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         She found him standing outside of the Shinra building, his back against the wall, his arms folded across his chest. He was staring with intense hatred at the ground immediately in front of his feet, and had he been magically gifted, Aeris had no doubt that he would have melted it by now.

         She approached him quietly and stopped a few feet away, waiting for him to acknowledge her. If he had noticed her, he didn't admit it. He merely continued staring at the ground, his face twisted.

         "Devin," Aeris murmered softly, shaking her head. "Don't tell me you've given up already."

         He continued to stare at the ground.

         "Just what was that back there in Reeve's office, Devin? I thought you weren't ready to kill."

         "I'm warmin' up," he growled, finally breaking his stony silence. "That man is lucky. Damn lucky. If he didn't have our parents, if he didn't have those troops..." He gritted his teeth in frustration, his hands closing into tight fists, knotting and unknotting. He didn't need to finish his sentence for her to understand his intentions.

         "I know." She looked away into the street, her eyes distant. "I wanted to kill him too. He certainly deserves it." She laid her back against the wall beside him, joining his contemplation of the ground.

         "The question, brother dear," she continued softly, the appellation quite sincere, "is what we are going to do about it."

         Devin bunched his fists. "What can we do, Aeris?" He shook his head again, angrily. "Nothing. Not while he has those troops ready to level those towns. You heard what he said. There's too many for the entire Shinra army to deal with, let alone the two of us. Maybe everyone will be better off if Reeve just gives them his damn corporation."

         "Maybe," Aeris admitted. "And maybe not. That would make Dyson the most powerful corporation on the Planet. They would literally have no one to act as a counterbalance, keep their power from getting out of control. Already they're threatening towns and people. It's as if they want to rule the world, Devin."

         Her brother said nothing.

         "And they will," she added, her voice still low. "With Shinra out of the way, they will."

         "Yeah." He glared at her. "Thanks for pointing that out. It makes me feel so much better."

         There was silence between them for another few moments, and they both turned their eyes back to the street.

         "Too bad there's not another Sephiroth around to kill President Dyson," Devin said finally. "Though that still wouldn't solve anything. Maybe an army of SOLDIERs to take out the Dyson troopers around those towns as well. Yeah, that would do it. All we need is one mildly insane dead General and an army of mindless killers." He smiled bitterly. "Kinda' makes you wish they'd finished off Wutai in the first war, huh?"

         "That wouldn't have changed anything," Aeris pointed out. "It's not Wutai we're dealing with. Dyson probably would have moved in and found those Materia caves even if Shinra had leveled the place."

         Her brother shrugged dismissively, a gesture he had picked up from their father. "Or Shinra would have found them. Then they would have been so powerful no one could stop them."

         Aeris grimaced. "Regardless, none of this idle speculation is getting us anywhere. We need a plan, Devin."

         "We?" he asked, glancing at her. "Why us, Aeris? You think we can do something here, when the Shinra President, their Airship Admiral, and even our parents can't do jack?"

         "Maybe not." Aeris took her eyes from his and stared into the street again, surveying the crush of people scurrying by, completely oblivious to the swords dangling over their heads, poised on a thin string, ready to break at any time and forever change their lives. "Are you saying you don't want to try?"

         He turned to stare at the ground again. "No, I'm not saying that." He was quiet for a second. "But once again, Aeris, what can we do? Huh?"

         He spread his hands out and turned to face her, his handsome face betraying a mixture of helplessness and anger. "What can we do? Nothing." He kicked the wall of the Shinra building vengefully. "Nothing. Nada. Zip." He gave the wall a few more kicks. Several of the crowd of people walking through the street glanced at him cautiously as they made their way past the Shinra Building, but he was completely oblivious.

         "I think the wall's had enough, Devin," Aeris murmered.

         "Well, I haven't," Devin yelled, his eyes livid with unfocused anger. Nonetheless, he ceased his pointless attack on the wall and began instead to pace madly. As he did so, he saw a small chip of concrete laying on the street and kicked it, just as one of the doors of the Shinra building swung open.

         "Yipe!" someone yelled in alarm, as they turned to face the pair and barely managed to duck the hurtling projectile. It smashed into the door just above the newcomer's head, ricocheted off the shatter-proof glass and skittered away into the street.

         Cain Highwind took one more quick look at the door behind him and then turned to face them. "Um, hi," he managed. "I guess I should be leaving now, huh?"

         Aeris frowned, giving her brother a reproachful glare. He shrugged it off and turned to face the street.

