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Darkened Skies	By : Cynthia Category: Final Fantasy VII > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 949 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Final Fantasy and all characters are the property of Square Enix. I do not profit from this fanfiction, it’s for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter List
- 15
- 16
- 17
"Darkened Skies"
Chapter sixteen: Deepground
A Final Fantasy 7 AU fanfiction
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Author's note: Just a reminder that some time skipping will be necessary for the plot of this story, and as an AU, some events don't occur as they did in canon.
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*Disclaimer: Final Fantasy and all related characters belong to Square-Enix. This fiction piece is strictly a non-profit exercise of creativity and entertainment for people (like me) who can’t get enough of this world and the characters.
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            When the aftermath of the explosion began to clear, Genesis wondered why everyone around them began to stare at him. When he shifted beneath Angeal and twisted to see that he was unconscious and bleeding from the temple, he realized that he wasn't the one they were staring at. Angeal's wings had emerged when the explosion went off. It was difficult to tell from his vantage point on his stomach, but to Genesis it appeared that the bigger man had attempted to shield him with his body and his larger wing, but he got knocked out by a stray piece of flying debris. Now the citizens of Midgar stood all around them and the shock of the bomb going off was temporarily forgotten in their shock at seeing a winged Soldier for the first time.
            Genesis shut his eyes and grimaced. After all this time, their carefully guarded secret was out in the open for all to see. If it weren't for the concern he felt for his lover, he could have cheerfully throttled him. "Fantastic," he grunted. "Angeal...can you hear me?"
            There was no answer, but the redhead took some comfort in the feel of Angeal's breath against his cheek. Zack pushed through the crowd, followed by Sephiroth. Even in their amazement, people moved aside for the silver general as he approached his two lieutenants to check on them.
            "...Has a wing!"
            "I've heard rumors..."
            "...Scientific experiments. I knew Soldiers weren't human!"
            "Mommy, is he an angel?"
            Genesis heard the snatches of whispered speculation and he barely held his tongue. Soon, he had Zack kneeling on one side and Sephiroth on the other. Together, they eased Angeal off of him and Sephiroth helped him up, while Zack checked Angeal's injuries. People began to talk, their anxiety and confusion growing by the moment. Getting out of the city alive and whole wasn't enough for them; they wanted answers. People lost homes and precious belongings to the bomb and as the city burned in the distance, buildings and structures collapsed in on each other. Witnessing one of their supposed protectors suddenly sprout a supernatural appendage was too much for some people to take, apparently.
            "We deserve an explanation!" someone shouted. "Who's responsible for this, and what's going to happen to our jobs...our homes? Where will we go?"
            "What is he?" A woman shouted, gesturing at Angeal.
            "Some kind of freak, that's what!" A young man started forward with a less than friendly expression on his face, his gaze on Angeal.
            Genesis promptly intervened, shoving him back into the crowd. He started to draw his sword on impulse, but Sephiroth stopped him with a hand on his arm and a shake of his head. Genesis restrained himself with difficulty and he glared at the man that had come too close to Angeal and was now recovering his balance.
            "Stay back," warned the redhead.
            "Maybe the terrorists attacked because of him!" cried a woman in the crowd.
            Zack reacted with outrage. He looked up from his unconscious mentor and he stared at the people surrounding them. "Are you people kidding? All this guy has ever done is try to protect you, and just because he sprouts a wing you're blaming this all on him?"
            Genesis and Sephiroth met one another's eyes as people started to shout and the MP's started getting in on it, trying to bring order to the situation. Certain departments like the Turks and the Research department knew about the wings and the history behind them already, but the general public, the press, regular militia and even most of SOLDIER were unaware of them, up until now. Under the circumstances, people weren't likely to stop and listen to reason. They wanted someone to blame for what had just happened to their city and the unconscious titan of a man with the inhuman appendage made a good scapegoat.
            The crowds began to press forward, yelling for answers and demanding that Angeal be arrested. Genesis wasn't about to let them touch his lover. When someone in the crowd referred to Angeal as a "monster", the redhead scowled and he did the only thing he could think of to defend Angeal, short of cutting them all down and trying to make off with the big man. He manifested his wing and spread it out wide, startling the nearest row of people into falling back. He looked around at the crowd and the breeze stirred his auburn bangs, blowing them over his narrowed eyes. He raised his sword slowly and ignited the red, eldritch fires along its length, showing them the demon they so badly wanted to see.
