Inception: Book 1 (FFVII Remake)

Ch.13

With the public transport on lockdown, getting to the topside will not be easy. On top of general security on high alert looking for any survivors of Avalanche, Sara and the others could go to one place where they might find someone who can get them to the topside; Wall Market.

As the group headed back to the main street, a young girl made an announcement that caught the residents and the group with interest.

"My fellow grounders, listen up, because boy, do I have some news for you! So after bombing Reactors 1 and 5, what do the ecoterrorists do? They go for the trifecta and take out Mako Reactor 7! Another attack by amateurs who don't care about collateral damage. The sky is falling, and Avalanche is to blame! But wait! Did you know Wutai is the one funding their activities!? For all their claims about fighting for the slums. They're nothing more than pawns of Wutai, puppets dancing to the tune of their foreign masters! And that's the truth! Topside news delivered straight to your ears! That'll be five gil! Five gil, come on!"

However, some of the audience begin to grip what the girl said—ignoring the girl demanding money.

"Damn, man! Knew we couldn't trust Wutai to leave us alone."

"It's the reactors. They want 'em; we got 'em."

"Does this mean there'll be another war?"

"Five gil apiece cough it up! The truth ain't free, you know!"

Barret, however, was not thrilled to hear what the girl said. He gritted his teeth and clenched his teeth as he snarled, "We ain't no damn pawns of Wutai! I couldn't care less about the rest, but that shit?"

Barret was about to march over to the girl, ready to tell those residents the absolute truth, but Tifa stopped him and pleaded.

"No one will listen to us. There's no point in even trying."

Barret looked at her, stunned; he had never seen Tifa looked so hurt and defeated. That he forgot his anger, Tifa let go of his arm and lowered her head, murmuring, "I'm sorry."

Barret wasn't angry at her, but he understood her concern and spoke calmly, "Hey...Hey Tifa, listen. There's no room in this for regrets or what-ifs or any of that. All we can do is keep moving forward. Keep following this path we chose. Where, so we can say we did all we could."

"I know," Tifa nodded but then looked at the residents who were still gripping and said, "But...right now...instead of looking forward, you need to look around. Everyone here is terrified. So I'm asking you...don't."

Barret took her word and decided not to do the impulsive action he was about to do. He knew that Tifa was right, that the people around him were terrified and angry. Of course, they wouldn't know the real truth about Shinra because they've lived with Shinra for all of their life. If he were to shout to everyone about the fact, they would never listen to him, and they would probably think that he was a mad man. After calming the fumes of his anger, Barret begins to walk away from the crowd, and together they left.

It didn't take them long to reach Wall Market. Unlike the town's vibrant colors at night, it seemed that the town was less active during the day despite what happened during the night when the plate collapsed. However, Sara did notice that the locals seemed a bit on edge.

"Do we really have to deal with Corneo again?" Tifa complained.

"Got no other choice," Cloud spoke though his words didn't sound too thrilling either.

"As much as I hate the bastard, we gotta do it." Sara groaned while shaking her head.

Barret seemed to catch on to something that went on between the three of them and asked, "What? Did you guys get into it with him or something?"