A soft moan at the back of the room caught her attention. Aeris instantly spun around toward where the sound was coming from. She got up and found herself swaying, and all of a sudden she didn't feel so well and her head hurt even more. Nevertheless she ignored the pain and went towards the sound. It was coming from behind the bed.
She nearly jumped when she saw a tiny figure cuddled up behind the bed, it's head in it's hands.
"Hello?" She asked. The figure looked up, backing away. Aeris could see it was a little girl, crying softly. "Don't worry honey, I wont hurt you," she said Aeris bent down and let out her hand. The girl just stared at her seeming totally frightened. "I told you, I wont hurt you." Aeris couldn't make out the young girls features properly but saw that she had big brown eyes and short dark hair.
"What's your name little girl?" The girl still didn't respond. "What's your name?" Aeris asked again more kindly.
The girl hesitated a few times before answering. "Marlene," She replied softly.
Aeris took the girls hand and shook it. "Nice to meet you Marlene."
"Wa...who are you?" Marlene asked, beginning to seem more comfortable with the older girl in front of her.
"My name is Aeris," The young Cetra replied. Aeris let go of Marlene's hand and looked around the room again. "Do you mind telling me where we are Marlene?"
"...I'm not really sure but I know we're in a big, big building, with loads of offices," Marlene replied.
"A big building?"
"Yes."
"How did you get here Marlene?"
Marlene hesitated a moment. "Two men in a dark blue suit brought me here and locked me up in this room."
"Dark blue suit?" Aeris walked towards the door and tried to open it. "It's locked tight." She looked up at the window. It was to high up for her to reach, and she couldn't exactly climb the smooth vertical wall. "Looks like we're stuck here Marlene." Aeris looked around one more time. Apart from the bed the room was pretty much empty. She had no idea where she was or what had happened to her but she did know she was being held captive.
"What did these men look like?"
"Umm... one had spiky blonde hair..."
"Spiky blond hair?"
"Yes."
Aeris rubbed her fore head and felt a bruise. Could I be at Shinra? She really didn't remember where she was or how she got there.
"When did these men take you?"
"Yesterday."
"Do you know why?"
"No...I just got off the train with Tifa then they grabbed me and took me away..."
"Tifa?" That name sounded familiar to Aeris..."Where are your parents?"
"Daddy had gone to blow up the reactor in sector five."
Blow up the reactor? Could she mean that anti terrorist group Avalanche?Maybe that's why they have this little girl captive.
"I think we might be at Shinra and if that's the case I don't want to hang around." She didn't want to even think about what Hojo would do to her. "If only I could get to that window..." She glanced back at the bed, the only piece of furniture in the room, then at the window. "...I've got it! Marlene I'm gonna get you out of here but I need your help ok?"
Marlene nodded.
"I need you to help me lift this bed up so it's standing ok?"
Marlene got up and nodded.
"But first, lets push this bed towards the wall.
Together, they pushed the bed against the wall, then they lifted it up so it was leaning on the wall. It took them quite a bit of effort. Then Aeris helped Marlene climb up first then came up herself to sit beside Marlene on the window sill.
They both looked outside and stared in awe at the view of the upper
city of Midgar below them.
Lights of tall buildings twinkled in the darkness like stars.
"Wow..." Marlene muttered.
"Yeah..." Aeris replied.
There was a long silence while they both stared outside in awe at the beautiful city in the darkness until Aeris finally snapped out of it. She shook her head.
"C-mon, we didn't come up here for sight seeing, we came up here to escape. I figure we're probably at Shinra, and if that's the case, then I don't want to hang around." she said, shuddering at the thought of what they might do to her. She looked out the window again then back at Marlene. "We're very high up so we have to be careful ok?"
Marlene nodded. "So how are we going to open the window?" She asked.
"There doesn't seem to be anyway to open it, how are we gonna open it?" Marlene asked.
Aeris studied the window for a moment. It was bare with no lock. It was small too, but she and Marlene were small enough to fit through it.
"We're going to have to break it," She replied.
"How?"
"Have you got something sharp or hard on you Marlene?"
"No, sorry Aeris."
"That's alright..." Aeris put a hand on her chest, holding the large, glowing emerald pendulum which hung from her neck. She pulled it over her head and took it off and stared at it in her hand. It was cone shaped, and about the size of half her palm. It was mainly green but if you looked at it closely it somehow glimmered with iridescent colours at the same time. Every time Aeris looked at it, it took her breath away took her breath away not only because of it's beauty, but because of the inspiration it gave her. For this precious jewel wasn't just any jewel...
"Wow...what's that?" Marlene asked curiously.
"It's an emerald," Aeris replied, still looking down at it.
"It's really beautiful Aeris, just like your eyes."
Aeris finally looked up and smiled sweetly at the young girl beside her, flattered.
