The acquaintance with Nanaki — or Red — went rather strangely, especially after he graphically made it clear to everyone that he could speak pure human language perfectly well and was by no means a banal aggressive beast. And the most inspired of all in this unforeseen situation was Yuffie, who simply physically could not stand still calmly when a real talking animal appeared right under her nose. The moment Yuffie displayed her turbulent hyperactive enthusiasm and appeared right up close to him, Red had already managed a thousand times to regret that he had decided to speak aloud at all.
And while Yuffie with excitement was trying to force Nanaki to produce a couple more sentences, Dean turned to Alex with a distinct silent question on his face: what the hell kind of dog was this, when before them was a clear hybrid mix of a predatory wolf and a graceful puma? Meeting the puzzled Dean's gaze, Alex only carelessly shrugged his shoulders and with a smirk reminded him that he hadn't lied even a little — for before them was indeed a real talking animal.
Claudia, Tifa and Barrett silently observed how Yuffie unceremoniously pestered the imperturbable Red, and sincerely tried to digest what they had seen. And although absolutely all of them had already managed over the recent time to get used to the fact that far too much wild absurdity was happening in their lives, a real wild beast calmly speaking in a human voice still distinctly entered the category of things that truly deserved surprise. Having finally grown tired of Yuffie's persistent attempts to extract even one more word from him, Red with a sharp motion brushed her off with his blazing fiery tail.
Having received a tangible hot flick on her outstretched hand, Yuffie instantly flared up with offence: her eyes immediately filled with bitter tears, and she in annoyance rushed to Alex for instant consolation, literally hanging dead on him like a frightened little koala.
Affectionately stroking the back of the upset Yuffie, Alex cast an unambiguous glance at Red, silently asking him whether it had been necessary to drive her away precisely in such a radical way. Red only bestowed upon Alex a maximally calm, cool look, after which he demonstratively turned away, slightly swinging his orange tail in the air.
"And what kind of rat-dog are you even? Don't tell me you're another sweet pet of this mad bastard Hojo?" Barrett asked, frowning heavily, examining Nanaki with undisguised and deep suspicion.
"Answering your question, bipeds: no, I am categorically not Hojo's pet. And I am precisely what you see right now before yourselves — no more and no less. And I will be immensely grateful to you if we stop our biological inquiries right there. Agreed?" Red spoke in an absolutely calm tone full of dignity, unhurriedly settling onto the cold metal floor and slowly sweeping the entire group with an attentive gaze.
"Well, at least you have a name, since you talk so smoothly? Or do you seriously prefer that everyone around call you a rat-dog?" Dean asked with a light sarcastic smirk, examining Red's body from all sides with curiosity.
"A name… Hmmm. Call me simply 'Red XIII'. And that is precisely the designation this madman Hojo gave me," Red answered in the same even, serene tone, slightly raising his muzzle and sensitively inhaling the surrounding laboratory smells.
Looking at Red, Tifa with a heavy heart managed to notice the mark "XIII" literally burned into the side of his foreleg. Perfectly understanding how exactly Red had been treated in this isolated laboratory — especially considering Hojo's sadistic nature — none of those present wanted to continue such a heavy conversation any longer. And the moment everyone fell silent for an instant, Barrett immediately voiced aloud the thought that was already floating in everyone's head: should they without delay continue pursuing the escaped Hojo?
When these words sounded, Red raised an intent gaze to Barrett and silently turned his muzzle toward the long technological corridor at the very end of which stood the massive cargo elevator on which the professor had just fled. Looking to the end of the corridor and noticing the departing elevator cabin, Barrett, Tifa and Claudia finally understood exactly where this madman had slipped away. Still affectionately consoling Yuffie, who categorically refused to climb down from his shoulders, Alex suddenly remembered what exactly according to the original scenario was supposed to happen right now, and prepared in advance to hold Claudia.
For, as far as he remembered the canon, exactly at this moment she was supposed to have an even stronger and more dangerous attack because of which she, like a marionette, would blindly go forward, rapidly breaking through to the remains of Jenova. And Alex did not know to the end whether such an anomaly would repeat this time — for right now in Claudia's body there simply remained no alien Jenova cells, as with the other SOLDIERs. For some incredible reason the pure Lifestream had earlier completely burned all this cosmic infection out of her organism.
