Merging Journeys

Author's note: Please keep in mind that nearly all characters in this story belong to Squaresoft and that I'm using the characters without permission from the creators. So please, do not sue me for what I'm doing. Thank you.

Started: April 8 (10), 1998

Finished: May 5, 1998

Cid Highwind groaned as he regained consciousness. Feeling was slowly returning to his body as he continued to blink slowly, eyeing his surroundings. He clenched his fists as he sat up, looking all around him to find himself surrounded by filth and twisted scrap metal. Cid mumbled obscenities as he got to his feet, moving through the garbage that was common in the Midgar slums. The pilot growled a curse when he felt himself being held back, and he spun around, finding his torn up parachute caught in numerous places. He tore the parachute pack off his back before going on, looking around wearily for either friends or foes.

"Barret?" he called out. "Cloud!? Where are you guys!?"

The pilot continued on, finally picking himself out of the maze of metal and getting to the dirty roads of the slums. It was near the road that he found the Venus Gospel buried hilt deep in the dirt. Cid muttered things to himself as he pulled the spear out, strapping it to his back before going on. He walked for another ten minutes before he found an unconscious Barret tangled up in his parachute. Cid quickly rushed to his companion, slicing away the parachute with his spear.

"Hey, Barret!" he shouted, kneeling next to the large man. "Dammit, wake up!!"

Barret's eyes flickered open and the black man muttered something that wasn't quite audible. It took Barret a few moments to shake off his disorientation, his eyes finally focused on Cid. "What the hell--?" he mumbled, sitting up. "Cid? Where the hell are we?"

Cid shook his head. "'Don't know," he replied. "All I know is that we're in the slums now." He looked around. "Where's Cloud?"

The large man frowned as he stood up. "I can't remember if I was still holding him when dat shitty monster blew up."

"We've gotta find him," Cid said, quickly starting again through the rubble. Barret stared at him for a moment, then he started going through the rubble as well.

Tseng stared back at the ship that he and Clucky had passed on their way to the northern continent. It had been heading towards Junon, the harbor city that housed the large cannon, the Sister Ray. Or, used to. The Sister Ray no longer was at Junon, which had surprised Tseng greatly; knowing Scarlet, the woman wouldn't let anyone touch the ray without her permission. Heidegger was also extra protective about the cannon, as it was the most powerful weapon in Shinra's possession. Tseng believed that either the Sister Ray had been taken out by something, or that Heidegger and Scarlet had bitten the dust. He had to go with the assumption that the two executives were dead; what could possibly be strong enough to take out the Sister Ray?

"I've found him, Cid!!" Barret shouted. "Cloud's over here!!"

Barret didn't have to yell twice; within a minute, Cid was at his side. The older man blinked, noticing that Cid once again had a cigarette occupying his mouth, but he didn't say anything about it. Cid kneeled next to Cloud, who was scratched up pretty badly.

"Damn," he muttered as he felt Cloud's faint pulse. Cid took off his blue jacket and wrapped it around Cloud's bare shoulders. "We've gotta get him back to the hideout soon."

Barret nodded in agreement and frowned. "I'm guessin' you're gonna have me haulin' him around again, huh?"

"Yeah," Cid murmured. Barret sighed and lifted Cloud's flaccid form off the ground, noting that he seemed lighter than usual. He dismissed it for the young man's lack of armor. The two men quietly made their way through the slums, heading in the direction they thought would take them to Sector 3 the quickest.

Reeve stopped Vice President Veraldei in the hallway. "Veraldei, what were those sounds that I heard last night?" he queried.

Andrew didn't even say anything about the abruptness of Reeve's question. "Hojo was having trouble in his laboratory last night," he replied calmly. He was either telling him the complete truth or was very talented at lying -- Reeve couldn't tell. "Something highly explosive exploded last night, but no one was hurt. I hope that answers your question, Reeve, and any other questions that you might want to ask, because I don't have the time to answer all of your questions." With those words, Andrew started away.

Reeve frowned as he watched the vice president disappear at a corner. As soon as he was sure that Veraldei was pretty far away, Reeve hurried into an empty room, setting up his Cait Sith gear. He had to see if Cloud and the others were all right.

Cait Sith blinked in worry as he saw the door open, directing his moogle to take him closer to the entrance of the house. A sigh of relief escaped his lips as he saw Cid come in, followed by Barret. The only unwelcoming sight of it all was Cloud's limp body in Barret's arms. "What happened?" he queried.

