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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 7:05:44 GMT
Fruxas blinked back his rapidly drying tears. "Me, too." He got his tin cup out of his pocket and fired at it... eight bolts stuck out of it before it hit the ground. "You told me I'd get it someday..."
Xima shook her head and smiled. "Don't fire that thing off around the baby. It makes me nervous." She raised an eyebrow to show she was only joking, and Fruxas laughed. He handed the cup over to his father.
****
Vincent broke off sparring with Kamen. "Let's finish this later." If there is a later.
He joined the second group as the first headed off the ship... Ami stayed with Reno's unit, as did Rude, and everyone tensed, bracing themselves. Kadaj followed Cloud and the rest of the first group out of the hatch, feeling slightly queasy... Yazoo blinked as his brother weaved his way towards the door, staring at his feet. He caught his arm. "Are you all--"
"Fine," he snapped, stumbling along behind his former arch enemy. Yazoo tilted his head... He's in another one of his infamous moods... fine time to get sulky, brother.
Loz came away from the door and let Reno out to join his unit. He was still muttering dark, unprintable things under his breath, but he managed to not lunge at Cid... with an EXTREME effort of will power.
The hatchway closed behind Kadaj... he swayed dizzily... Something is VERY wrong here.
He glanced up towards Strife, and suddenly he heaved... he was feeling genuinely sick... Oh, G**... I know this feeling...
He propelled himself forward, semi-conscious. "Uh, Strife... I'm not feeling so hot..." His eyes shot open as a memory of flames rocketed through his mind. Think of what you care about... He fought to hang on to memories of his family... but it had failed to work before, and was rapidly failing to work now... "No--"
Everything went black.
Cloud looked back. "What was that?"
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Ru
Chocobo Keeper
Let's poke it!
Posts: 51
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Post by Ru on Dec 10, 2006 7:18:21 GMT
Not noticing the crisis on the ground, Cid quickly pulled the Sierra back into the skies, hovering high above the land. "Okay, everyone, grab onto somethin'." He kicked the engines up to full throttle, speeding off in a wide loop around the town of Kalm so that their presence wouldn't be noticed until it was needed. Cid could easily adapt to the sudden change in speed, but hey, the others had never flown with him before.
"They got fifteen minutes to get to the town before we start shellin' it," he said, glancing down at the red button for the cannons, "Let's hope they make d*mn good use o' that time." He chewed on his cigarette, bent over the wooden wheel in concentration as he directed the ship carefully out of harm's way, then back towards the settlements.
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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 7:20:41 GMT
Ami grinned at Cid, but her expression soon evaporated as one presence wavered, and another took its place... Oh, my G**...
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Post by mistervillainman on Dec 10, 2006 7:24:23 GMT
Kadaj's hand shot forward, clutching his reclaimed blade and it burrowed deep into Cloud's collar. Kadaj's eyes glowed silver and he twisted the blade inside cloud's flesh, grinding it against his bone and then he pulled Cloud close to his face, a twisted grin split across his face and he locked eyes with Cloud. But the eyes were not his own, they were the abombination... the nightmare hadnt ended... it had just lain in wait.
"I told you Cloud... I will never set you free." He said as his features morphed, spreading across his body, transforming his body and clothing to that of Sephiroth. As it reached his hand, the sword in his grip changed appearance and ripped through Cloud's back as it lengthened to the blade of the one-winged Angel.
When it was complete, Sephiroth lifted Cloud up off the ground with the blade and then flung him back towards the ship, throwing a splash of crimson in a trail behind his foe.
((I dont know what is going on with my connection, but my AIM is dead and my wireless keeps going in and out, I'm gonna post as many times as I can))
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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 7:35:03 GMT
Kadaj was stuck in the back of his own mind with no way to fight his way back into control... he was trapped. He wasn't sure of how to feel about his "brother" killing Cloud... on the one hand, Cloud had killed him once, but on the other... he wanted NOTHING his brother wanted...
He saw Cloud struggle to rise... He SURVIVED that? My G**...
Cloud felt pain shooting through him, enough pain to kill other men... but somehow, he managed to get to his feet and stay there... "Sephiroth... you've sunk low enough to resort to stowing away... you'd think I would have learned by now... never trust a Remnant."
He raised his sword and rushed Sephiroth, blood dripping from him as he ran...
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Post by mistervillainman on Dec 10, 2006 7:39:23 GMT
"Hah, as if Kadaj had any notion that I was still alive..." He said, taking full advantage of Cloud's weakness as he easily deflected his strike, following up his block with a strong kick to Cloud's stomach, knocking him back a few steps. "Kadaj is just my staging ground and I can use it whenever I please. He was too much of a bleeding heart weakling to really serve our people's needs. And he was CERTAINLY too weak to detect me inside him all this time."