Observing Claudia with slight interest, Alex noticed absolutely no painful changes in her behaviour. He was so pleasantly surprised by this fact that he even involuntarily turned to Aerith — and she only understandingly looked at him in response. Meeting his gaze, Aerith slightly narrowed her eyes and softly, warmly smiled, with her entire demeanour making it clear: in this timeline thanks to him and Dean everything from the very beginning was going differently.
From this light gesture Alex only sighed with relief. For such a canonical attack of Claudia's was supposed to inevitably lead to their complicated, frank conversation about Inevitability and Fate, including the full disclosure of the true nature of the ghostly Whisperers. Aerith, clearly seeing such doubts and vacillations in Alex's eyes, only softly shook her head, wordlessly showing: this important conversation would definitely take place, but only there and then where it would be truly convenient for them themselves, and not where it was strictly prescribed by fatal Fate. Slightly smiling at her wisdom, Alex turned to the rest of the team.
"Well then, shall we dash after our mad bastard or continue standing here further and silently looking at each other?" Alex spoke with a mischievous smirk, deciding for now not to bother himself finally with the quirks of Fate.
"Hah, you're still asking! I personally will exercise my legal right to deliver the very first crushing blow to this son of a bitch! No one objects, I hope?" Barrett spoke with a wide, predatory smile, demonstratively and with a scrape cracking his powerful fists and with the first broad step rushing along the corridor toward the elevator.
"I dare to categorically disagree with you — such an exclusive privilege belongs exclusively to me. For, unlike all of you, it was precisely me who was kept for years in a locked cage of this laboratory. Therefore the right of the first blow to this son of a bitch, as you deigned to put it, should belong exclusively to me," Red spoke in an absolutely calm, measured tone, unhurriedly following Barrett.
"Hey, get in line, rat-dog! It wasn't your native home that had a damn gigantic Plate dropped on it and it wasn't your little daughter they tried to kidnap! But if you're burning so strongly, I'll allow you as a favour to be the first to bite this mad bastard on his shitty ass!" Barrett spoke, laughing with a wide smirk, casting a quick sideways glance at Nanaki walking beside him.
"Hmmm… Your compromise proposal sounds quite tempting. And indeed, why choose strict primacy if we can do it all simultaneously? Such an outcome will quite satisfy me," Red spoke, understandingly nodding his muzzle, slightly baring his sharpest teeth and looking at Barrett with respect.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha! Well that's it, Red, now you're definitely our guy! Since you can clean the mugs of bastards so smoothly, you're definitely one of us!" Barrett laughed loudly and rollingly, already finally and unconditionally accepting Nanaki into their close-knit team.
Observing how Barrett with ease and incredible speed made friends with Nanaki, Alex only quietly chuckled into his fist. He simply could not restrain himself and turned to Aerith with a silent wordless question on his face: had she already managed to show Red a piece of his future? In response to this expressive gaze Aerith only coquettishly spread her arms to the sides, making it clear that she had merely allowed Red for a second to look into the deep streams of the Lifestream, and what exactly he had managed to make out there — she herself didn't really know.
Approvingly nodding his head, Alex turned to Claudia and Tifa, proposing that they hurry further in order to finally catch up with the departing Hojo. Agreeing with his proposal, Claudia and Tifa quickly hurried after Barrett and Nanaki — before this colourful pair set off to pursue the professor in complete solitude. Lightly patting Yuffie on the back so that she would finally stop hanging on him like a lazy koala, Alex followed the rest of the group together with Dean and Aerith.
Approaching the open panels of the elevator, Alex stood right up close to Aerith. He could not help looking at her once more — for, as far as he remembered the canon, right after Claudia's attack they were all supposed to first of all go to that very isolated room where Aerith had spent her difficult childhood together with her mother Ifalna and where all her childhood things and memories were still stored. Deciding carefully to find out how she herself related to this, Alex raised his hand and smoothly ran the pad of his index finger along Aerith's sensitive neck.
Feeling this sudden, intimate touch, Aerith slightly shuddered, and on her cheeks instantly a thick, blazing blush appeared — because from the unexpectedness she almost emitted an extremely indecent, quiet sound. Quickly turning to Alex, Aerith immediately measured him with a gaze full of feigned, strictly frowning anger.
