. . . Essentially, it's all but over now. So . . . there's no need for you now." He glanced upward, his eyes resting on the ceiling for a brief moment. "No, maybe there is an important task for you. . .," he reconsidered.

Heidegger strode into the room, frowning quite deeply as he beheld the scene before him. "Mr. Vice President! Preparations for the public execution are complete."

"Execution!?" Barret shouted, jumping up in shock. "What're ya gonna get by executin' us?"

Cloud fingered a few strands of his hair. "You are to be executed for causing this situation," he explained nonchalantly. "People are ignorant. They'll feel better as long as someone is punished."

Barret charged forward, glaring straight into the shorter man. "I take back what little praise I had for this damn jackass!"

Cloud remained unfazed, gazing right into the dark eyes of the AVALANCHE leader. "Well, enjoy your last moments together." The slight smirk returning to his lips, he turned heel and left the room without another word.

Heidegger glanced back at the young Vice President, still disturbed by his strange behavior. Shaking his head, he turns back to the two AVALANCHE members. "I'll tie your arms now." Walking behind Barret, he cuffs him, then does the same with Tifa. Then he ushered the two out of the room, a guard leading the way down through the base.

Scarlet glanced over at the door as Barret and Tifa were led in. "Is everyone here? These are the ones who brought this madness into the world!"

She pointed an accusing finger at the two, several people with cameras shifting to air their cameras at Barret. The black man glared. "The hell are these people?"

A dark, unfriendly smirk broke Scarlet's face. "We will be broadcasting your miserable deaths live on national television."

In the crowd consisting of guards, citizens, and cameramen, a big, round man called out. "Scarlet, why a public execution in this day and age?"

Scarlet stepped from the podium she stood on toward a door to the corner of the room. "With the chaos resulting from the Meteor reports, we desperately need to rally public support. . . It's better that we punish somebody, anybody."

Tifa frowned angrily. "You make me sick. . ."

Scarlet laughed, vicious green eyes focusing on the younger woman as cameras swiveled to face her. "Kya, ha, ha, ha! They'll never admit it, but everyone loves this stuff!" She pointed at Tifa. "We'll start with the girl."

Barret instantly objected. "If you've gotta do it . . . do me first!"

Another laugh erupted from the red-dressed woman. "Camera, this way! Make sure you get this, the audience just eats up tearful goodbyes!"

One cameraman aimed his camera at Barret as Scarlet grabbed Tifa, shoving her into the gas chamber. Tifa winced and tried to get up. "What are you doing!?"

Scarlet blew a few strands of hair from her line of sight. "This is my special gas chamber. Take your time and enjoy a slow, painful death." A guard appeared from the door and removed the bonds on Tifa's wrists. Before the other woman could react, Scarlet pushed her down into the chair. The guard fastened Tifa into the seat. Scarlet sneered. "Stuck up ^%$#&!!" Scarlet slapped Tifa across the face and left the room. The guard followed, but accidentally dropped something as he exited. Tifa's gaze snapped onto it instantly.

It was a key.

"Emergency! Emergency! Weapon's approaching! Attention all military personnel: take your positions!"

Heidegger sprinted into the room that served as both a work area and the office of the head of Junon -- presently, Cloud. He swallowed hard and looked strode over to his side. "It's Weapon."

Cloud nodded absently, not even noting the fact that Heidegger had announced the obvious. He simply continued to stare out the large, picture window that was at the back of the office. "There's been so many attacks lately. . . Can we handle it?"

"I believe so. Your orders?"

Flat, blue eyes focused on Heidegger's hazel. "No need to ask."

Heidegger snapped a salute, although questions rushed through his head. This isn't at all like Cloud. . . Is he still worried about Rufus? . . . That must be it. Yes, it must be. He turned to watch three sailors dash into the room. "We'll give it a shot from our big cannon." He clenched his hand into a fist and pumped it into the air. "Open cannon doors!! Activate cannon. Target: Weapon!!"

The three sailors rushed off, and soon after the sounds of plates sliding and guns aiming came to their ears -- it was so loud. One sailor sprinted in, saluting. "Preparations complete, General Heidegger!"

The green-suited general nodded curtly. "The cannon. . ." He frowned and thrust his fist forward, pointing out to the water through the window.

"Fire!!!"

Through the window, a huge beam of green Mako energy could be seen being shot out into the sea. It disappeared into the horizon, only to be replaced by a gigantic explosion that rocked the city of Junon. From the explosion came tidal waves that spilt in all directions. Heidegger took a deep breath, slowly lowering his arm. Several moments of tense silence passed in the room, no one daring to speak.

It was Cloud, apathetically turning his head to face Heidegger, that finally spoke. "Did we get it?" he queried, his arms still crossed.

"Seems so. . .," Heidegger whispered.

Just then, a blaring alarm rang through the base. Heidegger winced visibly.

"Weapon approaching! Speed, 50 knots! It's heading right toward us!"

Heidegger looked frantically at the Vice President. "It can't be! We hit it dead on!"

Cloud frowned, turning completely towards the older man. "How about the Sister Ray?"

"It'll take time to reload," the man replied, running a hand worriedly over his scarred face.

An annoyed look crossed the young man's face, and Heidegger was suddenly unsure whether he faced Rufus or Cloud Shinra. The glare he received stung him deeply. "Then use regular firepower in the mean time!" he hissed, blue eyes slit angrily.

Heidegger swallowed hard and ran for the door. "Yes sir! Open all artillery doors! Target: Weapon! Don't let it land!"

Through the window, Cloud could see a the huge, shining creature that swam through the water, straight towards the base. He could hear the sounds as soldiers and small cannons alike fired upon the beast, all unable to stop the raging Weapon. Soldiers unleashed bazookas as the Weapon came closer, still unable to dent the monster. Cloud frowned and shook his head.

"Speed: 70 knots! Weapon closing in!" blared the voice over the intercom. ". . . Not good! It's attacking!"

Cloud continued to stare at the racing creature as it prepared to ram right into the Junon base.

He had no intention of moving, let alone run for his life. It was no longer his decision whether he lived or died.

Hojo made all his decisions now.

On to Chapter 13.

Back to Rufus and Cloud.