BOOK 1

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President Shinra

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_____Cloud's eyes gently flickered open. He was in the AVALANCHE hideout, all alone in the cold basement. A large television screen in the corner spewed out news about the bombing of Mako Reactor #1 the night before. He rubbed his sore eyes and stepped on to the lift. It rattled up to the ground floor where Barret and Tifa were eagerly waiting for him.
_____"Good morning, Cloud!" Tifa beamed. "Did you sleep well?"
_____Cloud nodded sleepily.
_____"I'm going this time." the girl said. Barret looked up.
_____"Our target's the Sector 5 Reactor." he explained. "Head for the station first. I'll fill you in on the train."
_____Tifa sat herself down on a stool as Barret dragged Cloud over into the corner of the room.
_____"Yo! Cloud!" he whispered "Before the next mission, I got somethin' I wanna ask you! I, uh,..... I don't really know how to use Materia! I'll give you that Materia you found. Just teach me how to use it!"
_____Cloud sighed. It had been quite a while since he had used the powerful force known as Materia. These small, round orbs were formed when Mako energy was condensed. After being slotted into weapons or armor, they would grant the user magical powers.
_____Cloud proceded to explain to Barret how there were five different categories of Materia. The first and most basic was the green kind - 'magic'. These allowed the user to cast magical spells such as elemental attacks or curative magic. The next kind was yellow and was called 'command'. They grant the user extra abilities, such as stealing from enemies or manipulating enemy actions. After that came 'support', the blue materia. It would only work when connected to another materia and can increase that orb's effectiveness. Next was the purple materia - 'independant'. This sort of materia functioned by itself and would grant the user special abilities. Although not noticable at first, these abilities could greatly alter the outcome of a battle. Finally, there was the red materia. This was the most powerful of the five categories and was labelled 'Summon'. Anyone possessing one of these orbs had the power to summon great beasts of destruction to fight for them. From the fire god Ifrit to the almighty dragon Bahamut, there were a total of sixteen different orbs.

_____"Shi....! What's this 'It wasn't that tough' crap!" Barret cried. He shook his head in disbelief. Tifa rose to her feet and turned to Marlene behind the bar.
_____"Marlene, you watch the store while we're gone, OK?" she requested.
_____"All right, good luck!" the child said.

---

_____The train station was quiet as usual. An eerie silence hung over the train graveyard on the other side of the platform. Nobody went there anymore, not even the workmen. The same old platform guard was waiting on the only platform. He had been working there for many years, even before the Wutai war had started.

_____By the time Cloud got there, the rest of AVALANCHE were already on the train. He stepped through the door and it slid shut behind him.
_____"Looks like this ain't no private car!" Barret called. "Split up!"
_____He chased Biggs, Wedge and Jessie down into the next carriage.
_____"So what are we going to do now?" Cloud asked.
_____"Shit!" Barret cried. "The hell you so calm about? You bustin' up my rhythm!"
_____With a sudden shake and a hiss, the train started to move towards its next destination.
_____"Awright... I'll tell ya!" Barret agreed. "Jessie's probably already told you, but there's a security check point at the top plate. It's an ID scan system checkin' all the trains."
_____"Which Shinra is very proud of." Tifa added.
_____"We can't use our fake ID's anymore..." Barret continued.
_____"Good Morning, and welcome to Midgar Lines. Arrival time at Sector 4 station will be 11:45." said the voice through the intercom.
_____"That means we've only got three more minutes to the ID Check Point." Tifa said.
_____"All right, in three minutes we're jumpin' off this train!" Barret ordered. He slumped down into his usual seat and closed his heavy eyelids. His eyes had been shut for no more than five seconds when the red light began to flash again. He jumped to his feet in surprise.
_____"That's odd," Tifa said. "The ID Check Point was supposed to be further down!"
_____Jessie burst into the room, disguised as a train guard.
_____"Barret! We're in trouble!" she cried. "Quick, get to the next car!"