"Not here, mister! Can't you wait even a little while no one is nearby?" Aerith said embarrassedly, slightly narrowing her eyes, and with a light click poked a finger right into Alex's nose.
"Hey, I have absolutely no idea what kind of dirty things are going on in your cute little head! I only wanted to ask: don't you want to go in and say goodbye for good to that very place where you grew up?" Alex answered with a smile, rolling his eyes, and slightly leaned closer to Aerith so that their conversation would guaranteed not be heard by any outsider.
"I… Think I've already finally said goodbye to this heavy place many-many years ago. And I don't think I really should return to that cage just for the sake of sad memories. After all, all the important memories are with me forever anyway. So my final answer is no, mister," Aerith answered, softly smiling and shaking her head, sincerely and warmly looking straight into Alex's eyes.
"You really did grow up right here, within the walls of this laboratory, Aerith… How was all that even?" Tifa spoke quietly, slightly turning her head back, having accidentally overheard the quiet conversation of Alex and Aerith.
"We lived here with mom many years ago… When I was still a very little child. Every morning the scientists came and mercilessly took her away for endless tests. I still clearly remember how I cried for hours in complete solitude…" Aerith spoke in a nostalgic tone, casting a short, thoughtful glance at the darkening corridor behind their backs.
"Well, from now on you'll definitely never have to cry in solitude again, our flower girl. Now it's enough for you just to ask the guy standing next to you — and he'll instantly solve absolutely any problem," Dean spoke with a light, encouraging smile, turning to Aerith and expressively nodding his chin toward Alex, who cheerfully smiled back at her.
"You and your mom saved and protected my little Marlene… And for that I owe a huge debt. Just say the word — and I'll personally help you extract from this snotty Shinra absolutely all the percentages they owe you for these years! Even if for that we have to burn this whole damn building down to the very foundation!" Barrett added with a sly smirk, supportively raising his enormous bicep with a thumb up.
"Thank you all so enormously…" Aerith murmured with an incredibly soft smile, once again convincing herself how incredible and wonderful friends she had found in this adventure.
"Oh come on, no need to thank us — we're all your loyal friends! And we have a simple rule: we never abandon our own in trouble," Tifa spoke with a warm smile, approaching closer and carefully slightly hugging Aerith by the shoulders.
"And yes! If anyone needs a proper thrashing — just wink! I'll beat them all hard, and also rob them clean!" Yuffie shouted with ringing, mischievous laughter, running up and hugging Aerith from the other side.
Listening to this touching conversation in the best traditions of some cheap "Power of Friendship," Alex was trying with all his strength to continue smiling tensely, parallelly heroically coping with a rising attack of light nausea in his throat. At this moment he sincerely hoped either that the elevator would finally deign to arrive, or that Claudia would once again brilliantly spoil this sappy moment with her signature dry comment.
And, to his enormous luck, his inner prayers were heard: exactly at the very moment when the elevator cabin with a scrape stopped on their floor, Claudia lazily issued her killing verdict — if for this circus she would also be decently paid from above, she would also be absolutely ready to join any schemes and showdowns.
Hearing this, Alex was ready right there to cover Claudia with kisses — even perfectly understanding that immediately after that he would guaranteed receive either a powerful hook to the jaw or a signature strike to the most vulnerable place where she had recently aimed after that unexpected accident with her chest.
Having thrown her cynical comment, Claudia, without waiting for anyone else any longer, confidently stepped into the elevator and, demonstratively crossing her arms on her chest, bestowed upon everyone a heavy, cool gaze, dryly tossing that it was high time for all of them to hurry up.
Tifa only quietly and resignedly sighed at such behaviour of her friend — perfectly understanding that, despite all the gradual softening of her character toward the other members of their group, Claudia was still capable at any moment of producing something like this. Climbing into the spacious cabin after the others, Alex raised his hand to the control panel and swept everyone successively with a final questioning glance, on the way jokingly clarifying whether everyone was ready for the finale at all.
"Enough talking. Just press the button already, we're all ready," Claudia spoke in a calm tone, and, without waiting for the reaction of the frozen Alex, herself confidently pressed her finger right over his palm on the panel.
