Child of the Mountain

Chapter 2 – Fort Condor

         It was around the asscrack of dawn (not that it could be seen) when the runaway trio finally stopped their trek through the bustling slum dwellers, who were still calming down from the mess conveniently caused by a bunch of ragtag terrorists.

         Their destination: Sector 1 Gate To The Outside World.

         Why they couldn’t use any other gate was beyond Zack; he did have a pass, the cat made sure to stuff anything remotely useful in his backpack, and the earliest they used it, the earliest they’d be out before it was cancelled. However, Cait seemed to have other plans, and Aeris was complying so far.

         He tried to organize the information he had about his current “mission” so far – it was all he could do while the two didn’t explain things properly.

         Shin-ra was trying to kidnap Aeris.

         Shin-ra intended to perform human experimentation on Aeris.

         Shin-ra actually performed human experimentation.

         Tseng hid Aeris’ mother and let her run away.

         Tseng betrayed Shin-ra in doing that.

         Tseng had Mad Turk Skills.

         The cat could talk.

         It could also walk on its hind legs.

         He had been set up to get involved in the mess.

         He was screwed.

         It came to him once or twice to just cut the cat in half, gonk the girl’s head and take her to Shin-ra, but he knew he was just being bitter and couldn’t actually do that. First, he was a sucker with a mellow heart. Second, he always knew Shin-ra did some uncool things, and had been vaguely bothered by it, but now felt like a bastard for never doing anything about it. Third, the girl was cute. Fourth, he was curious. Curiosity killed the cat.

         He glanced at Cait and wondered if it’d drop dead or something.

         “It should only take a minute now,” said the cat, instead of dropping dead. “An acquaintance is going to pass by and pick us up, then drop us off outside at a safe distance. After that, we’ll be on our own.”

         “And then what?” mumbled Zack.

         “Talk, probably,” shrugged Cait. It was the weirdest sight ever. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”

         “I do,” sighed Zack, “but I don’t think I’d know where to begin.”

         Cait just smiled up to him (or maybe that was his normal face), and suddenly Zack’s eyes started burning furiously. Staring up at the dinky store ahead of him, he willed his eyes to remain dry of any pesky tear, and, pressing his lips into a thin line, he tried to ignore the fact that his nose was clogging up.

         The fuck is wrong, he asked himself, you’re not like this. But I’m hungry, sleepy, dateless and screwed, answered himself, you can’t blame me. Well, said he, that might be true, but it’s no excuse to start sobbing like a PMSing little girl. But, but, argued himself, everything was going so well, then suddenly it went so wrong… too much wrongness for too short a span of time! I’m still reeling!!

         And reel he did, as a weight greater than any gym machine could provide seemed to pull his head down, engulfing the dinky store up ahead in a black, swirling fog full of colored little stars that seemed to show up and fade almost at the same time.

         Someone held him up, and he was about to mumble some thanks when the same someone suddenly started pushing his head down almost painfully. Ack, stop that, he wanted to say, but there was something gooey in his mouth, and nothing seemed to come out.

         The pushing stopped without warning, and he gratefully raised his head to meet Aeris’ very serious face, shrouded by darkness.

         “You were snoring,” said Aeris.

         “Srry, ‘m narclept,” he said, the goo still stubbornly clinging to his tongue. “Thnk, n’t srr, wusgnaskdctr.”

         “Uh, right,” Aeris raised an eyebrow, then shifted on her seat and closed her eyes, leaning against the wall. That was when Zack noticed they were in a truck of sorts, full of old sofas, car seats and people sleeping on them, and it was pleasantly dark in there.

         The hell is this, illegal immigration?, he wondered, shifting into a more comfortable position on his own dilapidated sofa. That must have been what Cait Sith was talking about. So when I wake up again we’ll be at a safe distance from Midgar, right? Cool with me. How the hell did I end up in here again?