            "If it's a monster you want," Genesis said in a low, flat voice, "then turn your eyes to me."
            Behind him, unseen by Genesis, Sephiroth rolled his eyes.
            "Hey, time out," Zack called. "Nobody here is a monster! People, this is crazy! Gen, put the sword down!"
            One man in a business suit with a rapidly darkening bruise on his cheek stepped forward, giving Genesis a wary look before addressing Sephiroth. "General, aren't you going to do something about this?"
            Sephiroth seemed to consider the question, keeping the point of his long blade lowered to the soil. Finally, he nodded. "Yes. I'm going to stand by these 'monsters'." He then manifested his wing. "Because I'm also one of them."
            The collective gasp was obnoxiously loud, given the number of throats it came from. Somewhere far, far in the back of the crowds, an old woman screamed and fainted. Almost the entire population of Midgar was now staring at not one, but three winged men—men whom they knew as heroes and protectors. People automatically looked at Zack next, naturally assuming by his proximity to the officers and his closeness with them that he too had some supernatural mutation.
            Zack flushed, looking around uncomfortably at the expectant faces—some of which were his friends like Kunsel. "Uh...sorry. I don't have one of those," he explained, gesturing at Angeal's wing. "I'm just an ordinary Soldier."
~*****************************~

            Reeve watched it all unfold with a growing sense of dread. Lazard came up beside him and he came to the same conclusion as Reeve, upon seeing what was happening.
            "We're going to have to intervene."
            Reeve grimaced and nodded. "I'm afraid so."
Tseng joined them, along with Reno and Rude. "The people want an explanation, and if they don't get something soon, your Soldiers may pay for it."
Reeve looked back at the choppers. "Are Hojo and Hollander both secure, Tseng?"
The Turk director nodded, his dark ponytail lifting in the breeze. "Yes. I'm having them both watched...for their own safety, of course."
Reeve found that interesting. Evidently, he and his cohorts weren't the only ones with lingering suspicions about Hojo...or perhaps the Turks had orders to keep both scientists safe for other reasons. It didn't matter, right now. What mattered was that Genesis looked like he was ready to start using his sword to filet people and the crowd of citizens was in danger of becoming a mob. He turned to his blond companion, whose glasses now sported a hairline fracture in the left lens.
"We should try to bring this under control, while we can," reasoned the engineer. "Otherwise someone's going to get hurt or killed. The military can't fend off the whole population of Midgar, if they turn into a mob."
Reeve pushed through the crowd, calling out for people to make way. Lazard came with him. Usually Reeve was the one to come up with spur of the moment explanations, but this time, Lazard stole the spotlight.
"People, listen to me," Lazard shouted once he made it through the circle of guards holding back the crowd. "These men," he gestured behind him at the three winged Soldiers, "are victims of circumstance! I can assure you, they had nothing to do with the bomb and they have proven their loyalty and dedication to ShinRa and the defense of our nation."
            "What are they?" someone demanded.
            Lazard held his hands out. "They're men. True, they've been enhanced—as have all ranking operatives of SOLDIER—but they are still human beings."
            "Where did their wings come from?" shouted an old man.
            Kneeling beside Angeal, Reeve wracked his brain for an answer to that question that wouldn't just make matters worse. Telling a frightened, angry crowd that their government had basically experimented on superhuman operatives to turn them into mutants probably wasn't the ideal explanation to give, however.
            Lazard improvised, coming up with a hasty yet plausible story to appease the population. "It happened as a result of an inspection mission," he explained. "Some of you may remember reading about the incident with the Gongaga reactor in the paper, a few years ago."
            People nodded and muttered amongst themselves, and Lazard continued. "General Sephiroth and his lieutenants were sent to investigate the situation, help evacuate the population and deal with any hazardous radiation or chemical leaks. Unfortunately, their duties put them in a situation that exposed them to contaminants. The exposure triggered the mutation and as I understand it, the wings grew because of a change in cellular structure caused by their bodies attempting to evolve."