"Nothing good, that's for sure," Barret muttered, crossing the room and depositing Cloud's body on the couch. He brushed his one hand against his pants before turning back to his two comrades. "Reeve, you've gotta find out what else is goin' on in there! Somethin' up there trashed Cloud up really bad!"

"I can see that," Reeve's voice came from Cait's mouth. "What was it??"

"Something huge," Cid growled. "I could see its eyes above us when we were getting Cloud." He shuddered at the memory of the creature that had been glaring down at him and Barret.

"Is Cloud all right now?" Reeve asked, frowning at Cloud's body.

Cid shook his head. "I don't know," he replied. "I've gotta warn Tifa that Fatman's men are coming her way to get to Rocket Town." He pulled out his PHS.

"Make sure to contact Shera also," Barret said. "We've gotta get Marlene and them outta Rocket Town."

"Yeah, yeah," Cid sighed. "I'll get to them later. Right now, Tifa's in the more immediate danger."

Tifa looked up from her book when she heard a faint beeping. She closed her book and stood up, looking for the source of the sound. She wandered into the bedroom, blinking when she realized it was coming from her drawer. 'There's nothing else in there except for my. . . Oh, no.' Tifa rushed to the drawer, dropping to her knees and opening it quickly. Her PHS still beeped noisily, and she took it into her hands and placed it to her ear, clicking it on.

"Who's there?" she asked. "Cloud, is that you??"

"'Wish it were, Tifa," came Cid's grim voice.

"Cid!" Tifa gasped. There was something in Cid's voice that told her that something had happened. "What's wrong? Where's Cloud??"

"Cloud's been hurt, Tifa," Cid replied. "That's not the worst of it, though; Veraldei ordered Palmer to send men to Rocket Town and he's coming your way."

"*Who* ordered Palmer?" Tifa asked, suddenly very worried.

"Vice President Veraldei -- the bastard who's second-in-command of Shinra now," was Cid's reply. "'Don't even ask who about the bitch who's heading Shinra; we have no ^*&+!%# idea who would have the nerve to take Rufus' place."

"Why is Shinra sending men to Rocket Town!?" the bewildered young woman screeched. "Do they know that relatives to the AVALANCHE members are there?"

"I doubt it," Cid said. "They're sending Fatman's men there to start building another rocket, and you can bet that those ^*&+!%# Shinra bastards, Reeve excluded, are gonna use the rocket for their own &^$!%#@ plans!!!"

"This isn't good," Tifa muttered to herself. She said into the PHS, "Palmer could easily strike two birds with one stone if his men find Marlene, Shera, and Elmyra there. . . Did you contact Shera yet?"

"Not yet," the pilot on the other end sighed. "I'm going to get to her after you. You've gotta get out of Costa Del Sol soon; Palmer's men will most likely be coming in by boat." There was a pause. "Should I pick you up when I go to Rocket Town, or will you get to Midgar alone?"

"I don't think you should risk landing anywhere near Costa Del Sol; it'll draw too much attention. I'll get a chocobo at Choco Bill's farm and be over there before the day's over. Just go to Rocket Town and get Shera, Marlene, and Elmyra." There was a pause. ". . . Cid?"

"Yeah, Teef?"

"Is Cloud all right?"

Cid sighed. "I wish I could tell you, Tifa, but I can't. He hasn't even woken up yet." She could hear the pilot take in a deep breath. "Tifa, something big got at him."

"Oh, my God."

"You can say that again," Cid said. "I've gotta get to Shera now."

With those last words, Cid let go of Tifa.

The three Turks were the first to get off the boat once it reached its destination, Junon Harbor. Reno brushed back his red tendrils as he walked on to the docks, blinking when he saw dozens of men quickly entering the shop. Rude approached him from the side, shaking his head.

"They're Shinra men," he said quietly to Reno.

"Damn, what's going on?" Reno hissed, slinging his duffel bag over his shoulder. "Elena, come on!" he called to the rookie Turk, who was still on the ship.

Elena nodded and came down. "Who are those men?" she queried, pointing at the men that were still hurrying onto the ship.

"Shinra men," replied Rude.

Reno stopped one of the men that were starting towards the ship. The man growled angrily. "Hey, watch it!" he hissed at Reno. When he realized that the man that he had stopped was a Turk, he sneered. "A Turk? Heh. You're a bunch of cowards to let AVALANCHE seize Midgar some time back."

"Shut the hell up!" Reno snapped, striking the man with a balled fist. He glared at the man as he cupped his bleeding nose. "Whose orders are you following?"

The leer on the man's face didn't fade. "Why should I tell you?" he said, blood streaming down his hands.