         He mentally shrugged. The fact that he was a sleepwalker was something he’d always known about. As long as he didn’t do anything too dumb, like walking into a train, he was totally cool with walking and resting at the same time. Legend said he had typed a full report while snoring once, and while he obviously couldn’t remember any of it, he did think it was cool. Unfortunately, the report was filled with random phrases like “Please to be apparently appeared to requested admissive number of burn”, and it had brought tears of mirth to his superior’s eyes, who then proceeded to post it at the SOLDIER’s forum, where he was able to exert more of his random phrasing prowess by answering the forum goers with things like “Stick fridge of up the bum that’s not the scoop and merely transmission”. Translation programs proved able to portray his sleeptyping tendencies rather accurately.

         Someone shoved something in his mouth, and he opened his eyes to see Cait Sith’s fingers neatly fit between his lips. He glanced to the side, where a fellow commuter was glaring at him.

         “You were snoring,” he accused. Zack shrugged, pulling a handkerchief to unclog his still clogged nose. Having socks shoved into his mouth used to be common back when he shared dorms, and he couldn’t blame anyone when his snoring was also legendarily loud. It used to wake him up as well, back when he was a kid.

         He experimentally bit on Cait’s fingers, not feeling nearly as surprised as he thought he would when he found out Cait’s fingers had no bones. Not only that, but the cat didn’t even seem to feel it. In fact, his hand had the distinctive texture of cloth, and the mass of teddy bear stuffing. Looking down, he finally noticed Cait was, indeed, a stuffed cat.

         He closed his eyes, trying not to think about how the hell the cat moved. Technology, wow. And he talked like he actually had vocal chords. Shin-ra had some neato toys.

         Someone shook him, and he was about to apologize for snoring when he noticed the truck’s back door was open and bright, blinding, torturous sunlight was attacking his eyes. Blinking blearily, he sat up, noticing most other illegal immigrants(?) were still asleep, and Aeris seemed perfectly awake and ready to go. Cait Sith’s upper body hung from her backpack.

         “Um,” he blinked.

         “He’s still asleep,” she said, before he even thought to ask. “He was awake for a long time yesterday, taking care of us. Now let’s go, our next ride is right outside.”

         He stumbled up, grabbing his backpack and the sword leaning against the inner wall, and stumbled after the girl, blinking the sleepiness away. In most stories, there was always a time when the hero woke up in a weird place wondering if he was back home and the rest was a bad dream. Zack wondered if that should have happened to him, instead of feeling so perfectly normal and in control after betraying the most powerful conglomerate in the world, but then again, maybe it was because he wasn’t feeling very heroic at the moment.

         He stretched, looking around at the grass and the midday sun and the pale sky nostalgically. It had been a while since he last left the metal forest that was Midgar.

         The truck started again and sped away, mercilessly trampling grass on its wake – and revealing the familiar pens and wooden houses of the chocobo ranch, less than half a mile away.

         “Oh, so we’re riding chocobos,” said Zack, hoping against all hope he was right.

         “Yes, chocobos,” said Aeris, and Zack did a mental victory dance. “We’ll cross the marsh and the Mythril Mines to get to Condor Mountain,” she glanced back to him, “and then we’ll be able to fill you in on what drove us to this situation.”

         He scowled at her. “Yes, you damn well should give me a damn good excuse for involving me in this damnHICCUP—”

         He froze, covering his mouth.

         Aeris blinked, then failed in hiding a smile.

         Zack’s ears started burning painfully.

         Aeris smiled openly.

         He grinned dorkily.

         The two laughed.

         “Eeerm, okay,” Zack waved a hand, as if trying to bat away at the laughter waves. “I guess we should just get moving. Ladies first!” he bowed, stepping aside and motioning to the ranch’s general direction. Aeris curtseyed with a perky smile and walked by him, giggling, while holding a fold of her skirt with the tips of two fingers.

         Three mandragoras jumped out of the grass.

         “EEEEK!!”

         “SAKJHGSAK—” Zack jumped to the side to catch her by the arm, while being forced to swing his sword at the most awkward arch he had ever thought possible, and kicked the one surviving plant high up enough for it to land on a nearby hill.