            Lazard spared a look around at the Soldiers in question and he frowned at Genesis and motioned him to lower his blade. When the redhead reluctantly complied, he addressed the crowd again. "These Soldiers are the way they are now because they did their jobs, without question. You should all be grateful that they're willing to lay down their lives to defend you."
            "Well, that one threatened people," argued a man in the forefront, pointing at Genesis.
            Reeve spoke up, this time. "No, he warned them not to come any closer when they tried to advance on his comrade with hostile intentions. What do you expect?"
            The crowd began to back off, apparently chagrined by Reeve's admonishment. One young woman hesitantly stepped forward, and she looked at Zack a little shyly. "But he doesn't have any wings. Wasn't he exposed, too?"
            Zack evidently wasn't good at playing along with fibs, because he looked up at the girl dumbly before looking at Reeve and Lazard for guidance. "Uh..."
            Reeve reached out and patted him on the arm, silently warning him to be quiet. "Lt. Fair was with the evacuees, escorting them out of the jungle to the safe zone. He wasn't exposed to the contamination, fortunately."
            Seeing that there was no longer an immediate danger of being lynched, Zack took his attention off the crowd long enough to activate the green materia on his issued bangle and heal the damage to Angeal's head. The big man groaned and Sephiroth stood protectively over him with Genesis as Zack helped him sit up. Angeal put a hand to his head and his wing folded in tightly of its own accord as he tried to get his bearings.
            "Zack...what happened? Is anyone injured?"
            "Not yet," answered Genesis grimly before Zack could respond. He kept his sword lowered, but ready. "We'll see how long that lasts."
            Angeal looked up at him and his expression changed upon noticing the sweeping raven wing. He looked at Sephiroth with parted lips, possibly to ask a question. Seeing that the general had also revealed his wing seemed to snap Angeal out of his daze and make him realize that his own winged mutations were out for everyone to see.
            Angeal shut his eyes and took a slow breath. "So now they know."
            "It's okay, big guy," Zack soothed, casting a wary look around at the ogling citizens and militia. "The Director already explained the deal with your wings."
Lazard nodded, watching Angeal with a look that silently warned him not to talk about the issue further. "Your circumstances have been explained, and nothing more needs to be said about it."
Genesis finally began to relax a little. "Right now, we need to have you examined for concussion and find out what to do next. Midgar is...well, let's just say we won't be calling it 'home' again for a while."
            Angeal opened his eyes and twisted around to look. Seeing the burning city in the distance, he suppressed a soft groan and struggled to his feet with Zack's help. He turned to Sephiroth with a carefully controlled expression on his chiseled features. "General, how many casualties?"
            "Minimum," answered Sephiroth, his gaze lingering on the billowing smoke cloud over Midgar. "Thanks to everyone's quick responses and cooperation, we evacuated most everyone from the city before the event. The numbers of people unaccounted for haven't been figured yet, however. We have more immediate concerns."
            Tseng came forward, bringing a medic with him to look at Angeal. "I've spoken with the Vice President. His orders are to set up a camp safely away from ground zero until additional transport arrives to help relocate the population. When we can determine that it's safe enough to send teams in, the first priority is to contain the fires and minimize the spread of destruction. Search and rescue teams can then be sent in, along with investigative teams. The Turks will assist with the latter."
            "Of course they will," Lazard answered smoothly.
Having the Turks on the job would ensure that any answers they uncovered in the rubble would remain safely classified. If the Rufus and the department heads decided the public needed to know the information, it would be released to the press. That was just how ShinRa always operated.
~*************************~

            As it turned out, there were more casualties than first suspected. Some people evidently took too long gathering personal belongings, believing they had more time. Others didn't take the warnings seriously, believing it was only a hoax concocted to cause rioting in the streets. Some got caught up trying to meet up with friends or family, and unbeknownst to rescue parties, others were being held prisoner in the very facility President Shinra had hoped to destroy.
            Reeve sent in the bomb squad first, equipped with specialized body armor to protect against radiation, absorb pressure and repel heat. They rode on hover boards and they were equipped with defensive materia, extinguishers, bomb defusing kits and scanners. They were short on some supplies due to the haste in which they had to depart the city, but their main concern now was locating any further explosives and containing chemicals and flames so that the other teams could do their jobs.
