Final Fantasy VII: Black Gold

The Second Class SOLDIER sat lazily on top of a rooftop, his back against a chimney.
He heard his phone go off, and was tempted to leave it, but when he caught sight of the number, he nearly dropped it and hastened to answer it.
...
..
.
He listened to President Shinra, not even getting a chance to say anything himself before the phone was finally put down.
.
..
...
He sat there for a few moments, the sounds of the busy streets of Midgar below him.
He pushed himself up from his sitting position and picked up the sword lying next to him, putting it on his back. It wasn't standard SOLDIER equipment, despite only First Classes being allowed to use personal equipment, but it's not like he paid any attention to that. So far, no one had gotten on his case about it anyway. If any one did, then he would consider what to do then.
At the moment, he liked his weapon of choice, and at the moment, it was a unique weapon, being the first true Merger Weapon of it's kind. Who would have thought? Weapons that could be combined together?
He walked to the edge of the rooftop and peered over the edge, he wasn't that high up anyway.
He sighed, "SOLDIER; First Class Lightning, eh?" he muttered to himself rhetorically.
Then from his position he jumped forwards off the roof and leaned backwards, doing several back flips before landing square on the ground, head down.
He had startled one or two people in the street, but seeing his uniform and the gleam in his eyes, they decided not to question it.
The SOLDIER knew Midgar quite well, having grown up in it.
He breathed in the familiar smell and stood up, walking to his destination.
The tavern known as 'Hotel Raven'.
He gave a small chuckle to himself as he walked, a funny thought flowing into his mind. I guess a new chapter of this story is about to begin.

 

"Wha?" Reno's attack was blocked, then the room spun, then he was on the ground as the other Turk hopped over him, and then the bar was quiet. It all happened too quickly. "Anybody care to tell me what that was all about?!" He demanded as he hopped to his feet...but nobody answered. The bar was empty, save for himself, Aveline, and the bartender who had just stood there with a gaping mouth. Reno looked around to see the bar was half demolished, mostly due to Legas' bombs. He looked to the bartender and raised a hand to the back of his head, embarrassed. "Uhhh...put it on Shinra's bill?"

"I'd flee with ya, anyway, beautiful," Legas told Caleigh as he jumped over Reno's body and grabbed Caleigh's arm. He pulled her through the door and quickly made a sharp turn. "I say we make like a banana and split. Whaddaya say? Let's lose 'em?" He made another sharp turn, his clean dress shoes hitting the asphalt of the street hard.



"Huh?" Cloud seemed to say that three letter word often today. "Yeah, Cloud. I'm Cloud," he said nervously. "Cloud Strife." He didn't look Lightning in the eye, but instead he looked at Zack. "What made me interested in Shinra?" He thought for a moment. He thought of growing up in Nibelheim and having almost no friends. He thought of how he wanted nothing more than to impress Tifa Lockhart, his neighbor, especially after the whole mountain incident. However, he didn't tell Lightning that. Instead, he only told her a single name. "Sephiroth."

 

Caleigh kept up with Legas easily. "You always whisk women away like that?" She was glad to be away from Reno and Aveline but she would have liked to have done so without destroying the bar so much; it was her favorite. For a moment she thought of leading Legas back to her place, but deciding against it. He probably knew where he was going anyway.

 

Aveline shook her head, her vision finally clear. They'd gotten away, and she'd done nothing a proper SOLDIER should have done to stop them. She glanced to her right and saw Reno making an excuse to the bartender, whom she could care less about. Clearing her throat, she gathered in strength and stood slowly, holding her injured arm to her side.

"Turk," she started, taking a few steps toward him, limping slightly on the leg she's landed on. "You still... haven't answered my question." She stopped a few feet short of him, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Tell me everything you know about Sephiroth... and I'll tell you everything Legas said to me... and that other girl."

Lightning raised an eyebrow at her fellow-first class SOLDIER's name. They entered Hotel Raven now, finding the place almost empty; it was a weekday, and it was getting late. She led the way to the bar, motioning for the boys to join her. The bartender looked her way, glancing at her too-young companions, but she gave him such a nasty look that he quickly turned the other way.

Lightning glanced over at Cloud, remembering the way he's paused between his sentences when he spoke. He's a smart kid, not answering the question so easily. She only had to life a hand and three beers slid down the bar toward them. Lightning left Zack's alone for him to pick up himself, and handed Cloud's drink to him directly. "Sephiroth, huh? Let me guess; you wanna be like him." She stopped herself from rolling her eyes.