         Another awkward pause ensued.

         “Enough is enough,” Zack broke the silence. “Let’s get them chocobos and get going. At least that way we’ll be able to move and talk.”

---------------------------------------------

         “It was only yesterday,” said Aeris, blushing and hugging Zack’s waist.

         “Congratulations!” Bill’s arms were open almost as wide as his freaky smile. “You make such a great couple!”

         Zack smirked. “You know, when you find the girl, you have to grab her before someone else does,” he caressed Aeris’ hair, “and take her away on top of a white chocobo, if you know what I mean.”

         “Oh, Gary, that was so cute,” Aeris nuzzled his shoulder.

         Bill sniffed, wiping a random tear. “That brings back memories of my dear old Alicia,” he clarified. “We were just as young as you two when we married!”

         “I’m sure the two of you were very happy,” Aeris smiled.

         “Oh, we were, we were,” Bill grinned. “Now, which of those chocobos did you two reserve?”

         Aeris pulled a slip of paper from a pocket. “Hm, Karol and Line, in the name of Mrs. Caithleen Sith. That would be my mother,” she clarified with a smile.

         Bill nodded, checking a list, then led the two to the pens.

         “Have a happy honeymoon,” he said, grinning, as the two mounted their chocobos.

         “Oh, we will,” Zack said, with a wave of his hand, and the two trotted away on their new chocobos, Karol and Line.

         Once they were a safe distance away, Zack started snickering. Aeris raised an eyebrow.

         “What’s so funny, Gary dear?” she asked, sweetly.

         “Oh, nothing in particular, sweetmuffins!” Zack flashed her a charming grin. “Now, what are we going to do in our honeymoon?”

         “My dear sweet cherry-flavored sugarcrispy lover, we’ll drink rat poison if we keep on being naughty.”

         “What!” Zack broke out in laughter. “That’s no fun! You evil, evil girl!” he shook his head in amusement as Aeris, too, finally started giggling. “But that was damn funny. Poor Bill…”

         “I was afraid he’d recognize you, actually,” said Aeris. “You’ve got to have used his chocobos once in your life, haven’t you?”

         “Last time I did I wasn’t even a SOLDIER yet,” Zack said, scrunching up an eyebrow as if squeezing his brain for a memory. “If he did, he probably thought I was actually my evil twin, Gary the Scary.”

         He looked up at the approaching marsh, Aeris snorting in flat out laughter by him, and followed the almost invisible line of the Zolom’s body with his eyes. It was pretty close to the shore, and yet the chocobos were going at a calm, even pace; the Zolom didn’t seem to take notice of them either.

         The chocobos calmly trotted into the murky waters, threading on the uncertain shallows between dripping bushes and deep puddles, heedless of the rippling shadow under the surface. Zack’s eyes were paranoidly fixated on the creature, knowing it homed in on any presence in its territory by following the waves made by movement; yet, it was calmly swimming to the opposite shore.

         He glanced at Aeris and could swear she had just glanced away from him.

         Was that why Shin-ra was so interested in her? She seemed to make strange things happen around her. She seemed to know when things were going to happen (Cait was a lot creepier in that department, yeah, but he seemed to have access to information). She was always so serene and apparently in control of any complicated situation… a good example being how she had roped him in to take care of her physical well-being.

         He felt mildly frustrated, but shrugged it off. They were arriving at the Mythril Mines, and after that, an explanation, hopefully.

         They soon arrived at the opposite shore (the Zolom having drifted towards the surrounding mountains), dismounting their chocobos. Zack patted Line’s beak, lost in thoughts.

         “We can try to catch another chocobo on the other side,” said Aeris, understandingly. “But, really, between the mines and Condor…”

         “I know, I know, almost no distance,” sighed Zack. “Look, don’t mind me. Even I need to angst a little sometimes.”

         He tried to force his old grin out, and it came out mostly okay; still, Aeris squeezed one of his hands, and he felt suddenly awkward.