            After a couple of hours work, they got confirmation that there were no other detectable explosives within range of ground zero. They sealed off the central pillar and the areas surrounding it, containing any fires they couldn't put out so that they wouldn't spread to the Mako reactors at the outer edges of the city perimeter. The rescue and investigation teams assembled, equipped with scanning devices to detect human life, medical equipment and materia. Zack, Angeal and Genesis each led search and rescue teams, while Sephiroth joined Tseng and the Turks on the investigative teams.
            Just as they were about to board a chopper to head back into the city, Tseng got some unexpected news and he put his departure on hold to inform Lazard directly. The SOLDIER director looked up from the data screen he was working over when Tseng entered his tent. The Wutaian features were somber as the Turk director informed him that Palmer had passed away.
            Lazard looked up at him with blatant surprise. "How?" he demanded. "When?"
            Reeve overheard and he interrupted his link with the communication system to join them. "He wasn't injured," he said with certainty. "He didn't even suffer a scratch in the evacuation, unless he got hit by some debris after the explosion, like Lt. Hewley."
            "It wasn't an injury," explained Tseng. "It was a heart attack. Apparently, he was unconscious up until some twenty minutes ago and when he woke up and heard the news, he went into a panic. He went into pulmonary failure shortly after that and our medics couldn't revive him. I've sent word to the Vice President informing him of his demise. I trust the two of you can take care of the rest."
            Lazard grimaced with regret. "Of course, I'll make whatever arrangements need to be made. I presume we need to try and retrieve any important files on the Space Program, as well as Palmer's personal data."
            Tseng nodded, his dark gaze sliding to Reeve. "If possible. There may be information in there we can use."
            "Doubtful," sighed Lazard. "The Space Program has been a joke for years now, and to put it kindly, Palmer isn't the sort to know how to hide vital data."
            Tseng smirked subtly at the blond's covert way of saying Palmer was too stupid to be in on a conspiracy. "I agree with your opinion, but if there's even the slightest chance he might have had something we can use, the VP wants it found. Consider it a formality, but don't put it off for too long." He looked at Reeve and a frown marred his smooth features. "Tuesti, will you do this?"
            Reeve shook himself out of whatever thoughts put that troubled expression on his face. "Sure, I can do that. I'll get started on it right away."
            Tseng nodded in satisfaction and bid them both farewell before leaving the tent to join his investigation team. When they were alone again, Lazard looked over at the older man with a frown of concern. Reeve looked as though he was trying to solve a complex equation in his head and he wasn't much liking the results.
            "Will you share, or should I start guessing what has you looking so...cramped?"
            Reeve's brown gaze was distracted and guilty as he answered in a soft, low tone. "I killed the bastard."
            "Pardon?" Lazard's brows lifted inquisitively.
            Reeve gave a cursive glance around before sidling closer to Lazard. "While we were evacuating the lower sectors, Palmer got word that President Shinra was assassinated. He started running off at the mouth that we were going to be next, blabbering about terrorists coming to kill us all. I couldn't shut him up about it and people were starting to take notice and get scared...so I tazered him to shut him up."
            Lazard's mouth went through an interesting little twitch before he responded. "I'm sure you had no other recourse, and we've all seen Palmer get worked up before. That doesn't mean you killed him, Reeve. He was alive and well up until a short while ago."
            "Maybe I didn't shoot him or stab him, but shocking him with three-hundred thousand volts of electricity couldn't have helped." Reeve scrubbed his face with a palm and shook his head. "I never did like the whining butterball, but it should have occurred to me that shocking a man with his cholesterol levels and medical history wasn't the best way to shut him up."
            Lazard struggled for something to say to that. Finally, he shrugged and patted Reeve on the shoulder. "As you said; Palmer had a medical history because of his poor diet and lack of exercise. For all you know, he might have been having a heart attack already when you tazered him, and the jolt you gave him kept him going for a little while longer."
            Reeve's frown didn't diminish. "That's just speculation, and it doesn't excuse my approach to handling his hysterics."
            "Then consider the lives you may have saved by putting a stop to his dramatics," urged Lazard. "You had the safety of hundreds of people to think of, and if his panic had been allowed to spread, you probably wouldn't have gotten them out of the city before time ran out. You might have been killed, too. Try to look at it objectively, Reeve."
