Reunion Chapter 27
By Janet Monstwillo
Raieyana saw the Airship floating above Costa Del Sol. Somehow, its appearance was all she needed to go that extra distance. She realized that people were staring at her. (I’m not exactly decked out in vacation clothes, but, then again, I’m not exactly on vacation.) She hesitated in front of the villa door. (Knock, or don’t knock? I’m not a stranger...) She opened the door.
"Hey, Cid, is the Highwind ready now?" asked Cloud, his back to the door. "Cid? What’s with y--" He turned around. "Raieyana?" he whispered. He ran to her side and gently carried her to the couch. "What the hell happened to you?"
"What is it, Cloud?" asked Legolas. "Oh my--" He ran into the next room. "Everyone...it’s Raieyana."
Raieyana looked up at the circle of concerned faces. "I’m fine. It’s not like it tried it tried to eat me or anything. I admit, I was afraid, but I think I handled it pretty well. One less thing we have to worry about, right?"
"What are you talking about?" asked Yuffie.
Raieyana laughed. Then she looked around. "Wait, you’re serious, aren’t you? I killed the...you know, the Amber Weapon. You could have heard it dying miles from here."
"Where’s the body?" asked Red XIII.
"A few miles down the beach. It felt like a million on my ankle."
"Umm... Look, how ‘bout I go get you something to drink," said Cloud, "and I bet Tifa can get you some clothes." He left, and Tifa went to her room.
"I...have my plans for the attack on Edinborough and the Shinra building," said Red XIII. "I’ll go get my drawings and show them to you."
"I gotta go call Lia," said Legolas.
"I left my omelet and sausage on the table," said Barret.
Vincent and Yuffie exchanged looks. She shook her head and sat down next to Raieyana. "Why don't you go do something, Vincent," she suggested.
"But I..."
"Look, everyone else found excuses, just let me be the one to tell her. Your presence isn’t going to help anything, believe me."
Raieyana looked at Yuffie. "Tell me what? Is it Reeve...is it..."
"It’s just...after you left Lucrecia’s...I guess she attacked Elena and took the baby. We think that Elena must be dead. We didn’t get her message until yesterday, very late."
"The Reunion," said Raieyana. "She must be taking him to Shelding."
"How would she know where Shelding is? She’s been living in a cave for over twenty years."
"Yuffie, wherever the Reunion is, that’s where Shelding will be. Where would he go?"
"I honestly have no idea."
"Reno told me he was obsessed with Hojo. If you’re obsessed with something and make a pilgrimage someplace, where do you usually go? The place that person died. But where did Hojo die?"
"Midgar," said Tifa. She walked into the room and handed Raieyana a tank top and a pair of pants.
"What’s this?" she asked, holding up a pair of short daggers.
Tifa shrugged. "I figured you need weapons. They don’t sell any crystal in this tourist trap. You’re hard-pressed to find anything decent."
"I’ll go get changed. So we’re going to Midgar, I guess."
"I think it’s fitting," said Tifa, "to end this where it began."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"We can’t give you much support. The Gens are attacking our city. I think they underestimated us, though. We can spare you a little air support. Mostly transports, though."
"Thank you, Yorlain. It’s just what we need," said Legolas, "Reeve left Junon in good hands with you."
"I guess, since we’re not burning down yet. Where do you want them?"
"Do your pilots know where Mt. Crist is?"
"That’s in the middle of nowhere..."
"Can you think of a better place for us to hide some support? Okay...yes, good luck to you, too." Legolas dialed a number. "Lia, get the warriors down to Mt. Crist. They’ll be loading up into Alcor helicopters for the air raids on Edinborough. What? We’re going to Midgar, I told you that. Raieyana? To tell you the truth, she looks better than she has been in a long time..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Set the machine on level twenty-five. Twenty-six." Lucas peered down into Reeve’s eyes. "It hurts, Mr. Jordan, doesn’t it?"
"I’ve...had...worse..."
"Ahh...Reeve, lying doesn’t flatter anyone’s personality. Especially yours. And it isn’t benefiting your appearance. Frankly, my good man, you look like shit."
Reeve managed a smile. "I’d been...trying to pull...off the Shelding look...for years...don’t tell me...I finally succeeded...with no one...around to see me."
"TWENTY-SEVEN! Maybe if you learned when to shut up..."
"It seems to me if I hadn’t...you wouldn’t...need to go to...these lengths...for your...information."