         “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice slightly strained, and Zack’s heart started beating faster as he thought maybe maybe he would get his chance to… “I… I wouldn’t have involved you in this, but--”

         “IT WAS MY IDEA!” Cait Sith suddenly sprang into life, and Aeris all but hurled Zack’s hand away. “You’ve made good progress today,” continued the cat, oblivious to Aeris’ guilty look and Zack’s flat stare, “That’s good, very good. Sorry I was out for most of it, I had a nasty pile of paperwork that ended up requiring most of my concentration. Anyway, I just thought I should warn you there are two Turks waiting for you in there and three others just left Kalm in this direction.”

         “So you’re the bearer of shitty news?” grumbled Zack, bereft of his chance to take advantage of the romantic setting.

         “Oh, we really didn’t need that,” Aeris started squeezing her hands, her usual demeanor apparently broken by her embarrassment. “The last thing I want after last night is another run-in with that crazy shotgunner!”

         “She’s not there,” informed Cait, helpfully. “There’s only Luciolle and Rude.”

         “Well, that’s better,” Zack patted Line’s flank twice, and the chocobo obediently turned tail to trot back home, followed by Karol. “Lucy’s a dangerous bitch, but with only Rude to cover her back I can handle her without a sweat.”

         “This information brought to you by Cait Sith, Inc.” continued Cait.

         “I don’t know…” Aeris pulled her staff out, setting some materia in its slots. “Luciolle was actually very friendly the few times she was sent after me. Rude’s sort of creepy, always lumbering around in shades, even at night.”

         “Rude’s a dork,” Zack walked up to the cave’s entrance. “There are betting pools trying to figure out how many spare shades he carries around. Whenever one breaks, he whips another on right after.”

         “For more information, call our Customer Service at 1-800-CAITSITH,” said Cait, wobbling a little in his spot halfway out of Aeris’ backpack.

         “What the fuck is up with him, by the way?” Zack asked, eyeing Cait with a raised brow.

         “Uuuuuuuuuuuuh,” Aeris blinked. “Actually, I’m not sure. I think it’s some sort of low-battery mode. He starts giving customer service numbers and then plays some annoying song.”

         On cue, the disturbing sound of piano keys started coming from the cat, playing Shin-ra’s favorite elevator song. Zack stared at the plush animal for a few minutes, nonplussed, then decided to chalk it up to the rampant weirdness that seemed to have invaded his life since the previous day, and the two(three) finally walked into the cave.

         Zack was half expecting to be greeted with a bullet as soon as they turned the first corner, what with annoying Pour Elise echoing through every concavity of the stone, but, to his surprise, nothing jumped on them apart from a Zemzellet. Still, when Cait suddenly went silent, and Aeris started slinking towards the shadows without so much as a warning, he wasn’t the least bit shocked. Pulling his sword with a sigh, he leaned against the cave wall, and finally heard the light sound of footsteps.

         The Turks really were pros, to sneak that close to him. Then again, Cait was playing loud enough to echo. He shrugged, and casually batted a bullet away with his sword.

         “Long time no see, Rude, Lucy,” he smirked, striking the coolest pose he could think of. It ended up with him leaning on a leg and his sword on his shoulder. Bleh.

         He could almost hear a light intake of breath. The footsteps started again, not trying to hide this time, and Luciolle stepped out of the darkness, quietly followed by Rude.

         “I guess your senses have sharpened since last time,” she said, softly, gun raised.

         “I guess you could say so,” he raised his sword, swinging it lazily. “I wonder what brings you here, though. Did you miss me that much?”

         “I did,” she pointed the gun straight at him, “but I assure you I won’t miss this time.”

         Zack smiled, calmly positioned the sword in front of him to block any incoming bullet—

         By sheer instinct he jumped to the left, dodging Rude’s fist, and only his reflexes saved him from the shot. Batting the bullet away, he landed a little closer to Aeris than he’d have liked, but he wasn’t very worried.