Reno's green eyes flickered like deadly flames that would engulf the man. "This is why," he replied, quietly withdrawing his nightstick. He pressed a button near the bottom of the rod, watching electricity jump across the top of it. "My little nightstick here seems eager to cook your ass. Tell me who's orders you're following and I'll put it away."

"Fine, fine," the man sighed, wiping his bloody nose with his sleeve. "Just put that thing away. We're following Palmer's orders. If you wanna know why, you're gonna have to ask Veraldei."

"Veraldei?" Reno's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"The new VP," the man hissed in reply, rubbing his sleeve on his pants. Not waiting for another word from Reno, the man dashed towards the ship, glaring at Reno once he was safely on the ship.

Reno could hear Rude and Elena's footsteps behind him. "Vice president?" Rude queried, frowning. He fell into silence again as he started rubbing his beard.

"Who's the president then. . .?" Elena whispered, biting her lip.

"Elmyra!" Shera called, shutting off the PHS.

Elmyra Gainsborough rushed into the room at the sound of Shera's call, frowning. "What's wrong?" she queried.

Dismay was written all over Shera's face. "We've got to be out of here by the end of the day!" She felt faint. "Oh, my. . . Oh, my. . ."

"Get a hold of yourself, Shera!" Elmyra grabbed Shera's shoulders. "What would Cid say if he saw you like this?"

"I-- I'm sorry," apologized Shera. "I needed that, Elmyra. Thank you. . ."

Elymra nodded, bringing her hands back down to her sides. "Yes, yes. Now, what were you talking about? What's this about being out of here by the end of the day?"

Shera bit her lip. "Cid was just on the PHS," she sighed. "Shinra's sending men over here to start building another rocket, and Cid's afraid that we'll be right in harm's way."

"Cid? Whatever happened to Cloud?"

There was a long silence following Elmyra's words. Shera opened her mouth to reply, but nothing came out. After a few false starts, she finally managed to sputter out, "Cloud's hurt."

"What?" gasped Aeris Gainsborough's foster mother. "Cloud's *what*?"

"He's been hurt," repeated Shera. "Cid said he's not even awake yet. . ."

"Oh, my. . . Oh, my. . ."

Tifa was on the outskirts of Midgar by the time the sun was beginnning to give way to the approaching darkness. She smacked the rump of her chocobo, watching it quickly race back to Choco Bill's farm. Only after she was sure that she could no longer see her chocobo did Tifa turn back to the entrance of the great Mako city.

"Hey, Tifa. . .," came a voice.

A frown marred Tifa's face as she approached the entrance, wondering where the voice had been coming from. She was startled when the doors suddenly opened, admitting a familiar figure on a large, stuffed moogle. "Cait!" she said breathlessly.

Cait Sith nodded, directing his moogle to approach Tifa. "Yeah," he sighed. "C'mon. Barret told me to come and meet you at the gate and lead you back to HQ."

Tifa carefully took Cait's paw into her hand. "Cait . . . how's Cloud?"

Cait Sith shook his head, looking back at her with sad cat eyes. "I don't know, Tifa," he replied, his voice a whisper. "I really, truly don't know." A sigh escaped the little cat's lips. "Teef, all I saw was Cid and Barret come into the HQ, Barret carrying Cloud. He's been unconscious for hours." The mechanical cat watched as Tifa buried her face in her hands. "You really love him, don't you?" he said.

"He's my very best friend, Cait," Tifa whispered. "I know it can never be more than that anymore, but still . . . I love him."

"I think I understand," Cait Sith said. "Come on, Tifa. . . He's waiting."

Tseng looked down at the strange city ruins from above, still astride Clucky. He had a feeling that he would find Aeris down there, somewhere. It looked like a place that Aeris would find intriguing.

"I'll find you soon, Aeris," he whispered, directing Clucky to take him into the canyon that surrounded the ruins.

Reno had his crimson head bowed as the truck moved across the land. He didn't bother looking outside to judge where they were; he knew that it would be a while before they reached their destination, Midgar. A sigh escaped his lips as he brought his emerald eyes up, scrutinizing the sleeping form that was Elena on the other side of the truck; Rude had decided to take the passenger seat in the front of the truck. Reno silently realized that this was the first time he had ever seen Elena asleep. The young, blond rookie Turk looked so defenseless in her sleep, so vunerable . . . and so innocent. A smile slowly spread across his face as he stared at Elena's beautiful, serene face. 'No wonder Tseng wanted to ask her out on a date,' he thought. 'She's just so beautiful. . . Like an angel. . .'