 

Reno's attention was caught. "Sephiroth? Why do you-wait a second, Legas told you something? That's Shinra business so you'll be sharing that regardless, little missy. And Sephiroth? He's First Class SOLDIER. The best and a hero. Now," Reno looked Aveline in the eyes, not telling her anymore, "What did Legas say?"

"Only the prettiest ones," Legas replied, smiling as they continued to run. He waited until they reached a dark alley and led her into it. "Now...is it time for us to depart? Until the time you designated for our...late meetin'?" He said, emphasizing the last word.


Cloud gulped upon getting the drink, but placed it on the table. "Like him? I never thought about it like that," He replied. "I guess you can say that. I heard of him, that's true. And what I heard made me want to be SOLDIER." Even if I didn't make it, he added to himself. "But now that I think about it...yeah, I guess you can put it that way," He looked at Zack before continuing. "I want to be SOLDIER...First Class."

 

The Second Class SOLDIER sat nearby the trio.
He now wore a black cloak over his SOLDIER uniform that he had picked up from a shop on the way here. He didn't want them to recognise he was a member of SOLDIER yet, it just seemed more fun that way. Besides, this way he could get to know them more naturally before the official matters of them working for Shinra kicked it.
"SOLDIER; First Class eh?" he muttered, probably loud enough for them to hear. "Well, if that's what you wanna be don't quit. No matter how big the dream, if ya keep trying, you can make it." he muttered from his sitting spot, just randomly injecting himself into their conversation. This would be a perfect opportunity, the first meeting under this 'guise would mean he could see how they reacted to him on the spot.
He kept his eyes closed like he was enjoying himself. But also so they wouldn't see the Mako gleam in them.

 

Caleigh thought for a moment. Would it be easiest to just go now and skip risking being followed later? She had a feeling that the word of two anti-Shinra activists getting into a bar fight in Sector 5 would spread fast. If they split up now, there was a greater chance of them being followed later. She recognized the alleyway; they were close to her home. "You got plans? With that stunt you just pulled, someone's gonna be looking for us. And I'd like to keep out of Shinra's eye." She smiled and laughed. "We might as well just go there together now."

 

Aveline shook her head, straightening her shaky stance again; that was all decent information she already knew. She had to be more specific... and risk getting into some trouble because of it. "I need to know his last location," she insisted quietly. "Wherever his latest assignment was. You see," she continued, deciding to play some of her own cards now, "Legas... is doing a lot more as a former Turk than just trying to retire. The woman he was conspiring with..." She faltered for a moment, not wanting to say Caleigh's name for some reason; she didn't believe in what the woman stood for, but she wasn't that heartless. "... she's part of AVALANCHE. And Legas seemed intent on joining them."

Lightning was about to respond to the young boy's little speech when the newcomer spoke, just loud enough for her to hear. Yes, she'd seen him come in and sit down to their group rather close, but she'd let it slide; you never knew who would be following you, listening to you, working for Shinra. But, despite his clothes and his nonchalant tone when speaking, she did not relax guard at all... in fact, it made her more skeptical than usual.

She turned slightly in her seat, her bangs drifting in front of her bright blue eyes. She cleared her throat, looking the newcomer up and down for a minute, her eyebrows narrowed. "Meaningless encouragement, stranger," Lightning snapped, though her tone was still calm, thick with danger and command. She hated someone that didn't look at her directly when they spoke, whether they were in the conversation to begin with or not. "No one asked for your damn opinion anyway."

 

Wow... she's feisty ain't she... The 15 year old teen sighed in his own mind. I have no doubt that she is skilled... but training with her is gonna be hell... I don't know how far I should go... but maybe I should try pushing my luck a bit... it can't hurt...
much.
He kept his eyes closed as he moved slightly in the chair to get comfortable, the big sword on the ground next to him.
"You didn't ask, but you got it." he threw the comment out casually.
She isn't the type of person I'd want to piss off. he observed, so why he was doing that now if he knew that much was a mystery indeed.

 

The Redhead Turk coldn't stop his mouth from dropping. "Wait, her? AVALANCHE? As in, Bomb-the-bejesus-out-of-Shinra AVALANCHE? And Legas helped her?" Reno was confused, but quickly caught something. "Hold on, former Turk? Retiring?" Reno played out his last conversation with Rude and Tseng about Legas. They were specifically told that Legas was a former Turk, but he was brought back to Shinra as a freelancer because of his prowess. Freelancer or not, he was usually given missions that were 'Turkish' in style. While Legas may have been a former Turk, he was far from retiring or anything of the sort. "Something smells," Reno said, wiggling his nose. "This blows my plans for a nap out the door," he grumbled as he reached into his jacket and pulled out his cell phone. He started dialing Tseng and turned around. "As for Sephiroth, I know nothing about him or his last mission," it was a half-lie, but that meant it was also a half-truth, "so ask somebody else. You'll be hearing from the Turks soon, Aveline, so don't go anywhere. Report back to Shinra and get some res-'ello? Tseng? We have an...interesting development, yo!" He said as he walked out.