         He was First Class for a reason. And Luciolle had barely cocked her gun for another shot when he stepped behind her, hitting the back of her head with the blunt of his Buster.

         “Nice try,” he conceded to the fallen woman, and glanced at Rude.

         The bald man frowned, but dropped his stance. “I’ll take her back,” he said.

         “You do that,” Zack smirked, stepping away as Rude raised Luciolle in his arms, walking towards the cave’s entrance as stoically as always.

         Zack raised an eyebrow, wondering how Rude supposed he was going to cross the marshes without a chocobo and carrying an unconscious woman, but the Turks from Kalm were probably mounted and could pick them up. He frowned. Having a Turk go the opposite way you were going to was good, yeah, but that meant the Turk would have a nice view of your backside if he decided he had forgotten to do something.

         Aeris sort of drifted towards him, glancing uneasily the way Rude went to, and he couldn’t help pushing her in front of him. “Lead the way,” he said when she blinked at him. Fortunately, she just shrugged and did as told; he wasn’t sure he could explain his reasoning, principally now that he had such a nice view of her backside.

         It came as a surprise when she suddenly stopped walking and turned to him.

         “Zack, did you hear that?”

         “Uh?” he blinked, glancing up to her face. “Erm, don’t think so.”

         She stared at him, brows flat, as he finally took in his surroundings, including the mountain with a reactor perched on its top, and the guy in front of a cave entrance, dressed in some kind of makeshift uniform, who was apparently appreciating the view he had been checking just a few seconds ago.

         “Another cave?” he raised an eyebrow.

         “You just noticed?” Aeris asked, nonplussed. “Were you sleepwalking again?”

         “………yes, I think I was, sorry,” he said, scratching the back of his head.

         “Oh, let’s just go in,” she pulled him by the arm, past the guard (who seemed saddened by her departure) and into a surprisingly well-lit, well-ventilated and well-populated cave.

         They started by a hallway that would have been wide and airy, had it not been packed with people. Dodging the workers, who busily moved about, climbing stairs, setting lamps and picking at the stone with the diligence of bees, he couldn’t help feeling awe swelling up inside him.

         Shin-ra tried mining for mythril at Condor Mountain not too long ago, finding nothing but lifestream in it. And anyway these people would not be mining for what could be abundantly found a few miles north.

         And the black-crossed Shin-ra flags, along with the usage of gas lamps over mako-powered light bulbs, spoke against the possibility of them searching for lifestream veils, despite the occasional sputtering gush of the substance around the tip of a pickaxe.

         Aeris would stop by such little gushers, pensively, while some workers paused to look at her almost reverentially; he’d hear the words “holy maiden” spread around them like a wave with every step they took. And the more he heard them, the more he felt they made some sort of sense.

         They finally reached what seemed to be an almost finished room, surrounded by carved trails that led the lifestream to a small pool in its center. From the center of the pool rose a stone basin, which received a trickle of water – water, without any apparent trace of lifestream – from a stalactite on the ceiling. The maybe several millennia of trickling water had, apparently, caused a rock growth in the middle of the basin, and several spikes of a softly glowing crystal were collected on it.

         The water dropped right on top of the glowing crystal, sprinkling around to the basin, which overflowed into the mako pool. It was an entrancing image, and Zack stood halfway into the room, staring wide-eyed at it; the soft, white light was strangely beckoning, and the water itself seemed to have a light of its own, and he wanted to drink from it… only he had the purely instinctive feeling he didn’t have the right to touch it.

         Aeris didn’t seem at all bothered by it, though; she calmly walked up to an old man he just noticed was by the basin, and said something to him. He answered with a smile, bowing a little, then beckoned to him to come closer.

         He walked hesitantly, not sure if it was his place to be so close to something so… so… so something like that; still, as soon as he was close enough, the old man smiled to him as well, offering a hand to shake.

         “Welcome to Fort Condor, my son,” he said, and Zack knew he wasn’t being a paranoid veteran when he thought the whole thing looked like a fortress in the making.