         "No, Cain, you can come outside," Aeris said gently, moving over to where he stood. "What is it?"

         He glanced back into the Shinra building, and then seemed to remember to close the door.

         "Um...," he said helpfully.

         Aeris waited.

         "Um, well, I kind of... wanted to talk to you," he said finally, the last few words coming out in a rush. "And, um, not out here."

         Aeris frowned prettily. She had known for quite some time that Cain had developed a sort of puppy like crush on her, and had actually thought it rather cute. However, she had been sure he was much too shy to say anything about the matter, and had thought it best to leave it alone and let his hormones run his course. Now hardly seemed an appropriate time to bring something like that up, however...

         "It's about that Dyson exec," he added quickly, noticing her expression. "And it's... well... do you want to hear it or not?"

         What is he talking about? she thought, momentarily confused. "Hear what?" she asked, attempting to get more information.

         "Um, well, like I said, I don't really want to talk here," he repeated, glancing toward the Shinra Building nervously. "Look, I talked to Dad... and, um, he told me to go home. He said you two should go home too. Um, actually he said you should go with me. You know, as an escort."

         Aeris continued to stare at him curiously. What was he getting at? She could sense that there was something else underneath the surface of what he was trying to say, something that he didn't want to say in front of the Shinra Building. What did he know?

         She glanced at her brother, who was still staring out into the street. "Devin," she said, catching his attention. "I'm...," she paused, making a decision. "I'm taking Cain back to his place. Admiral Highwind asked us to escort him there. Are you coming?"

         "What do I look like?" Devin demanded crossly. "A damned babysitter?"

         She saw Cain bristle out of the corner of her eye. "Hey, nobody asked you to come. If you want to stay out here and kick rocks at people all day, that's fine with me."

         Devin glared at him, and she saw Cain take an involuntary step back. "Look, that was an accident, okay? Why the hell does that old geezer want us to escort you, anyway? Why doesn't he get one of his guards to do it?"

         "He's not an old geezer," Cain protested. "He's done a hell of a lot more in his life than you have, you little..."

         "Okay, okay, stop right there." Aeris spread her arms out to her sides and interposed herself between the two of them. Cain immediately fell silent, and Devin angrily turned back to the street. She stalked toward her brother and grabbed his shoulder, resisting his attempt to shrug her off.

         "I'm escorting Cain back to his place." She dug her fingers into his shoulder until he winced despite himself. "And you, brother dear, are coming with us. Got it?"

         "Fine," he agreed suddenly, jerking away. "Might as well, since we don't have anything USEFUL to do." He stalked toward the street. "Are you coming?" he yelled over his shoulder.

         "My building is that way." Cain pointed to his right, the opposite direction that Devin was heading.

         Her brother grimaced. "Whatever," he growled. "Let's just get this over with."

         Hesitantly at first, but quickly growing bolder as they moved away from the Shinra building, Cain led them through the streets of New Midgar with the ease of one who had lived there all of his life, and after a walk of about ten minutes, they reached what was presumably his building. Aeris assumed this because that was where he stopped walking, glanced at them doubtfully, and then started inside.

         She followed, a scowling Devin right beside her, until they had reached the security detail at the elevator. One of the men, recognizing Cain, hit the button to bring the elevator down.

         "Okay, you're here," Devin said, as if in a hurry to get the entire matter out of the way as quickly as possible. "Let's go, Aeris." He turned to walk back outside.

         "Devin," she ordered. "Wait."

         She turned back to Cain, who was looking at them anxiously.

         "Do you want us to come upstairs?"

         He glanced up at her and nodded, a wave of relief momentarily rushing over his face, as if he had been nervous about asking such a question. "Um, yeah. I think it would be a good idea."

         "Devin," she ordered. "We're going upstairs."

         "What?" He sounded momentarily confused. "Why?" He stared at the two of them for a brief second, and then, without warning, suddenly cracked a grin. "I mean, c'mon Aeris, he's more than five years younger than you."

         She blinked. Then, realizing what his words were implying, she reflexively reached out to slug him, but too late--Cain was already blushing furiously, growing so red that she was momentarily worried that he was going to pass out. Devin, seeing that, suddenly started laughing, something changing in his angry eyes as he ducked her blow and continued to stare at the two of them in mock disapproval.

         "God, he's as red as a summon Materia...," Devin continued mercilessly, as she dodged another attempt to quiet him. "And you, Aeris, talk about robbing the cradle..."

         "Devin!" she ordered, her eyes fierce. "Shut up!"