Legas almost frowned, but caught himself. Instead, he turned it into a smile. "Forgive me for bein' sorry, but we made plans and I'm not the type to change plans. Maybe I'm not spontaneous enough for ya," he said it jokingly, but quickly came up with what he thought was a legit excuse, "But I do need to go to my own home, which Shinra is quite aware of, and pack some...essentials before that red head has Shinra after me."

Cloud couldn't help but chuckle at Lightning. She's going to bite someone's head off...literally. He looked down at his full glass, but still didn't drink. "Like you, huh? You haven't even been First Class long!" He told Zack, smiling.

 

Aveline frowned, grinding her teeth in frustration. Quite an eventful night... all for nothing, she thought angrily. If that Turk doesn't know where he is, how am I supposed to find him? And the last thing she needed was to be watched and contacted by the Turks; she had to stay under the radar for what she wanted to do.

"This is not my night," she muttered, even more upset that Reno was right: she did need to go home, stay put, find a potion or two, and rest. Aveline straightened her shoulders, ignoring the pain in her arm. She made her way slowly out of the bar, stepping over the rubble, not acknowledging anyone that spoke to or looked at her. It was getting pretty late now, and walking home on her own in the dark, injured, probably wasn't the smartest idea, but Aveline did it anyway; she was stubborn and her mind was set; the adrenaline and excitement of how close she'd gotten tonight, despite no information at all, made her even more determined.

Tomorrow night, she thought, setting a goal in her mind, I will find what I'm looking for... even if it kills me.

Lightning exhaled slowly, finishing her drink instead of speaking; Zack could keep in her line well enough, but one thing she couldn't stand, more than anything, was a cocky man. "You boys have high hopes," she muttered, hoping no one would really respond; she was on edge right now, and not in the mood for fooling around.

 

Since mrsbaggins magically skipped about seven hours of the day and decided it was nighttime, Caleigh accepted Legas' decision. "I'll see you later then." She gave him a mock-salute and walked away, drawing a cigarette as she went. This was the best of luck for AVALANCHE. The Legendary Turk himself wanted to join their fight against Shinra. Was it too good to be true?

 

"Nothing wrong with hoping high though is there?" He muttered, just a few more pushes...
It would have been so much simpler to just introduce himself... so why was he messing around?
Well... why not?
Of course, he could tell that Lightning wouldn't appreciate it... but then, it wouldn't be fun if she wasn't tough on him.

 

Legas nodded and mimicked her, pulling out a cigar, however, instead of a cigarette. "Now I remember why I quit the Turks," he sighed, coming up with a false excuse of the past, "Too much lyin', scammin', and dirty work." The Turk turned around as he lit the cigar and wondered what his next move should be. "Guess I'm headed to Shinra for now," he muttered as he started walking.

"What about you?" Cloud suddenly asked Lightning, now interested. He leaned in over the table as he continued. "What made you become SOLDIER? What do you fight for?" He tried to imagine a 13 year old Lightning, playing with dolls and wanting to grow up to join SOLDIER, but he couldn't even fathom that idea.

 

Aveline stumbled home, looking up at the windows of her family's three-story, white-walled, spotless home. She despised how flashy it was, how her father felt it was necessary to display their wealth so prominently for others to see. Aveline sighed; none of the lights were on, so hopefully everyone was asleep. She just wanted to go inside, get any potions and medical wraps she could find, and go to bed. Opening the large, heavy front door as quietly as she could, Aveline stepped in and tiptoed through the empty foyer, grimacing at the echo of her footsteps on the high, arched ceilings.

So far so good, she thought as she rounded the bend into the sitting room, which was a little bit lighter than the entrance; the walls were made of glass here to show off the view of Midgar, lit by moonlight now. Aveline made her way to a cabinet on the far side of the sitting room, where she knew she could find something for her arm. Her hand was on the knob when she heard a deep voice behind her:

"You're bleeding on my rugs, you stupid girl."

Aveline jumped, her heart in her throat, and spun to see her father sitting in one of the wing-backed, ornately carved armchairs by the fire. He was clothed all in black, his silver hair slicked back behind his ears at a severe angle. His arms were crossed over his chest, his eyes glaring hatefully at her.

