Final Fantasy VII: Lifestream - Book 3: Pursuit

THIRTY-SEVEN

I yawned a little as I crept quietly down the main road with Cloud, Jessie, and Cissnei toward the ruined reactor the next morning. Barely half past seven. Why couldn't Scarlet have flown out here a little later? I didn't really like mornings all that much and made a little mental note to catch a nap in the buggy once we left town. I was still a bit tired after being up so late with the other girls, but finding out all that weird stuff about Cloud and spending some time with my friends had been worth it. I just hoped we'd be able to help him somehow.

"Wake up, Yuffie," Jessie whispered. "We're almost there."

I slapped my cheek to help myself do that. "I'm wide awake, Jessie. Gawd, I hate mornings. You know, if Scarlet was gonna come here and inspect the reactor, she could've at least done it later in the day. Like in the afternoon. Who's even alert at this hour?"

Cissnei chuckled. "Be thankful you were never a Turk. Some of our missions started at five in the morning."

"Ouch," I groaned.

Cloud motioned to us as the reactor came into view. "Quiet down. Scarlet should be here soon. Let's find some cover."

"Right," Jessie agreed.

The road led out of the trees and into a wide clearing covered with debris. We hurried across it, stepping carefully over the shards of metal and wiring, and ducked into the shadow of the ruined mako reactor. It just sat there, abandoned since Shinra had never bothered to come and clean up their mess. Made me mad just looking at it, and I was glad we didn't have any back home in Wutai. We'd lost the war, but we'd at least held our ground on that. I swore that we'd be strong again one day, that I'd make my dad see sense and fight back.

Even if I had to, er, borrow some materia to do it.

Ah, yeah... that little adventure is still to come. Anyway, I followed Cloud and others around the right side of the wrecked reactor without a sound and crouched down next to Jessie amidst the rubble. Her eyes were hard as they scanned the cloudy gray sky, and I could tell she was pissed. To tell the truth, so I was I. Scarlet had a lot to answer for, and I hoped I'd be able to get a shot at her today. Sonon deserved that much. I tightened my grip on my shuriken and waited.

We heard the chopper maybe fifteen minutes later, the sound of its rotors shattering the early morning silence as it flew in over the trees to the east and slowly began to descend. Before long, it had landed in the clearing right outside the reactor. Once the Shinra pilot had shut down the engines, Scarlet stepped out of the chopper with Tseng. He walked only a few steps behind her as they headed carefully into the ruins. My blood positively boiled at the sight of her.

"There's the bitch..." I muttered under my breath.

"Still dresses like a Wall Market whore, too," Jessie hissed. "I never did get her taste in clothes. Damn, I hate her."

Cloud shushed us. "Save it. Can't let her know we're here."

"Oh, I'd love to..." I growled.

Jessie gripped my shoulder and sighed. "I know, Yuffie. Believe me, I understand. But Cloud's right. Now's not the time. We'll get her later, though. Trust me on that. Her ass is ours."

I gave her a fist bump and winked. "On a platter."

"Damn right!" she agreed.

"Quiet, you two," Cloud whispered. "She's getting closer."

Cissnei nodded. "Let's see what she's after."

So we watched closely as Scarlet and Tseng made their way toward the reactor entrance. Stepping through the rubble, they headed inside a moment later. Them, with a quick gesture from Cloud, we snuck out of our hiding spot and slipped into the reactor after them.