         He broke into a uncontrollable spasm of laughter at that, collapsing to the ground holding his sides, as the members of the security detail stared at him with a mixture of confusion and bemusement.

         Aeris shook her head, giving him up for lost and turning on Cain, whom she began pulling toward the elevator. He stumbled momentarily, seemed to come to his senses, and then the elevator door was opening, and they were moving inside.

         "Hey, wait up!" Devin called, pulling himself to his feet, still laughing. Aeris greeted him with an icy stare as he stumbled into the elevator just before the doors slid shut.

         "Finished?"

         "Yeah," he managed, glancing at the stock-still, blushing form of Cain again and bursting into laughter once more.

         "Cain? What floor are you on?"

         The object of her question seemed to have trouble answering for a second, and then numbly hit the button to send the elevator to the thirtieth floor, which she realized must be the penthouse.

         Devin finally managed to get himself under control, giving them both an apologetic glance.

         "Cain, I'm sorry," he started, suppressing another chuckle as best he could. "I didn't mean... but damn, the way that all worked out..."

         He started to laugh again, but cut himself off, taking a deep, steadying breath. "God, I needed that."

         Aeris gave him an appraising glance, and suddenly realized he had--all of his pent-up anger, all of his frustration with the situation, seemed to have been bled off by his apparently useful, if somewhat tasteless joke.

         "Cain, I'm sorry." This time he actually sounded as if he was attempting diplomacy. "I just couldn't resist. You have to admit you both set yourselves up, after all."

         Cain didn't reply, and Aeris could see that he was silently seething. For her own part, she hoped that Devin's tasteless joke hadn't distracted the young Highwind to such a degree that he'd forgotten whatever it was that he'd brought them up there to tell them. She gave Devin another disapproving glare, and he threw his hands up in an 'I surrender' gesture and contented himself with a satisfied smirk.

         There was a loud ding, and then the elevator doors slid open. A pair of Shinra soldiers were waiting for them, rifles drawn. Recognizing Cain, they lowered their weapons and stepped back from the elevator.

         "Security's tight around this place, huh?" Devin commented as he stepped out of the elevator, Cain doing the same after a moment, his blush still fading. Aeris joined them, and then Cain silently led them down the hall, through a whole platoon of waiting Shinra soldiers, to a gaping hole where a door had once been.

         "Um, sorry about the mess." He seemed to find his voice again as they stepped into the entryway of his flat, over the blackened form of a thick metal door. "After what happened, Dad said it'd be best to be on the safe side, so that's why he had the platoon sent up here." He glanced around anxiously. "Um, looks like nobody's home yet. So..."

         "So why did we come up here, anyway?" Devin cut in, glancing around. "This was your idea, Aeris. What's up here? This place is a wreck. You live here?"

         "Cain?" she asked, smiling gently at him to try and cushion the impact of her brother's callous words. Wonderful, Devin, first you embarrass him in front of the guards, and now you're practically calling his home a dump--it'll be a wonder if he doesn't kick us out in the next few minutes. Well, kick you out anyway.

         Cain's angry expression at Devin's words seemed to melt under her smile, though it took him a second to collect himself because of it. Then, a bit disoriented, he motioned them toward an open door to the right of the entryway.

         "Let's head into my room." He began to walk toward a door and motioned them to follow him. "There's um, something I want to show you on my computer."

         Devin looked like he was going to say something, but Aeris shushed him with an upraised finger, and he relented. After she passed through the door frame, which she noticed was splintered and full of bullet holes, Cain settled down at his computer and, after they were both inside, looked out to see if the Shinra guards were out of hearing range. Seeing that they were, he took a deep breath and then turned to face them.

         "Okay," he began slowly. "God, that took long enough." He ran a hand through his short blond hair and grimaced. "Okay, here's what's happening. That Dyson exec went completely wacko after Devin finished throttling him." He gave her brother a dark glance. "He's ordered everyone involved in the Shinra command structure, as well as everyone who is a close personal friend of the Strife family, into protective custody."

         "What do you mean, protective custody?" Devin asked.

         "What do you think I mean?" Cain snapped. "He's ordered them all to stay put, of course. He doesn't want anybody trying anything. He said that if Dad or Red XIII leave the Shinra Building before the deal is closed, he'll kill one of your parents."

         Aeris tried to keep herself from shuddering at that thought. The man would do it, too, she knew without question. She had seen enough of that Dyson executive to know that he saw people as nothing more than numbers to be manipulated in his business deals.