            The older man seemed at least a little comforted by his reasoning. "I suppose I could look at it that way. It still seems cold to me, though. Palmer was annoying, but he was relatively harmless compared to the rest of us."
            "His death was more his own fault than yours," insisted Lazard. "And again, I remind you that your intention was only to shut him up, not to kill him. There's no time or room for guilt right now, Tuesti. We've got to put it aside and concentrate on more immediate issues. Palmer's troubles are over."
            Reeve breathed a sigh and nodded. "Of course, you're right. This isn't helping anything or anybody."
            Satisfied with the response, Lazard returned his attention to his notebook computer—which was sitting on a crate for lack of a desk or table. He stood over the device and checked the latest statistics before reaching for his communication headset to put it on. Fortunately, satellite communications were still working fine. Lazard was about to tune into Sephiroth's channel to monitor the progress, when Reeve made an observation that gave him pause and put a scowl on his lips.
            "You know, when it comes to how you handle crisis situations and distance yourself from them, you and Rufus are a lot alike."
~****************************~


            "Move faster," Angeal ordered as he helped his men clear the rubble. "This whole structure could collapse on this family."
            The cries of the children trapped beneath the rubble grew more coherent as they cleared the debris away, and Zack immediately squirmed into an opening as soon as it was big enough. He called out to his companions from inside, once he reached the trapped civilians.
            "There's a guy in here with them," he called, "And...a lady...but she's gone."
            "Mama," sobbed a little girl's voice from inside the rubble.
            Angeal compressed his lips and glanced sidelong at Genesis before speaking again. "Zack, lift the children up first, followed by the adult."
            "Got it," assured the younger Soldier.
A few minutes later, a tear-streaked, soot-smudged face of a six-year old girl emerged, and the rescue operatives pulled her out carefully and bundled her up. She was carried away for immediate oxygen treatment and medical care while they finished extracting her father and younger brother. Angeal was uncommonly impatient and snappy as they worked, and when he shoved an MP away for asking an annoying question, Genesis took him aside and confronted him.
"Zack and Kunsel can handle it for a few moments," insisted Genesis when Angeal started to argue with him. "Come here with me, Hewley."
The big man's chiseled face held a stony expression on it as his redheaded companion urged him away from the rest of the team. Genesis examined him with narrowed, suspicious eyes before gathering his thoughts and speaking.
"I would brush this behavior off as angst caused by the roast we narrowly escaped," Genesis said, "except that the Angeal Hewley I've always known is altruistic to a fault, even when he's suffering himself."
Angeal shrugged and looked toward the still-billowing cloud in the center of the city, where headquarters once stood. "I'm not permitted to have limits?"
"Of course you are," assured Genesis, "but now you're acting like me, and that's just disturbing. What's beneath the surface, Hewley? I need you fully alert and you're...distracted."
The big man leaned against the brick wall of the building behind him and he looked askew at his lover, the stoic mask cracking to reveal a touch of angst in his expression. "I left something behind, when this started. I didn't think about it and it's just a trivial thing...just an old picture...but it was all I had left of her. That photo I had of my mother and I; the one I kept on entertainment unit. It's gone, now."
Genesis' expression softened with understanding, and then it flickered with something else. He reached into the inner pocket of his long jacket and he almost looked sheepish. "Actually, you're wrong about that."
He produced his hardbound copy of "Loveless" and he opened the cover for Angeal's inspection, revealing a slightly faded photo of a thirteen-year old Angeal standing outside a modest, run down little house. His mother stood beside him with an arm around him and they were both smiling at the camera, seemingly happy despite their obviously poor status.
"I snatched it from its frame on a whim," explained Genesis while Angeal ogled him, "when we stopped by our quarters to collect our spare weapons. You had already headed out the door and I was about to follow you, but I spotted this and I thought...well, I don't know what I thought, but it seemed like a good idea, at the time. Maybe the goddess was warning me, or maybe I've just become so cynical that I always expect the worst...but I knew it was your only remaining photo of her, so I took it."
Angeal stared at the picture before looking at his companion's face. Genesis avoided his eyes, blushing self-consciously at the gratitude in his companion's expression. He tried to sound blasé. "I would have said something to you, if I knew it would really come to this. We've had other things to worry about, though."