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_____Unidentified passengers located in Car #1
_____Preparing for Lock Down

_____They all ran to the doors to the next carriage and tore them open. Barret stood back as Jessie, Cloud and Tifa hurried through the door, then he went through.
_____"Let's go! Keep it up!" he yelled over the repeated siren's wail.

_____Car #1: Locked Down
_____Upgrading to Level 2 warning

_____"Hurry!" Barret cried as they ran down the aisle to the next door.

_____Unidentified passengers located in Car #2
_____Preparing for Lock Down

_____"They're gonna lock the door, sir!" cried Wedge, standing in the carriage's aisle. They moved faster to the next door and opened that one too. Cloud's heart pounded in his ears.
_____"Just run!" Jessie yelled. "Changing to Plan 2!"

_____Car #2: Locked Down
_____Upgrading to Level 3 warning

_____As they entered the third carriage, the lights and siren stopped. They paused to catch their breath.
_____"Awright! We clear?" Barret asked.
_____"Not yet," Jessie replied, shaking her head. "They're starting another search. If we move up the train car by car we should be OK."
_____As if on cue, the lights started to flash again.

_____Unidentified Passengers:
_____Moving to front of Train
_____Currently tracking location

_____They began to sprint again. Barret swung his arm, clubbing a drunk man out of his way. Finally, they reached the next car.

_____Car #4: Locked Down
_____Upgrading to maximum security alert!!

_____"Awright, we made it!!" Barret cried as he ran to the front of the car and opened the door. "This way! We're gonna dive outta here!"
_____"OK, here I go!" Tifa said, and hurled herself out of the moving train. Barret signalled for Cloud to follow.
_____"What about you?" Cloud asked.
_____"A leader always stays till the end." Barret replied. "Don't worry 'bout me, just go!"
_____Cloud nodded and jumped out. Barret turned to Biggs, Wedge and Jessie, all in disguises.
_____"Later!" he nodded and jumped out backwards.

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_____Cloud, Tifa and Barret were left in an empty tunnel. The wind howled as the train disappeared around the bend and they brushed the dirt from their clothes.
_____"Good, everything's going as planned." Barret said. "The reactor's just dow this tunnel. Biggs, Wedge and Jessie prepared everything for us. Let's move out!"

---

_____The ventilation shafts were a very tight fit, but they were the only way into this reactor since Shinra had upgraded their security after the destruction of Mako Reactor #1. Suffering the most was the muscle-bound Barret who complained about the size of the ducts every few minutes. Thankfully they were only in there for about ten minutes, and they were able to escape into the Mako pit chamber. Once again, they descended the ladders and pipes to the walkway and arrived at their destination and Cloud stepped forward to set the bomb.
_____...And it happened again... His vision blurred and he fell to his knees, clutching his head in pain.

_____"Damn man, get a hold of yourself!" Barret snarled. Cloud's eyes widened. He looked around; he was back in the reactor again with Tifa and Barret.
_____"Are you all right?" Tifa asked.
_____"Tifa... I..." he started, then changed his mind. "No, it's nothing. Let's hurry!"
_____He knelt down and set the bomb in place, then pushed a few buttons and it was ready. Fortunately, this reactor hadn't been equipped with bomb detection. Their way out was a lot more dangerous than their entry. They had to take the same path as with the #1 reactor.

_____Eventually they reached the T-bridge. Barret ran on ahead, but lines of Shinra soldiers entered from both sides. They were trapped!
_____"SHIT!" Barret yelled. "What the hell's goin' on?!"
_____The AVALANCHE warriors congregated in the meeting point of the bridge's three 'prongs', standing back to back. Suddenly, there were footsteps. They turned back to where the had come from to see a man in a red suit walking towards them. He was fairly short and plump, and was balding on the top of his head. He had a small white mustache and a menacing frown. This was President Shinra.