Barret answered the door when someone knocked, a look of relief sweeping over his face when he saw Cait Sith, Tifa behind him. He waved them in, shutting the door tightly behind him. Tifa turned towards him, frowning. "Where's Cid?" she queried.

"He already went to Rocket Town to pick up the others," Barret replied. "We didn't tell you before, Teef, but we called in the other members too."

"You mean Red XIII, Vincent, and Yuffie?"

Barret nodded. "Cid's heading for Cosmo Canyon first to pick up Red, then over to Rocket Town. He said he'll probably be in Wutai to get that *&@#!^$ ninja brat by tomorrow morning and back here by tomorrow afternoon."

"Barret. . .," Tifa started testily. Although she didn't think very highly of Yuffie Kisaragi, she knew better than to insult the girl behind her back -- it was for the better, both physically and mentally. A sudden realization dawned on her. ". . . What about Vincent?"

The burly man shook his head as he crossed folded his arm and gun-arm across his chest. "'Couldn't get to him. He must have deactivated his PHS or something."

Tifa sighed, shutting her eyes for a moment. She should have known that Vincent would turn off his PHS. "We'll get to him somehow," she said, her eyes fluttering open again.

"I doubt it," grumbled Barret. "Vincent's always been too damn weird for my taste."

Tifa decided to let Barret's negative remark pass this time. She had enough things on her mind as it was. "Where's Cloud?" she asked.

"Over in the other room," replied Barret, pointing farther into the shelter. "We haven't really moved him since we put him down."

Tifa was already on her way to the next room when Barret finished his sentence, and she gasped when she laid eyes on Cloud. "Oh, my God. . .," she whispered, kneeling next to his prone form. Bruises and healing cuts marred his face and his eyes were shut tightly. "Cloud? Cloud? Can you hear me? It's Tifa. . ."

Barret frowned as he walked to Tifa, Cait Sith behind him. The man put his one hand on Tifa's shoulder. "I doubt he can hear you, Teef," he whispered.

Cait Sith and Barret looked on as Tifa's eyes welled up with tears. The brunette buried her head in Cloud's chest, sobbing.

Tseng slid off of Clucky's back, looking around at the ancient ruins of the forgotten capital. Quietly, he told the Gold Chocobo to wait for him and then walked into the city, taking in the natural beauty that dwelled within each structure. Even the water that flowed around the city seemed different from the outside world. The former Turk adjusted his blue jacket and continued straight through the city, finding himself drawn towards the center of the city.

What he found awaiting him brought a gasp from his lips. A large house in the form of some sort of giant seashell sat in the middle of pool of crystalline water, and in the pool of crystalline water was. . .

"Aeris!!" Tseng gasped in shock, running forward at the sight of the young woman's body floating in the middle of the water.

Trudging through the water and disturbing its peaceful surface, Tseng made his way to Aeris Gainsborough's still form. Horror had still not left the former Turk's face, and he brushed his fingertips across the young woman's face. Like any corpse, the skin was cold, but the warm, creamy color of the living had never left her tranquil face.

"Aeris. . ." His voice was lost in a sudden gust of wind that had picked up in the city, and Tseng's hair billowed softly as tears glistened in his eyes. "I. . . I always knew, but I didn't want to believe it was true. . ." A bitter cry of anguish rose from his throat, and he buried his face in his hands.

"*Tseng. . .*"

His gray eyes wide with shock, Tseng looked up, scanning the area around him in bewilderment. "Who-- Who's there??" he screamed, his voice ringing out through the Forgotten Capital.

"*We are the Gathered. . . We are Cetra,*" came the reply, breathy and soft. "*We speak in your language for your ears only, Tseng of the Turks. . .*"

"Formerly of the Turks, you mean," Tseng murmured quietly, his hands falling to his sides and into the water.

The collective of voices continued, ignoring or not hearing Tseng's remark. "*You have been chosen. . .*"

"Ch-- Chosen??" Tseng gasped, his eyes coming up again. He knew not what to be focusing his cries to, but he knew it was nowhere on the ground. "What's that supposed to mean??"

"*Kiss Aeris. . . She knew you loved her. . .*"

Tseng turned around and stared down at the young woman's body, swallowing hard as he looked at the prone form. 'This goes against everything that I believe in. . ., he thought, but . . . it's Aeris. . . It's really Aeris. . .'

Tseng bent over, and at the very moment that his lips started to brush Aeris', the former Turk's destiny was set in stone. . . A dark blue aura encased him and Aeris' corpse, and he let his lips fall away from Aeris', panic settling in. Then, all of a sudden, everything went black around him. He never had a chance to cry out.

On to Chapter 5.

Back to Merging Journeys.