"Gen," Angeal murmured. He briefly touched the picture, swallowed, and then withdrew his gloved hand. "Thank you. I know I don't have to tell you what this means to me."
Genesis shrugged, glancing uncomfortably at his oldest friend and lover. "My neurotic impulses seem to have paid off, for once. Let's not make a big deal of this. You can relax now, though. Mother Hewley is safe with me."
"Yes," agreed Angeal, unable to keep the warmth and amusement from creeping into his tone. "Safer than she could be anywhere else, I imagine. In fact, I think I'd prefer you to keep the picture there in your book, until we've finished here. Will you do that for me, Genesis?"
The redhead gently shut the book and replaced it in his pocket with a nod. "You know I will."
Angeal nodded. "Good. Thank you."
Genesis gave him a brief, uncontrollable little smile. "Only you could inspire such sentiment."
Zack started to call out for them, interrupting the moment. It was time to move on and start dividing their teams to cover more ground. The danger to the outer reactors was contained, but there were still trapped people within the city and there was a lot of work to do, before they were finished. Genesis reached out and patted one of his lover's broad shoulders, sparing an encouraging smile meant for Angeal alone. It was the most he could give him, under the circumstances.
"Watch your ass."
Angeal nodded and patted him back. "Same to you."
~**************************~

            "Yo boss, what do ya make of this?" Reno approached Tseng with something that appeared to be a broken metal collar, dug out of the ruins of Headquarters. "I found this thing next to it. Looks like a remote control or something and they've both got the same serial numbers on them. I'm not as sharp as Tuesti when it comes to engineering, but I'd almost say this remote goes with this collar thingy."
            Tseng took the items from his redheaded companion with a frown, studying them under the beam of the flashlights. "I agree, but to what purpose? I've never seen anything like this. General?"
            Sephiroth leaned in closer to Tseng and Reno to examine the items as well. He shook his head. "Nothing official. If this is company issued equipment, SOLDIER wasn't informed of it."
            "Maybe we're just looking at someone's fuck toys," suggested Reno, nudging his partner.
            Rude grunted and glanced at the items. "Maybe. Not mine, though."
            Tseng considered it, and the idea had merit. ShinRa personnel weren't exactly known for their upstanding morals and most of the staff was known well by the Honeybee Inn. Still, the technological complexity of the electronic collar and the remote struck him as a bit too advanced for fetish paraphernalia. He wondered if it was possible that the collar was some sort of detonation device someone had worn, but then how could it have survived the blast, and why was the remote for it anywhere near it?
            "Scan it and bag it," he ordered. "Keep searching the area. General Sephiroth, if you wouldn't mind surveying parts out of our immediate reach?"
            "Of course," agreed the SOLDIER operative, and he manifested his wing and took to the air.
            Reno smacked a staring Turk in the back of the head. "Keep your mind on the job," he ordered. "Freak out about the wing later, got it?"
            Elena's voice broke through the frequency, and there was a lot of static interference. "Sir? Cissnei....on our way. VP Rufus sent...hour behind us. She wants to know...found anything...explosion?"
            Tseng exchanged frowns with Reno and Rude before adjusting his transmitter and responding. "Elena, you're breaking up. Please repeat."
            "Scarlet is an hour behind us," obliged the blonde Turk. "Cissnei and I...together. Our ETA is about two hours. Do you...evidence to the cause of the explosion, Sir?"
            Tseng pieced it all together enough to understand. "As far as we can ascertain, the terrorist threat was genuine and the bomb was somehow planted beneath HQ. We've found some inconclusive evidence that may suggest the bomb was attached to a person, but we are still excavating for clues and the situation is unstable, at best."
            "I see," answered Elena. "I'll relay the information. We'll see you when we arrive, Director."
            "Until then."
Tseng ended the transmission and he felt briefly annoyed that Scarlet hadn't bothered to contact him herself to ask these questions, if she was really so interested in what they did or didn't find in their search, so far. She always liked to demonstrate her status whenever possible, though, and her social skills were somewhat lacking. It wasn't that surprising to him that she would assign a mediator.
"Keep a sharp eye out," he advised his fellow Turks, glancing up at the smoky night sky, where Sephiroth soared overhead. It was a bit startling to have such an open view, from this part of the city. The magnitude of what had happened started to sink in. They were literally standing on the ruins of his office building. Uptown Midgar was scattered all around them...merged with Downtown Midgar. The sky had literally fallen.