         "That bastard," Devin said through gritted teeth. "So why did you get to leave?"

         "Like I said, I talked to Dad. Out of hearing range of that exec. When that Dyson attack squad tried to break into my place," he paused, noticing the confused expression on both Devin's face and her own, "um, that is, they tried to break into my place, and I stopped them."

         He paused a second to collect his thoughts before continuing his explanation. "One of their hackers tried to get into the security system and unlock the door. So, I stopped him, alerted the guards, and hacked his system. I downloaded a whole bunch of data from his computer, basically his entire hard drive, and then gave him a computer virus." He turned back to his computer, bringing a password window up with a single mouse-click. "See, I was going to show this to Dad and Reeve, but that Dyson exec showed up before I could do that." He punched in his password with the brief sound of lightning quick keystrokes and hit the enter key. "Since Dad can't leave the building, and the Dyson exec won't let him or Reeve use a computer terminal without observation, I couldn't show it to them after he showed up, even though we can probably use it. We can't let the Dyson exec find out we have it."

         Data started to scroll down the screen. "I told him I wanted to go home and look at it, and I told him that since the Dyson exec hadn't said anything about you and Devin staying, you should go with me. I told him that if there was something useful in the information, you guys could use it, and he agreed. The Dyson exec seemed content to get rid of me, and you guys as well. He doesn't consider us a threat."

         "I see," Aeris said, although she wasn't entirely sure her statement was truth. "So, you wanted to show us this information. Why?"

         "Well, that's what I'm trying to figure out." Cain turned back to his computer and began to idly tap the fingers of his left hand on the table. "See, I've got an idea. They said that they'd kill your parents if any of our ships got within ten miles of their airspace. Our ships can't do that because they don't have the right IFF signatures and transponder frequencies to keep the Dyson radar stations from tagging them as a threat. But, I think that those signatures and frequencies are somewhere in this data. So, if I can find them," he paused, looking over his shoulder at Aeris and Devin, "and, um, if you guys can find an Airship, well," he turned back to his computer, sifting through the data displayed with clicks of his mouse, "I think I can make one of our Airships look like one of theirs."

         "No kidding," Devin said, a bit of sudden hope in his voice. "You can do that?"

         Aeris caught Devin's eyes, raising one eyebrow. After a second, he nodded.

         "Yeah," he agreed. "So if you can do that..."

         "We can rescue your parents," Cain finished for him, nodding to himself as he continued to sift through the data. "Well, we can reach Wutai, anyway. Once we get there, I'll need to find a link to the Dyson computer, but I can probably find some codes in this info that can help me break into that too, and then..." He paused. "Well, I hadn't really thought much past that."

         "We could do it, Devin," Aeris murmered, almost to herself. "We could do it. We could break Mom and Dad out ourselves."

         "And then Reeve could--no, wait," he protested. "That still wouldn't do us any good. We could get Mom and Dad out, but then Dyson would probably order those troops to flatten those towns, because members of the Strife family attacked him."

         "You're right," Aeris admitted, her brief hopes beginning to fade. "And we don't even have an Airship, or somebody capable of piloting one in the first place." She grimaced. "But, darn it, we've got all this info. We have to do SOMETHING with it."

         She glanced at Devin again and then at the back of Cain's head, the latter still busily sifting through the data at an amazing rate.

         "You know," Cain said, almost to himself, "if I knew where the main Dyson computer was, and if I could get access to it, that is, the highest clearance, I bet you I could have that computer issue orders to those Dyson troops to abandon their posts and return to base. If, say, we managed to take President Dyson himself hostage, without anyone else knowing about it, and if we could get him to tell us his passwords, then we would basically be able to order his soldiers to do anything we want, with no one the wiser."

         "That's a whole bunch of if's," Devin said darkly. "But it's all a moot point anyway, because we don't have an Airship. Unless we want to swim..."

         "Well, I've been thinking about that too," Cain began, then paused, staring at a piece of data intently. "Hey, neat!"

         "What?" Aeris and Devin asked simultaneously.

         "Oh, um, nothing you guys would be interested in," he amended after a second. "Just a bunch of files on new types of Materia they have under development. I'll have to check those out later..." His voice trailed off as he started to sift through the data again. Devin frowned and sagged against the bed.

         "I guess we could always... steal one," Aeris hazarded after a second's silence.

         "Steal what?" Devin's sounded halfway amused. "An Airship? How? Can you pilot one?"

         "Well, no," she admitted. "What about you, Cain? You've seen your Dad pilot them before, right?"