"Have them cleaned, then," Aveline snapped in return, though she knew it was not the best idea to rebuttal in such a disrespectful way. Nevertheless, she turned her back on him and opened the cabinet... and sighed with relief: there were four potions on the second shelf, next to a small wooden box she knew contained bandages and wraps that she desperately needed.

"Take what you need and sit down, Aveline," her father began, and stood up, walking over to the fireplace to light it. A moment later the sitting room was full of a warm, crackling glow, but Aveline felt none of it in her heart; she knew her father did not care about her injuries or her well-being... he wanted to know what had happened and if it pertained to Shinra.

Aveline did as she was told, though, sitting in a chair next to her father's with her supplies. She uncorked and downed the potions in seconds, already starting to feel a little better. Her arm began to turn back to its original color, the charred skin and blistered, bleeding muscle on the open wound slowly healing back to normal. She quickly wrapped a long strip of gauze around the injury to protect it, covering that with a white cloth that she tied with one hand and her teeth at the top of her bicep.

"Why are you up?" she began once she was finished patching herself up. It was odd for her father to be awake this late, and no one ever waited for her. She did not expect an answer, but since he started the conversation, Aveline thought she'd at least try.

Lightning shut her eyes for a moment; it was not the first time she'd been asked a question like that. Her answer was the same as usual: "I'm SOLDIER so I can fight," she began, her tone dark, strong, and resolute. She looked over at Cloud when she spoke, lowering her voice because she didn't really want the intrusive newcomer to hear. "I fight for all the people that can't protect themselves; whatever Shinra tells us to do, I do it; I have my targets and I take care of them. You, Cloud..." she paused, considering whether she should break the boy's heart or not... and then continued: "I can tell, you've got so much emotion in you... and that's your downfall. You have to control your emotions and forget sympathy and regret. Me... I fight because I can focus on my ultimate goal, shut out everything else. That's what it means to be SOLDIER."

 

The teen still kept his eyes closed, Lightnings attempts to not be overheard had failed..
"Well personally, I think what it means to be SOLDIER is different for everyone." he chimed in, even though he was clearly unwanted.
I wonder how much more she shall take... he pondered, truly pushing his luck now.

 

Caleigh opened the door to her home and stepped inside. It was so quite that she thought Rae had got up and left. But she heard the rustle of bed sheets and knew that the girl was still where she'd left her. "Hey! You feeling any better?" She called to Rae, taking off her jacket and tossing it on the table. "Baby doll?" She didn't really expect an answer but it still bothered her that she got none. Rae could either be sleeping or just her usual silent self.
Caleigh crossed the kitchen and living room to the bedroom where Rae was. "You are up," Caleigh smiled at Rae. "Can't sleep?" She only got Rae's eyes focusing on her as an answer. "Hm... Alright. I'll tell you a story then."

 

Aveline tenderly touched her left arm, lightly running her fingers over the bandages, trying to ignore how her hands trembled; speaking to her father scared her, no matter what the conversation was.

"Where were you this evening?" her father asked, responding to her question with another inquiry, as if what she said hadn't mattered or even been heard. "It's embarrassing, coming home like you just did."

"I got in over my head," Aveline explained resentfully, not wanting to explain too much. "I made a mista-"

Her father reached swiftly across the distance between their chairs and slapped her hard across the side of her face, cutting off the rest of her words. "You do not make mistakes. As SOLDIER, you should never turn up somewhere like this, especially your home. This will no longer be your home if this happens again. Do you understand, girl?"

Aveline barely felt the sting on her cheek; she was used to it. Cracking her neck slightly before looking back at her father, the only emotion she felt was anger: she hated him, and he hated her... it was just a matter of who would stand by the end of it.

"Yes," Aveline muttered in response, hoping her animosity was clear in her eyes.

Her father reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, shifting the silver block between each of his hands, holding her eye contact. "Now..." he began quietly, "what were you looking tonight?"

Aveline's heart skipped a beat and she broke her father's gaze, looking down at the floor. "It was..." she began slowly, thinking fast about how she could explain herself without causing too much trouble.

"Tell me what it is," her father continued monotonously, flipping open the cover of his cell phone. "And we can get whatever it is you need now so you don't have to continue embarrassing the entire family."

Lightning tried not to roll her eyes at Zack's typical response; she was used to it by now, but she still felt his enthusiasm irritating at moments. The newcomer, however, that none of them knew, wasn't going to be so lucky. Not giving Cloud a chance to respond to her harsh speech, she turned in her seat, glaring:

"What's your problem?" she snapped. "I don't know you, and you're not welcome in our conversation. Unless you want trouble, you should probably leave... now."