~*****************************~

            Lazard came out of his tent to greet them when he got word that Scarlet and her team had arrived. Under the morbid circumstances, they were cordial to each other and they put aside their differences in the interest of making things go smoother. Scarlet informed him that Rufus would ascend to the presidency after the situation in Midgar was brought under control. The VP was currently making arrangements in Junon to house some of the refugees. Kalm and Fort Condor were both prepared to take some residents in and lighten the burden on Junon, until they could clean up and rebuild Midgar.
            With Scarlet's help, Lazard began to oversee the transport of citizens. They would drop off as many families as possible in Kalm town first, before taking people to Junon and Ft. Condor. They had just finished loading two transport choppers when Reeve came stumbling out of the command tent, wearing an urgent, almost enraged expression on his face. He looked around for a moment until he spotted Professor Hojo, still being watched by a couple of Turks by Tseng's order.
            Lazard stopped speaking to Scarlet and he frowned curiously as he watched the head of Urban Development advance upon Hojo. He'd never seen Reeve Tuesti look like that before, and when the older man pointed at Hojo and demanded that he be put under arrest immediately, a chill went up his spine.
            "What now?" groused Scarlet as she and Lazard hurried over to the scene.
            Lazard shook his head. "I have no idea, but I'm willing to hazard a guess that it's got something to do with Palmer's files."
            "He found something in Palmer's database?" Her voice was oddly tense.
            "Evidently," snapped Lazard, his diplomacy slowly going out the window with his frustration. "Reeve, what's this all about?"
            Reeve was practically livid as he turned to face Lazard. "I've been suspecting a 'ghost in the machine' for some time now, and I was right! We've been looking in the wrong places, Lazard. I found encrypted data hidden in Palmer's files and when I began to extract it, something came after me."
            Lazard's brows furrowed over the rims of his glasses. "I don't understand. What could 'come after you' through a data network? Unless you're talking about a firewall blocking your access?"
            "No, I'm not talking about any firewall." Reeve's voice was grimly intense, his dark gaze faintly horrified. "I'm talking about a living entity. Hojo came after me."
            Lazard didn't think it was possible for his mind to boggle more thoroughly. "Hojo. How could he come after you when he's been out here, with no access to a computer system of any sort?"
            Reeve shook his head and scowled at the professor when Hojo began to laugh softly. "Don't ask me how he did it, but he's created an artificial intelligence with his consciousness, and he's planted it in the web. Gaia only knows how long it's been in there, infecting the system and accessing everyone's information!"
            Hojo's laughter increased, chilling and macabre. "You can't stop it now," he informed between chuckles. "It's already begun!"
            Reeve grabbed hold of the professor's lab coat and shook him. "You twisted bastard! What have you done?"
            "I think the evidence is right here before us," answered Lazard with dry, forced calm as he indicated the ravaged city in the distance. "You aren't going to get answers from him that way, Tuesti. Move aside and let our people cuff him and take him into custody."
            Reeve let go of Hojo reluctantly, his hands shaking with anger. He seemed to notice Scarlet for the first time and he glared at her. "While you're at it, arrest that broad, too. She's in on whatever insanity Hojo's been concocting."
            Scarlet looked around with an alarmed, startled expression. "You're out of your head, Tuesti! I don't know what you're talking about!" She backed away from the nearby Turks and MP's, who were approaching her uncertainly.
            "Reeve, are you sure about this?" Lazard asked cautiously, narrowing his eyes on the blonde woman. "Because if you aren't and we arrest her under false premises, it's going to cause a world of trouble for both of us."
            "Her name came up in the files I found, before the AI came after me," answered Reeve with conviction. "I don't know how involved she is in it yet, but she definitely had something to do with it. Heidegger's name came up too...but we can't very well arrest a dead man."
            Lazard sighed. "No, we can't. Guards, take Scarlet into custody until otherwise instructed."
            "You can't do this," she protested, reaching for the gun strapped to her thigh beneath her crimson, slinky dress. "I'm a major department head of this corporation! The Vice President will hear about this!"