         "Well...," he said uncertainly, still intent on his computer. "I um, might be able too. I've never piloted a real one. I've worked on the specs, and know just about everything about them, but as far as actually piloting one of those things--I dunno."

         "Great," Devin muttered.

         "But that's what I was thinking about earlier," Cain continued. "My older brother--hey, jackpot!"

         Devin leaned forward impulsively to look over his shoulder. "What is it?"

         Cain highlighted a large block of text and hit several keys on his keyboard. "I've found it! Transponder frequencies. The Dyson infiltration team used them very recently, within the past few days, so they should still be good."

         "Great!" Devin looked as if he was going to pound Cain on the back to congratulate him for a moment, but obviously thought better of it. "But we still need transportation. And a way into the Dyson complex. And someone who knows those passwords..." He paused, a strange expression suddenly coming over his face.

         "Hey," he said, settling back and turning to Aeris. "I just had a thought."

         She gazed at him levelly, and from the somewhat distant look in his eyes had a pretty good idea what, or rather who, he was thinking about.

         "Mmm hmm," she offered.

         "You know, Ada." He didn't even notice her barely intelligible response. "She's Dyson's daughter. And if she got out of the Hive, she probably knows the way back in. I bet you she even knows where old man Dyson's office is."

         "Mmm hmm."

         Devin blinked, glancing at her. "What?"

         "Nothing," she said innocently. Just the way you were looking at that Dyson girl when that SOLDIER carted her off...

         "She could get us in," Devin continued, almost defensively. "We could use her. And it would serve her right for robbing me..."

         "Mmm hmm."

         "What's with you, anyway?" he asked irritably.

         "Oh man," Cain exclaimed from his computer. "Neat!"

         "What did you find?" Aeris asked, leaving Devin's question unanswered.

         "Oh man, this is just too cool," Cain said, grinning like a kid in a candy store, which, as Aeris thought about it, was what he metaphorically was. "Those Dyson freaks actually have stealth coding in their radar system."

         "Stealth coding?" Devin asked, obviously confused. "What's that?"

         "Just what it sounds like," Cain answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, highlighting a chunk of text and dragging it into another window. "They've coded their radar system to respond to certain transponder signals, and ignore the echoes from an object broadcasting those frequencies completely."

         "Uh huh," Devin managed.

         "They're invisible, you dumbass," he clarified. "Anything broadcasting that certain frequency is ignored by their computers. It doesn't even show up on radar."

         "Why the hell would they do something like that?"

         "I dunno, probably just politics," Cain said. "Lots of competing departments at Dyson, I imagine, just like it used to be at Shinra. I bet you some like to have shipments flown in or out of the Hive without the others knowing about it. The squad that they sent to kidnap me must have been one of those units, which is why they have the codes."

         "Damn," Devin commented helpfully. "So, if we could get an Airship, they wouldn't even see us coming, huh?"

         "That's right," Cain agreed. "I need to get these codes to Dad, and then he could take his squadron in, and...," he trailed off. "Or, crap. That Dyson exec has him. There's no way I could get the codes to him without that idiot seein' them, and he couldn't get out of the Shinra building to take off, anyway."

         "Right." Aeris gently squeezed his shoulder, and he practically melted for a moment. "But that's a big advantage, Cain. I think we've got to deal with the fact that we're not going to get any help from Shinra, or your Dad. We're on our own here."

         "Right, but I still say we should drag Ada along," Devin contended. "She could take us right to old man Dyson's office. Then, after I beat some sense into him," he grinned in satisfaction at the thought, "Cain here hacks his computer, and orders those troops to back off from the towns. Then we get Mom and Dad out, and then we call in the calvary, once they're safe. And then we flatten Dyson and his entire goddamned corporation just like that."

         "I guess...," Aeris started uncertainly. "It's worth a try, anyway. And we have to try something. But we still need a ship."

         "Well, like I said, my brother...," Cain lapsed off again. "Hey, weapons specs! Tight!" He highlighted yet another chunk of text and saved it before continuing. "My brother's an Airship tech. He's getting off duty in about thirty minutes, but if we can catch him, he might be able to get us an Airship. He could even fly it for us."

         "Would your brother do that?" Devin asked eagerly.

         "I--dunno," Cain admitted. "But I bet we could talk him around. He knows what's at stake here as well as we do. I'm sure he doesn't want to work for no goddamn Dyson corporation."

         "So that's it, then!" Devin continued just as eagerly, his eyes practically glowing. "We've got a plan! We find Cain's brother, get Ada, take an Airship to Wutai, and take Dyson out!"