As he spoke, he shoulder-checked Cloud to the ground and kicked him in the ribs violently. Inflicting as much pain as he could while Cloud was still slowed by his injury.
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Ru
Chocobo Keeper
Let's poke it!
Posts: 51
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Post by Ru on Dec 10, 2006 7:51:03 GMT
The ship had departed too quickly for most of the occupants to catch a glimpse of what had just occurred, but was fast returning to Kalm, this time, from the front. Cid delightfully mashed a fist down on the red button on the control panel and listened as the Sierra's cannons charged up.
"Right...aiming for the inn and all those b*stards runnin' around it," he muttered to himself, bringing the ship in low for a flyby over the town. He didn't want to risk hitting anything he didn't need to, although obviously there was going to be some splash damage. Glancing over at the set of crosshairs aligned in the computer, Cid nodded. "Okay, keep holdin' on," he advised the occupants, slamming his hand down on another set of buttons, "let's kick some a*s."
Bolts of blue energy erupted from the guns of the massive airship, slashing through the air and zooming straight towards their target. The loud roar of the Sierra's engines overtook the town as the ship closed in.
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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 7:55:15 GMT
Cloud flinched as the boot connected... I'm going to be feeling this in the morning, he couldn't avoid thinking. Wait... did he say Kadaj didn't KNOW? "A bleeding heart weakling"... THAT's a term I never heard applied to a Remnant before...
Inside Sephiroth's mind, a voice echoed. Coming from YOU, I consider that a compliment. A stab of pain ballooned through Sephiroth's head... Kadaj had always been a good computer hacker... now it was time for him to try breaking out of the most secure console he'd ever encountered... his own mind. Let me GO, d**n it!!! I'm tired of being someone else's b***h... do your own dirty work from now on!
The intense mental pain gave Cloud a few moments to recover... he groaned and once again began to rise...
He felt energy pumping into him, and he heard Joey's voice in his head... We can't come back to help you now... it's too late. But Ami felt Sephiroth coming and warned me... Annie's trying to give you a little patch-up and maybe a boost on the side. Make it count!
Cloud stood, green Lifestream energy flowing through him and shining from his wounds... he spun his sword in his hand and swung it at Sephiroth's midsection, trying to catch him off-guard. Sorry, Kadaj... but I have no choice.
He saw his enemy's form start to flicker strangely, as if caught between two dimensions... a shout of anger faded in and out...
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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 8:07:57 GMT
Jenova felt the vibrations of the battle coming... It seems my young Iscariot has found a greater strength... but I highly doubt anything my little weakling has to offer will be enough to give him the edge... he has never been and will never be good enough, whether he intends to become our ally OR our enemy.
She sent a large detachement against the first unit and kept another, a decoy detachment, outside the Inn, also of conspicuous size... what her enemies failed to realize was, she had a sizeable number of other troops still waiting in reserve... and at least twenty of her most sensitive guarding the children, prepared to detect even those protected by the strongest mental shields. They don't stand a chance.
Jared, "eavesdropping" on his sister, laughed quietly to himself. That's what you think. He finished programming Cid's remote hackware console and activated it, sending out a signal that immediately detonated every electronic explosive within the signal radius.
Jenova's jaw dropped. "What the h**l--" Nearly a quarter of her troops had been decimated by that attack alone!
Xima heard the booming explosives and instinctively shielded her child, who had begun to cry from the noise. "Shh... shh..." She quietly thanked G** Rufus was a bit of a midevalist... he didn't use the electronic explosives for his self-detonation panic button, still considering the old-fashioned variety to be more effective.
Several of the troopers instinctively ran into the open from their concealment areas in blind panic... Jenova nearly blew a gasket. "No, you morons! Get back into position... will you ruin everything?!"
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Post by *~Nikkole~* on Dec 10, 2006 8:09:53 GMT
Kamen had retreated and was sheathing and concealing his blade. He had no need for it yet.... He tested out his his shields and little tricks before getting creative and making himself disappear and reappear somewhere else. He grinned, slightly proud of himself.
Nikky was checking the sharpness of her knives and daggers. She was calm and resolute as she hummed slightly.
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Ru
Chocobo Keeper
Let's poke it!
Posts: 51
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Post by Ru on Dec 10, 2006 8:19:45 GMT
"Nice one, kid!" Cid called out to Jared as the electronic explosives detonated, "Just one more second here...." The bolts of energy began raining down, crashing into parts of the inn and nearby houses, and sending clone troopers flying in the subsequent explosions. Clouds of dust and smoke erupted around the buildings, and several things caught fire. Cid could barely see the inn through the thick cover of falling debris, but he knew the damage had to have hurt. He watched a few troopers limp away out of the chaos.