A voice came over the intercom. "Professor Shelding, there’s a lady to see you. Her name is Lucrecia. She says she has a valuable prize for you to take with you to some sort of reunion. She looks a bit..."
Lucas smiled. "Send her down."
"Down there, sir?"
"Martin, are you going deaf? I said down here, didn’t I?" He turned to Reeve. "Lucrecia...has she brought me some sort of surprise? Do you know what it is?"
Lucrecia walked in with a blanketed bundle. "It is time, professor."
Lucas took the bundle in his arms. "I hold in my hands the future of Shinra. Would you like to see, Reeve? He has his mother’s eyes."
"Where is she, Shelding? Where’s Raieyana? She would have never left the baby. Where the hell is she?"
"Reeve, I honestly don’t know. You yourself told her to leave the baby. She listened to you. That’s the only thing you ever mutter besides ‘marry me, Ray.’ Really, it’s all very sickening." He motioned towards the guards. "Prepare Mr. Jordan and Mr. Reno for the Reunion. They want to see their Raieyana so bad, and I happen to know she will be there...now, for this."
Lucrecia’s face flinched. "Please, may I hold him? I waited...you promised..."
Lucas looked at her coldly. "Lock her up in the prisons. I have no use for such an old, inferior specimen."
Two guards grabbed her arms and started to lead her away. She fell to her knees. "I’m his mother...he should see his mother...this is wrong...don’t do this..." The guards grabbed her roughly and started to carry her away. "HOJO! He’s my son, too! Why can’t I hold him...just once?! HOJO!!" She started weeping.
"On second thought," said Lucas, "just execute her. No need to waste taxpayers’ money on boarding her. Old, useless, slightly crazy..."
"Sephiroth...I’m sorry...I should’ve... Hojo was wrong. It’s not your fault... Vincent, I was wrong. Hojo was not a scientist."
"Didn’t you hear me? I said take her away! Kill her...shoot her in the fucking head! Get her out of here!" Lucas set Patrick down on the lab table.
Reeve looked at the baby. (If I could only...get my hands free...) He struggled against the hold of the guards.
Lucas picked up a pistol and aimed level at Lucrecia’s head.
"He never ran a sane experiment in his life. All his brilliance...was just a foolish attempt at immortality...like he needed to preserve himself...or his foul seed."
Reeve strained against the guards. (So close...just a little more...a little farther...) One lifted up the blunt end of his gun.
"Shut up, BITCH!" Lucas pulled the trigger.
Lucrecia’s lifeless body fell to the floor, spraying blood on the lab’s pristine white walls.
Reeve’s body sagged lifeless in the guards’ arms as one knocked him unconscious with the butt of his gun.
Lucas shuddered and wiped off his hands with a tissue. "Take him to the Gelnika," he said to the guards holding Reeve. He nodded at one of the guards who had been holding Lucrecia. "Take the baby to the sanitary compartment of the Gelnika." He nodded at the other one. "Call Laida. We’re leaving. And tell the H Block of guards to get Jack Reno and prepare the Gelnika for flight. We’re going to Midgar. To see...where..." (Where Hojo...
"where I died...")
* * * * * * * * * * * *
(Just a little bit farther...so close...so close...)
"Reeve!"
Reeve opened his eyes. "Oh, my...Christ, my head hurts."
Reno grimaced. "They brought you on unconscious, man. I think you’ve got a pretty big lump. What the hell did you do? They never beat me. Just strapped me to that thing. Well actually once, Shelding had this rainstick, and..." He looked at Reeve. "Did you try to get away?"
He nodded. "Lucrecia came here with Raieyana’s baby."
"The baby?! Where is Raieyana?"
"I guess," said Reeve slowly, "that Shelding has no idea. Otherwise he would have killed us already. So I think she got Elena’s message."
"Elena... Lucrecia must’ve..."
"Lucrecia was crazy. She thought that Shelding was Hojo and the baby was Sephiroth. She did some Hojo-bashing and Shelding went nuts and shot her."
"So where we going now?"
"The Reunion."
"Reeve, I haven’t ever been a religious person...but don’t you think that this would be as good a time as any to pray? Slowly, one by one, every single one of our allies has went nuts or gotten killed. Or both."
Reeve nodded. "Poor Elena’s probably dead."
"Dammit, why do I have to be the last Turk? I sure as hell wasn’t the best."
"I don’t know, Jack, I just don’t know. And about praying...God hasn’t answered any of my prayers lately... I think the only thing we can hope for is a swift death and hope against all hope that Raieyana is safe, far away from the Reunion."
.