"Oh… You just touched my finger. Tell me honestly, can this right now be considered an act of undisguised sexual harassment?" Alex asked with a wide smile at the very moment when the massive elevator doors began closing with a scrape.
"Complete idiot…" Claudia quietly muttered, expressively rolling her eyes to the ceiling and demonstratively turning away from the Alex shining with pleasure.
Slightly chuckling at Claudia's emotional reaction, Alex shifted a calm gaze to the closing elevator doors — and in the last second managed to notice how a lone black feather was smoothly falling from above. Perfectly knowing that this distinct black feather belonged to none other than Sephira, Alex lightning-fast stretched his hand forward and on the fly clenched it in his fist.
Standing nearby, Claudia also managed to notice this fleeting black feather, and her eyes instantly narrowed to dangerous slits when she saw such rapid actions of Alex. Continuously clenching the black feather in his palm, Alex slowly and smoothly relaxed his fingers — and Claudia slightly leaned closer to his hand in order to examine this sudden find better.
But when Alex finally unclenched his palm, on his white gloves remained only a small handful of dark, acrid black ash. From the mere sight of this black ash Claudia frowned heavily, instantly feeling yet another sharp, stabbing pain deep in her head. Categorically not wishing to look at these horrific remains any longer, Claudia with a sharp motion struck Alex's palm from below, instantly knocking all the black ash onto the metal floor of the elevator cabin.
She still completely did not understand why the ghost of Sephira continued again and again appearing on her path, and what exact secret goals she was pursuing. But she madly disliked that Sephira persistently continued to make herself known even after her death.
"Her again…" Claudia barely audibly, quietly muttered, looking with clear disgust at the crumbled black ash on the floor.
"Don't even think too much about this shit. Whatever this crazy one ends up seeking, we'll deal with everything anyway," Alex spoke with a kind smile, jokingly poking a finger right into Claudia's cheek.
Batting Alex's finger away from her cheek, Claudia slightly turned to him and calmly nodded her head, fully agreeing with such a decision. Rubbing the black ash with the sole of his boot across the metal floor of the elevator, Alex carefully glanced over his shoulder to make sure that no one from the squad had accidentally noticed this.
Fortunately for him, no one except Dean standing nearby paid attention to how he deftly caught the falling black feather on the fly, and everyone took Claudia's sharp gesture merely as her habitual response reaction to his next stupid joke.
Exchanging understanding glances with Dean, Alex shook his head and mentally transmitted to him via mental link that very soon they would finally personally find out what kind of beast had actually latched onto this unfortunate world. Hearing these words, Dean slightly narrowed his eyes and mentally asked again for clarification: were they really right now heading exactly to where this damn Jenova was supposed to be? Alex barely noticeably nodded his head, adding via the link that on the 68th floor everything would finally become clear as soon as they got there.
Waiting for the long elevator ascent to the needed tier, Alex for a short moment immersed deeper into his own reflections. He thought that perhaps he should have thoroughly looked into the very essence of the cosmos of this world from the very beginning, and not simply from time to time listen to the rustles of the Lifestream in expectation of a lucky moment.
However, he quickly waved away these belated thoughts, logically reasoning that right now it was absolutely unimportant whether Jenova would turn out to be one of Nyarlathotep's avatars or an ordinary gluttonous space parasite. After all, his deal with Lucifer still remained in full force — and according to its conditions he in any case needed to pull and save this world with maximum style, brilliance and scope.
Slightly smiling at his thoughts, Alex with a habitual motion reached for the back pocket of his jeans and took out yet another thin cigar from there. However, barely had he prepared to light it when the heavy elevator cabin with a hum stopped, and the automatic doors smoothly began sliding apart. And the moment the panels only slightly parted, the light smile on Alex's face instantly evaporated, and in its place came wild, undisguised irritation.
"What the fuck is even going on in this goddamn place?!" Alex loudly shouted when before his gaze appeared the picture of a completely mutilated and partially destroyed 68th floor.