            "Ma'am, drop the gun," warned the lead MP, raising his weapon against her. "We don't want to shoot you, but we will if you force us to."
            Lazard tried to reason with her. "If you're innocent of collaborating with Hojo, you have nothing to worry about. This is only a temporary situation, until we can get this cleared up. You know we can't take any chances, Scarlet. Just cooperate with us, so we can straighten this out. You have nowhere to run and you have six weapons pointing back at you."
            "Seven," corrected Reeve, drawing his own pistol to take aim at her. "And honey, I don't mind performing an impromptu frontal lobotomy on you."
            She glared impotently at Reeve, her violet eyes betraying fear she couldn't quite disguise. "You have no idea what you're up against."
            Lazard raised his eyebrows. "Why don't you tell us, then?"
            She looked around at the guards, evidently realizing there was no escape. "I'll talk to the Vice President. Nobody else." She held her gun out and dropped it to the dirt, before putting her hands behind her head. The guards converged on her and they quickly cuffed her and led her away with Hojo, to be placed in a transport rover and kept under guard.
            Lazard watched them go and he sighed again, scratching his head. "I don't understand any of this."
            "Come inside the tent with me," urged Reeve as he replaced his pistol. "I'll explain what I've found, but I think I've only scratched the surface."
~***********************************~

To the office of Rufus Shinra, Vice President of ShinRa Inc.
Sir,
Let me begin by offering my condolences on the loss of your father. Please be assured that you have the undivided loyalty and support of the Turks. We are yours to command. Unfortunately, I have grave news regarding the situation in Midgar and the truth behind the explosion. AVALANCHE wasn't responsible. It was in fact triggered by President Shinra himself, just before his untimely demise.
We have all been mislead, Sir. Your father was conducting a secret project known as "Deepground", and as far as we have been able to ascertain with the information Tuesti procured, Hojo, Heidegger and Scarlet were all involved in it. Hollander apparently confessed to Lt. Hewley some time ago that he worked on the project briefly, but he was taken off of it before it reached fruition and he swears he had no idea it was still in operation.
We found the evidence in Palmer's database, after his demise. I doubt he even knew it was there. Hojo placed it there, knowing we weren't likely to search for it. He used Palmer as a mule, of sorts. This project has been going on for nearly two decades, right beneath our feet in Midgar. Evidence suggests that a secret sector was built beneath the city and it started out as a hospital for recovering SOLDIER operatives injured in the field. They began to experiment on those retrieved from battle and eventually, they started abducting people for the project.
This answers the question of where all of these "recruits" we Turks have been collecting over the years have been going. It seems our speculation that they didn't survive the enhancement process may have been incorrect. They were never put under the normal SOLDIER enhancement process, but a more rigorous one that none of us even knew about. The data suggests that the intent behind it was to create an army of even more powerful Soldiers, using a combination of Mako enhancement and genetic splicing. They were building off old research to accomplish greater results, but something went wrong.
For whatever reason, President Shinra decided to activate a self-destruct mechanism, somewhere within the core of the hidden "Sector 0". I presume his intention was to destroy Deepground and all evidence of its existence, but we may never know for certain. The scanners aren't detecting any sign of life in the area presumed to be the location of Sector 0, so whomever might have been alive under there is either dead or gone, now. Hojo is in some form of self-induced euphoria, barely coherent through his obvious glee over this catastrophe. He has released some form of virus into the network, which makes it difficult at best to locate and procure data relating to "Deepground".
Commissioner Tuesti is making good use of his skills, however. He has already retrieved several files and he is working on decrypting them as I write this report. We will of course arrange a meeting to discuss this matter thoroughly with you, once we arrive in Junon. Due to the nature of these events, I think its best we leave further details for when we can speak face to face, in a secured, private location.
I am sending Scarlet and Hojo to Junon with a SOLDIER escort led by General Sephiroth. She has refused to speak further to anyone except for you, and I've therefore decided to allow you the chance to get information from her before we have to move on to less pleasant methods of extraction.
Frankly sir, Scarlet isn't likely to give up any information she doesn't want us to have, no matter what method we use to persuade her. Take it from one who knows; torture will not work on this woman. I hope that you can convince her to cooperate willingly.
-Tseng
~**********************************~

-To be continued
- 15
- 16
- 17
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