"Hah!" he shouted triumphantly, "Take that!" He pulled the airship past the town and threw the wheel hard to the left, swining around in a quick sharp turn that nearly sent everybody flying. "One more run past, and then we're goin' in!" Cid called out, waiting until the cannons had charged up again before gunning the engines with a blast of noise.
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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 8:35:59 GMT
Jared nodded and braced himself as the ship banked. He lurched towards the ship's flight console... "Just as long as you don't hit the Inn again... I'm still in there, remember?"
****
Fruxas cringed at the sound of the booming energy charges, instinctively clinging to his father... Xima glared skywards. D**ned hypocrites... and they pretend to be SO concerned about the welfare of children...
A few chunks of plaster fell from the roof. She leaned over the baby to protect her... "Fruxas!"
He came to her. "Yes, Mother?" His voice shook in terror...
"Get under the table with the baby," she ordered, handing the infant over.
He was slightly hesitant... the last time he had taken care of his sister, things had not worked out so well...
"Fruxas!" His mother was getting impatient... but in her eyes he could see fear as well, raw and real...
He scurried under the table to hide from the booming explosions... Xima went to Rufus and took his with her to the doorway. She stood on one side and left him at the other... If they somehow get past the troopers, we'll be waiting.
****
Jenova cursed loudly as her exposed "children" were blasted to smithereens. "Get back into your positions NOW!"
They ran to obey, suddenly comprehending ths significance of her request... She ignited the Dark Lifestream, waiting for the others to disembark... "Who wants to die first?"
She began hacking into the minds of her other sons, trying to take control... but Kamen's mental block kept repelling her...
****
Reno swallowed, knowing he was headed into the biggest, most important, and possibly craziest battle he had ever seen. He looked down at his children, Annie with eyes glowing green as she patched Cloud... the light faded as they got beyond his range. She looked up and smiled at him, waiting for her powers to recharge...
Joey grinned at him too and squeezed his hand reassuringly... he was surprised to realize SHE was trying to comfort HIM... He smiled at his daughters. "We're gonna wn this thing, you know."
"How are you so sure?" Annie asked.
"'Cause we're the good guys. The good guys always win."
Annie laughed... she had never known that to be true, but everything else that had happened today was impossible too... maybe they WOULD manage to win this suicide mission. She leaned against her father. "No matter whether we win or not... it was worth it, coming back here."
He nodded, blinking fast.
Rude coughed and tried to offer a hankie. Reno scoffed and shoved it back at him.
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Post by *~Nikkole~* on Dec 10, 2006 8:44:12 GMT
Kamen felt the mental prodding and held strong to his shields. Kamen knew he couldn't afford a slip up now. He followed his group as he kept up his extremely strong barrier. He was set and seemed worn but slightly bitter. It was hard to tell when he remained silent.
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Ru
Chocobo Keeper
Let's poke it!
Posts: 51
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Post by Ru on Dec 10, 2006 8:49:17 GMT
"Don't worry - I gotcha covered," Cid responded, watching the gusts of wind from the propellors blow the area free of dust and smoke for the briefest moment. He caught sight of the clone troopers running around the inn below, "D*mn...are they tryin' to get themselves killed?" They didn't present as nice or large a target as the inn, but Cid would just have to work with it. He fired the cannons again, this time aimed down as the airship zoomed past, blasting straight into the ranks of troopers standing guard outside the inn. He grinned in an accomplished way, before pulling the airship to one of the hills a distance away from the down and landing it just as quickly as he had before. This time, though, he turned the engines off.
"Okay, everyone who's fightin', out!" Cid called, opening the hatch door and stepping out, spotting the smoking target down in the town. Instead of charging in, he waited for the rest, gazing lazily up at the propellors as they slowed to a stop.
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Post by Amnesty Lazuli on Dec 10, 2006 8:59:02 GMT
Jenova quickly evaluated her forces... with the decoy unit she had sent against the first group, the reserves being blown to bits by the explosives, and Cid coming in to blast h**l out of the rest, she estimated she had less than fifty percent of her original number... maybe a little more, maybe a little less... D**n these simple-minded cretins!
She began arraying the ones that were left... She levitated thirty feet above the main body of her army... "FORM RANK, YOU HOLLOW-MINDED INGRATES!"
They scrambled to do as she bade them.
****
Jared caught Reno and Rude. "Give us a few minutes to engage the remainder of her forces, all right? Don't get into the thick of it until we have them occupied!"
Jared sprang from the ship, Vincent right behind him and Yazoo a close third. "Let's stick it to 'em, folks," Jared commanded with a grin. "Joey, give us a boost, right?"
She nodded and sealed them in a hyper-speed envelope... the party streaked for the Inn too quickly for human eyes to follow, plunging headlong into battle... Loz bit his lip in nervous anticipation...
Joey gave him a wicked grin. "Don't cry, Loz."
"I'm NOT crying!!!"
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