The floor where the main remains of Jenova were supposed to be reliably stored was completely wrecked and burned out — as if right in this place a crushing concentrated explosion had gone off. Dozens of thick steel pipes that continuously supplied liquid Mako right into the sealed capsule of Jenova were either torn from their fastenings with the flesh or carefully cut by something incredibly sharp. Massive technical platforms turned out partially collapsed downward. From gaping holes in the concrete walls tongues of flame occasionally burst out, and in the air stood a persistent, distinct smell of burning and burnt metal.
But the most unpleasant surprise for Alex was that the central elevated platform where the main sarcophagus of Jenova itself was supposed to rest was completely destroyed, and the body of the alien beast itself was nowhere to be seen. Exiting the elevator together with all the others, Alex approached the surviving metal railings and heavily leaned on them, trying with all his strength to restrain the rising, furious irritation.
He knew perfectly well that Sephira was supposed one way or another to kidnap the body of Jenova, but according to the canon this was supposed to happen substantially later. Aerith, standing nearby, experienced the same clear surprise that the current events had so sharply and spontaneously jumped far ahead.
Standing right up close beside him, Dean leaned his elbows on the railings and lightly elbowed Alex in the side. Feeling this push, Alex turned his head to Dean — and the latter only silently waved his chin right in front of himself. Turning his head in the indicated direction, Alex first of all saw the torn and densely stained with scarlet blood laboratory coats.
However Dean, not allowing him to get distracted, unceremoniously seized Alex by the chin with his fingers and forcefully turned his head a little to the right. Leaning his body forward, Alex made out on the mutilated floor deep streaks of purple blood that shimmered with a repulsive, unearthly glow.
And the moment he only saw this specific blood with his own eyes, a deep, boundlessly tired groan burst from his chest. For even without using his special magical vision he instantly understood to exactly what type of monstrous entities this substance belonged. Standing nearby, Dean only dejectedly rubbed his forehead with his palm, perfectly understanding that in the near future they would still have to deal with exactly the same repulsive cosmic abomination as Chuck.
And while Alex and Dean were silently indulging in thoughts that all that shit which had just hit the fan had started smelling ten times worse, the remaining members of the squad were just as shocked examining the consequences of the terrible wreckage on the 68th floor.
"And what the hell kind of place is this even?!" Barrett asked with a frowning, heavy gaze, looking around.
"This is Hojo's personal treasury. And at the same time — the darkest and dirtiest secret of the Shinra corporation," Red answered in an extremely calm voice, gracefully rising onto his hind legs and resting his front ones on the metal railings.
"But what just happened here? And what was actually stored in this place?" Tifa asked in a sincerely surprised tone, with difficulty trying to realise the true causes of such total destruction and shifting a bewildered gaze to the smashed sarcophagus in the very centre of the floor.
"Jenova…" Aerith answered in a barely audible, quiet voice, with all her strength clenching her thin fingers on the cold metal railings.
"And what kind of thing is this Jenova of yours even? Some next secret superweapon of Shinra?" Yuffie asked with light curiosity, tilting her head to the side and questioningly looking at Aerith.
Hearing Yuffie's innocent question, Aerith slightly turned her head and slowly shook her head, making it graphically clear to everyone that Jenova was categorically no weapon of the Shinra corporation. However she was clearly not going to go into details for now and say what this beast actually was.
Claudia, the moment she heard the fateful name "Jenova," sharply jerked her head: inside her a strange, alarming echo instantly responded. In her memory there were definitely some vague recollections of this existence, however she could not in any way catch them and pull them outward — as if a huge, important piece of her past memories connected with this had been carefully and mercilessly cut out.
And still something deep inside her stubbornly suggested that Jenova played far too important and key a role in the scale of Sephira's absolute plan. Narrowing her eyes, Claudia again felt a rising, pulsating headache — however it quickly subsided and completely went away when Alex once again timely and softly laid his palm on her shoulder, helping her relax.
Distracted thanks to Alex's caring gesture from the tormenting attempts to remember at least something, Claudia confidently raised her head and in her habitual dry tone chiselledly pronounced that they needed to go further without delay. Hearing her words, absolutely all the members of the group understandingly nodded and prepared to continue the path.