"Marlene, thank you, that's very sweet of you," she said softly. She looked back at the pendulum one more time, then back at Marlene. "We're going to use this to try and break the window," then without a reply, she pierced the sharp end of the pendulum through the glass window like a dagger. Large streaks of cracks appeared around the glass. Aeris pushed the gem in some more then pulled it out. She began jabbing at the glass some more until the most of the window was just filled with cracks. Then she put the pendulum back on her neck and with her bare hands pushed the glass forward. It collapsed and fell, letting cold air into the room. Aeris broke off the remaining sharp edges then stuck her head out and inhaled the cold air for a moment. She looked down, is a long way away... then instantly jerked her head back inside.
"What is it?" Marlene asked ansciously.
"Nothing," Aeris replied quickly. She was never one to be afraid of heights but this... she had never been this high up before. Nevertheless, she took a deep breath and swallowed then stuck her head back outside.
She looked left across the building. She couldn't see much in the dark, and there seemed to be nothing but smooth wall. She noticed that they seemed to be at the back of the building, so if they did escape, the chances of them being caught wouldn't be as much. She glanced to her right. About three metres away was a long black pipe which ran from the roof of the building all the way down to the ground. Aeris figured they could use that to get down. She went back inside to find Marlene staring at her expectantly.
"Ok, listen, there's a pipe to the right side of this building but it's not very close but I think maybe I can make the jump. I don't think you'll be able to jump to it because it's too far away for you so-"
"Aeris your not gonna leave me here are you?"
"No, of course not-"
"But you said it's to far away for me to jump-"
"Listen honey, I'm going to go outside and try to jump on it, then I'm gonna call your name and I want you to come out, and jump too - I'm gonna catch you so you don't fall."
"What if you miss me?"
"You have to trust me Marlene, and don't worry I wont let you fall."
Without another word Aeris went back outside and sat on the window ledge. She looked at the pipe once more.
She took a deep breath.
She could leap three metres right?
She got up, took a deep breath and crossed her fingers, then without thinking leapt as far as she could across the building. She reach out.
And fell.
Then she caught hold of something solid and stopped falling.
She opened her eyes.
Relief washed over her as she held on to the pipe. She turned around and look up. She had only fallen a couple of feet down. She climbed up so she was level with the window.
"Marlene!" She called.
A moment later the young girl slowly stuck her head out of the window. She looked frightened to death. Aeris gave her a reassuring smile.
"It's ok honey, it's ok, I'll grab hold of you, I promise," she said, and stretched out her hand as far as she could. Marlene slowly climbed out and her arm also reached out. Her other arm was inside, grabbing the wall for support. Their hands were now only a few inches from each other. Marlene tried to stretch further but she couldn't otherwise she'd fall.
"Just a little it more," Marlene muttered.
"Marlene, I can't reach you, you're going to have to jump - don't worry, I'll catch you."
Marlene didn't move.
"Marlene be brave honey," Aeris said softly.
Marlene shook her head.
"I promise you I wont let you fall," Aeris said.
Marlene did not reply, just stared at her with her face pale.
"Marlene can you hear me?"
The young girl still did not reply.
"Marlene, you have to trust me. C'mon, your daddy's probably worried about you. You do miss him right? I bet you can't wait to see him."
Finally Marlene nodded slowly, and she got up and took a deep breath.
"What if I fall Aeris?"
"You wont. You'll be alright, just don't look down. Now c'mon, we don't have much time."
Marlene nodded again slowly. Aeris kept her eyes wide open and her arm out.
It was a long while later when the little girl finally jumped and Aeris caught her immediately into her arms.
"See, I told you I'd catch you, Now lets go down." she said. Marlene climbed onto Aeris' back and hugged her neck, then Aeris began to slowly slip down the pipe.
They reached the ground a few minutes later and Aeris put Marlene down on the ground. She breathed a sing of relief. "We did it!" She exclaimed. She looked around a huge building which stood in front of them. There didn't seem to be any guard or anyone around here. She looked up and squinted to see the tiny window they had come from.
"Where do we go now?" Marlene asked.
Aeris looked around again. There were many large windows and a few lights were on. She wondered what time it could be. "We'll have to go around to the front of the building then onto the streets. Then we'll have to find some way of getting back to below the plate." she replied.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that."
Aeris and Marlene both jumped at the new voice behind them and turned around in surprise to see a man dressed in a Shinra soldier uniform pointing a machine gun towards them. Marlene hid behind Aeris.
The soldier walked towards them and both the girls stayed where they were. He went behind Aeris and pulled the terrified Marlene away from her and held her arm with a tight grip.
"Leave her alone!" Aeris exclaimed.
Marlene tried to pull out of the man's grip but it was too tight.
"Just take me, she hasn't done anything!" Aeris cried.
"You follow me," the man said, pointing his gun at Aeris. "Try to run off, and the little one gets it."
Aeris didn't argue but followed the man who was leading towards an entrance at the back. The young Cetra signed and shook her head. After all they had gone through to try and escape they suddenly get caught again.
She suddenly saw a movement in the corner of her eye. She glanced back behind her, but there was nothing.