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_____"Why is the President here?" Tifa asked, but no one answered. The footsteps of the man echoed loudly.
_____"Hmm..." he sneered. "You must be that... what was the name...?"
_____"AVALANCHE!" Barret yelled in anger and hatred. "And don't ya forget it!"
_____"Long time no see, President." Cloud said boldly, stepping forward of Barret and Tifa.
_____"Who are you?" asked the nemesis of AVALANCHE. "Oh yes, I remember. You're that traitor who quit SOLDIER and joined this pathetic resistance movement. I knew you had been exposed to Mako from the glow in your eyes. Tell me, traitor... what was your name?"
_____"Cloud..." the mercenary replied.
_____"Yes, that was it." Shinra said. "Forgive me for asking, but you cannot expect me to remember every person's name. That is... unless you become another Sephiroth." He stopped and looked down to the slums far below. "Yes, Sephiroth. He was brilliant... Perhaps too brilliant..."
_____"Sephiroth...?" said Cloud, taking a step back. Barret ran forward.
_____"Don't give a damn 'bout none of that!" he cried, aiming his gun-arm at the President. "This place'e goin' up with a big BANG soon! Serves y'all right!"
_____"Such a waste of good fireworks," Shinra muttered. "Just to get rid of vermin like you."
_____"VERMIN?" Barret roared. "That's all you can say... VERMIN! Y'all Shinra're the VERMIN, killing the planet! And that makes you King VERMIN! So shu'up jackass!"
_____"...You are beginning to bore me." the President said calmly. "I'm a very busy man, so if you'll excuse me... I have a dinner I must attend. But, I've made arrangements for a playmate for you all... Airbuster..."
_____With a click of his fingers, a robot hovered towards them. It stood about ten feet tall and had an anti-gravity base to allow it to fly. There were a number of guns and weapons attached to various parts of it.
_____Without a warning, a small helicopter rose suddenly from below them and hovered just in front of the President. Cloud ran forward to try and stop them, but the helicopter rose into the air and flew away, and the man was gone.

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_____"Wait!" Cloud cried, but it was no use.
_____"Yo, Cloud!" Barret said, turning towards the Airbuster. "We've gotta do somethin' about him!"
_____"This is from SOLDIER?" Tifa asked.
_____"No way! It's just a machine!" Cloud replied.
_____"I don't care what it is!" growled Barret. "I'm gonna bust him up!"
_____He lifted his gun-arm and opened fire for a good five seconds. The bullets tore through the machine's body and sparks flew out. It turned round and accelerated towards Barret and Tifa, leaving Cloud behind it. Tifa jumped into the air and brought her metal-studded gloves down as hard as she could on its head. It recoiled from the damage and buzzed.
_____Cloud took his chance while the robot's back was turned and drew his sword, equipped with a Lightning materia. He lifted the weapon high into the air and concentrated hard. Green flames errupted within the tiny orb, and a bolt of lightning fell from the skies and struck the Airbuster right on the top of its head. It sparked uncontrollably for a few seconds, then exploded into a giant ball of flames. The explosion threw Cloud into the air, and when it faded he fell back down towards the gap in the bridge that had just been created. Steel reinforcements jutted out from the ruined walkway, and he grabbed hold of one with one hand. There he was left hanging, fifty metres above the slums below. Tifa edged towards the gap and reached down to pull him up, but he was too far away.
_____"It's gonna blow!" Barret cursed. "Let's go, Tifa!"
_____"Barret, can't you do something?!" she cried.
_____"Not a damn thing." the big man replied in dismay. Tifa turned her head back to Cloud.
_____"Cloud, please don't die." she said softly. "You can't die! There's still so much I want to tell you!"
_____"I know, Tifa." he replied. "I'm all right, Barret. Take care of Tifa!"
_____"Alright then, later." Barret said.

_____With an almighty roar, the reactor was blown to pieces behind them. The bridge shook violently, and Cloud lost his grip. Tifa lunged forward to try and grab him, but Barret held her back, fearing that she would fall too. As flames spread skyward, Cloud fell downwards to the Sector 5 slums. Tifa closed her eyes, praying that it wasn't the end.

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