Alex himself at this very moment in his thoughts was cursing and damning Lucifer with every expression known to him — for the fact that the latter had insolently hidden from him the entire truth about what entity had actually latched onto this unfortunate world. For Alex until the very last moment had sacredly hoped that Jenova would turn out to be the most ordinary, classic space parasite, and not yet another repulsive avatar of Nyarlathotep. Having finished covering Lucifer's cunning design with curses in his mind, Alex began mentally complaining already about Nyarlathotep herself.
He began complaining mainly about the fact that from banal boredom she had created who knows how many of her avatars and released them on free range throughout the damn Multiverse, and now he had to sort out all this shit and clean up the infection instead of living a completely normal, classic and carefree adventure.
However in response to all his mental lamentations and claims right in his head again rang out the ringing, incredibly cheerful and mischievous laughter of Nyarlathotep herself, who absolutely sincerely and not in the least took his complaints seriously. Emitting yet another deep, boundlessly tired groan because of the finally ruined "simple adventure," Alex tighter clenched the thin cigar between his teeth, frowningly staring at the burned-out, wrecked sarcophagus of Jenova.
"And fuck it! What a great problem… We'll somehow definitely deal with it," Alex spoke at the top of his voice, demonstratively rolling his eyes, and with a light click extinguished the thin cigar against the cold metal crossbar of the railings.
"And I see you got over it rather quickly," Dean spoke with a light, understanding chuckle, turning his head to Alex.
"And why the hell even whine? We're already up to our ears in shit here anyway. Now all that's left is to wipe the soles properly on the floor and calmly go further. Is it our first time or what?" Alex answered, sincerely laughing, instantly returning to his habitual, impudent and carefree state and casting a quick glance at Dean, who from these words just as rollingly laughed.
"Hey! Are you two going to finish talking there already?! Or we'll just leave upward right without you!" Yuffie loudly shouted, actively waving her hand and with all her strength trying to hurry the stuck Alex and Dean.
Hearing Yuffie's loud cry, Alex and Dean simultaneously turned their heads to the side and noticed that the remaining members of the squad had already managed to go far ahead, having passed exactly to the middle of the technical platform. Deciding not to delay a single second longer, Alex and Dean quickly hurried after the others before they managed to go even further.
Quickly catching up with the team, Alex immediately noticed on himself the worried gaze of Aerith and carefully laid his palm on her shoulder. Meeting his gaze, Aerith softly and warmly smiled, with her entire demeanour making it clear that she was simply slightly surprised at how spontaneously and differently everything had happened here compared to her expectations.
Jokingly poking a finger right into Aerith's cheek, Alex confidently went further and soon caught up with Claudia, who was walking at the front of the entire procession. Reaching the narrow technical bridge connecting the platforms with each other, Alex and Claudia began measuredly stepping at the head of the entire group.
And they had not even managed to reach the very centre of the technical bridge when around them unexpectedly rang out a light, echo-like female laughter. Hearing this painfully familiar laughter, Claudia convulsively seized both hands to her head, again beginning to experience a sharp, wild headache, and absolutely all the other members of the team instantly became alert and began anxiously looking around.
Soon the horrific laughter faded by itself, and right from the upper tiers of the ceiling a graceful figure of Sephira began smoothly descending, tightly gripping in her hand the long, deadly blade of the Masamune. At the sight of the appeared Sephira Tifa's eyes widened from wild shock and flared-up old fear when she again live saw the one who had once burned her native city to the ground and destroyed her entire life. Aerith reacted no better: she fearfully seized with her fingers the edge of Alex's shirt sleeve, intently and warily looking at Sephira.
Sephira herself slowly and gracefully descended downward onto the platform, freezing before them with her habitual, icy and arrogant smile on her lips. Looking at the appeared Sephira, Dean only slightly raised an eyebrow when in his head a fleeting ironic thought flashed that before them had grown up exactly the same arrogant bitch as Abaddon.
Noticing such a sharp reaction of the girls to Sephira's appearance, Barrett without long thinking instantly considered her a deadly enemy and without unnecessary words transformed his right arm into a massive machine gun, aiming the heated barrel right at her chest. However Alex timely raised his hand, stopping Barrett from a thoughtless shot, and slightly narrowed his eyes, continuing attentively to examine and study Sephira.
"You… Are you even real?" Claudia pronounced with enormous difficulty, trying with all her strength to suppress yet another rising attack of headache.