They had nearly reached the side of the building when she thought she heard a tiny sound, and abruptly, the soldier who was holding Marlene suddenly released his grip around her arm and fell to the ground, blood coming out of his mouth.
Marlene ran back to Aeris who took her hand and came forward, staring at the lifeless body in front of them. "What happened?" Marlene asked.
"Seems like... he's been shot somehow," Aeris replied, confused.
"Samin's silencer," a voice said. The two girls jumped and turned around with surprise to see a woman with short black hair and dark eyes. "I designed it myself," the woman said. She looked at Aeris and Marlene who just stood still, their faces pale. "Don't worry, I wont shoot you too," she said as if reading their minds.
"What are you going to do with us?" Aeris asked.
"I'm going to take you home without you getting caught. You can't go around the building, it is guarded there. There's another way, let me lead you. It's only a matter of time before Shinra discover you're gone so you better hurry up and follow me," the woman said, and ran off towards the shadows. Aeris supposed she was right and took Marlene's hand and quickly followed her.
They had come out of the woods a few minutes later and were now in the a dark alley.
"I guess you are from the slums, am I right?" The woman asked, judging from the rags on the little girls' dress.
Aeris nodded.
"Ok," Jinette said. "Lets go." She began walking very fast down the alley, followed by Aeris and Marlene.
A while later they were on a quiet road lit by bright street lamps, making it very easy to see their surroundings. Neat, tall buildings loomed over their heads, their spotless large glass windows glistening in the moonlight. Marlene found that the air around them was extreamely refreshing and clean and it also smelt nice too.
At the end of the road was a small elegant glass building. The dark hared woman led them to it. The door was a slide door which opened automatically as they approached it. Inside was just doors to a lift. The woman went over to the doors and punched a series of buttons which were on it. A few moments later, there was a tiny ding sound and the doors opened. The woman stepped in and motioned for Aeris and Marlene to come in too. When they got in the doors closed, and Aeris could feel the lift going down. She went to the back and leaned against the wall, looking at the woman who had helped them suspiciously.
"Who are you and why are you helping us?" she asked. Aeris could see the woman clearly now. She had on a white shirt and a long blue skirt. She wore red lipstick and had on layers of makeup but she could see that the woman looked worn. She looked awfully familiar, and something about her familiarity gave Aeris chills.
The woman looked at Aeris and rubbed her eyes. "Ji... Mrs Samins, and I'm helping you because... what they were doing to you was wrong."
"Well... thank you, very much." Aeris suspicions faded, but she couldn't get over how familiar she looked.
Mrs Samins just nodded. There was a tiny ding noise then the doors to the elevator opened. They stepped out and a few minutes later they were in the slums just outside in sector six.
Aeris and Marlene went to sit down by a near bench to rest. It was quite dark here, and going back into the slums was like sticking your head in a toxic bag.
"Thank you very much Mrs Samins," Aeris said.
The older woman smiled. "It's alright."
"Say, what time is it?" Aeris asked.
The older woman looked at her wrist. "It's just after one AM," She replied. "You kids better get back home, It's very late and dangerous at this time of night to hang around here in the slums. Perhaps I should take you home."
"We'll be alright," Aeris insisted.
"No really," Mrs Samins said.
"My house isn't far from here, I'm sure me and Marlene can make it home safely." Aeris said.
"I don't know about that but I need a place to crash for the night anyway so I was hoping if you'd let me stay."
"Oh yes, sure you can, after what you did for me and Marlene."
Mrs Samins nodded. "Right lets get going."
They were about to leave when Samins stopped abruptly.
"Is something wrong?" Aeris asked, holding Marlene's hand.
Samins put a finger to her lips. "Shhhhh." She whirled around and searched the shadows. Suddenly, a big, furry, dog like creature about the size of a baby elephant jumped out of nowhere and lunged at her. Samins dodged to the side just in time before it could swipe a massive claw at her and Marlene screamed. She rolled across the floor then reached inside her jacket for the small pistol she always kept with her and shot at the thing three times.
It limped a little and slowed down but that didn't seem to do much damage and the beast was still going.
This time it went for Aeris. It lunged at her but the flower girl dove to the side with Marlene in her arms just in time. Samins got up and fired again, her spectacular silencer barely making a noise. The monster turned towards her and limped even more, growling. After she had fired about twenty more shots it stopped moving and finally went down.
Samins ran over to the two other girls on the far side. "You girls alright?"
Aeris nodded. She was fine. Marlene nodded too, very scared and pale but she seemed alright. "What was that thing?" Aeris asked.
Samins went over to the lifeless creature and studied it. "Some kind of massive, ugly dog like monster," She replied casually. "But it's dead now, so there's no need to worry." She helped Aeris and the very pale Marlene up. "Come on, we better hurry. I'm nearly out of ammo and I do not want to meet another one of those things," Samins said, then continued to walk down the alley.
Aeris nodded. She looked down at Marlene to see if she was alright then followed.