"So you tell me that yourself, my dear old friend Claudia. Am I really standing before you right now in the flesh… Or does all this only seem so to you?" Sephira spoke in a velvety, soft tone, smoothly lowering her clouded gaze onto Claudia.
"Decided after all to show yourself personally? And let's stop irritating my Chica with your tricks," Alex said with absolute calm, confidently laying his hand on Claudia's shoulder, and she immediately straightened with relief when the rising headache instantly subsided.
"Oh, I fear you are too deeply mistaken, opponent of fate. The curtain over this scene has only just been raised, and the finale of our first act has not even begun yet. Will you be able to continue so boldly changing what was from ages prescribed… And will you be able to protect absolutely everyone again?" Sephira spoke with undisguised amusement, slowly sweeping the entire group with an evaluating gaze until her look returned strictly to Alex and Claudia.
The moment these venomous words sounded, from Claudia's very throat rang out a deafening, piercing scream, completely filled with wild anger from the broken-through horrific memories. Before her eyes again with new force flared up the nightmarish pictures of the blazing Nibelheim and her own house engulfed in fire. With one sharp, lightning dash Claudia pulled the massive Buster Sword from behind her back and tore into a desperate attack right at Sephira.
With rapid, hurricane dashes Claudia instantly overcame the distance separating them along the bridge, however on Sephira's pale face the habitual, cold and arrogant smile still remained. She only lightly and gracefully waved the long blade of the Masamune, with one touch cutting the supporting structures of the technical bridge.
Before the mutilated bridge with a crash collapsed downward, Claudia in a last desperate dash leaped into a high jump, highly raising the heavy Buster Sword over her head. Slightly snorting, Sephira smoothly drew the long hilt of the Masamune back and prepared with one precise motion to pierce the falling Claudia through and through. But because of the blind anger clouding her eyes Claudia did not even think about her own defence — she sincerely desired only to kill Sephira again at any cost so that this terrible tragedy would never repeat.
When Claudia found herself in dangerous proximity, Sephira delivered a rapid, lightning thrusting strike straight forward. But at that very second when the tip of the Masamune was supposed to inevitably pierce Claudia's abdomen, right in front of her from nowhere appeared Alex, who with a dry crack rigidly deflected the deadly blade using Tseng's sturdy fountain pen.
Having blocked Sephira's thrusts, Alex instantly seized Claudia by the waist when the inertia of both of them threw them back into the gaping void. And despite the fact that her legendary weapon had just been unceremoniously deflected by a banal fountain pen, Sephira only barely noticeably smiled and calmly turned away, unhurriedly walking deeper into the destroyed tier.
Before finally plunging into the dark abyss, Alex with a sharp motion of the wrist threw out the thinnest steel threads which instantly and tightly wound around the metal railings of the surviving part of the bridge.
Hanging on the swinging threads right over the deep precipice, Alex shifted his gaze to the frozen Claudia and with a light but tangible thud bumped his forehead right against her forehead so that she would finally fully come to herself. Only having received this short but effective blow to the head, Claudia instantly calmed her blind anger and in surprise looked at Alex.
Meeting her gaze, Alex only emitted a deep, boundlessly tired sigh, graphically making it clear: the fact that they were right now dangling over the abyss was entirely and completely her own stupid fault. Perfectly understanding without any words exactly what Alex meant, Claudia first guiltily lowered her gaze downward, and then carefully raised her eyes upward, where at the edge of the broken bridge already stood the mortally worried Tifa and Aerith.
To be continued...
(All in all, after some deliberation—involving both myself and the voices in my head—a collective decision was reached to skip a few segments: Claudia's breakdown in front of the elevator, the conversation in Aerith's room (where she lived with Ifalna before escaping Shinra), and, of course, the plunge down to where Hojo—that madman—decided to conduct yet another idiotic experiment. I had assumed that a couple of other morons would show up down there, ripe for the taking, but—eh, screw 'em. They can pop up later. That leaves only one thing to do: head up to the Director's office and then get the hell out of Shinra. After that, it's a showdown with fate, and then—bye-bye, Midgar. I really hope this headache clears up by tomorrow; I've been suffering with it for two days now. Peace, love, and a fountain pen—the most dangerous weapon of all.)
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