         "That's assuming we can convince your Ms. Dyson to help us," Aeris pointed out. "This is her father we're going after, remember."

         "A father who tried to kill her," Devin contended hotly. "That's got to put some stress on the old family ties, you know." He paused, registering something she had said. "And what do you mean, my Ms. Dyson?"

         "We don't even know it was her father who tried to kill her." Aeris chose to ignore his last question, pretending she hadn't heard it and inwardly smiling at his confusion. "Like Cain said, there's any number of competing departments there. Maybe another one tried to take her hostage to use against President Dyson, and that was why they tried to kill her."

         "I don't buy it," Devin said stubbornly. "If that was true, why didn't she go back to her father after she escaped? Presumably if it was just one department, there would be someone in the corporation who could have helped her. But what did she do? She came all the way across the ocean to New Midgar. To hide, I'll bet. And what better place to hide from her father and the rest of the Corporation but in their competitor's headquarters?"

         Aeris frowned, but had to admit that he had a point. "All right, suppose we do take her along. How do you plan to get her out of the Shinra building, out from under the noses of their guards, that SOLDIER and a very suspicious Dyson executive?"

         Devin didn't reply for a moment, thinking that over.

         "Um, if you want to break her out, I could do it," Cain offered distractedly from his computer. "Airship engine tech... God, what a piece of crap those guys are flying... um, Devin, if you want to get her out I could arrange it. Providing you go quick. We need to get to my brother before he gets off work."

         "You can get her out?" Devin asked, glancing at Cain with newfound respect. "How?"

         "I'll punch in my Dad's password and issue some orders in his name."

         "That's it?" Devin asked in disbelief.

         "That's it. Shinra Security just plain sucks. Hey, genetics research..."

         "Well, all right, I guess that's the game plan, then," Aeris agreed. "So then, Cain, you make the arrangements, and Devin, since this was your idea, you can go into the Shinra Building and get Ada out, and find a way to get her to the Airship Construction Yard without the two of you killing one another. Meanwhile, me and Cain will go to the Yard and get in touch with his brother..."

         "Yeah," Cain agreed eagerly.

         "And be ready to go by the time the two of you show up," Aeris finished.

         "Okay, that works," Devin agreed easily.

         Seeing their eagerness to get started on their respective assignments, and knowing the reasons behind that eagerness, Aeris silently sighed. Men are so easy to read it's downright pathetic.

         "Okay," she said aloud. "Let's get moving."

         The moment she began to float back to consciousness, she felt rather than saw harsh light against her closed eyelids, and for a moment lay still in a drugged haze, not sure where she was or what she was doing, just enjoying a gentle float in the middle of obscurity. The contentedness didn't last, however. In a sudden flash, it all came back.

         My god...

         You don't know me. Oh please, you don't know me.

         My god, it is her.

         Don't look at me!

         Knuckles cracking.

         Don't expect me to believe that you were walking around town all day buying half of New Midgar with a credit card.

         He's not my boyfriend!

         A big man with a knife leering at her, lust and murder in his eyes.

         Screw you!

         In your dreams.

         Gunshots. She was running.

         You bastards, you can't have her! Ada! Run!

         Scuffling. Another gunshot. The thud of a body. Freezing water, all around her, a biting pain in her left shoulder.

         Blackness.

         Happy birthday! Sweet sixteen!

         Keys of black and white.

         Ada Dyson jerked awake with a shudder, falling out of whatever she was laying in and hitting something cold and hard. For a second, her limbs still weak, she tried to push herself up, but nothing happened.

         Where am I?

         Where do you think?

         She forced her eyes open as best she could, her vision still blurred. Drugs. She had been drugged. A man, a man with glowing eyes had drugged her...

         SOLDIER. He knows me. Oh god. He knows me.

         She tried to scream then, tried to scream her anger and fear at the blurred wall in front of her face, but all that came out was a pathetic, defeated gurgle.

         It's finally over. The running.

         She tried to push herself up one more time.

         No more running. Time for dying.

         She managed to get three inches off the ground before she collapsed again, breathing heavily, her vision clearing enough that she could make out the stark gray concrete of the floor of a detention cell, meeting four walls of the same material that met a metal ceiling in turn.

         Not a Dyson detention cell. That's something, at least.

         She'd been avoiding the Shinra for two years now, and she had gotten rather good at it. Theft had not been her first choice of livelihood, but it had ended up being the only one that would keep her alive and fed. And the people she robbed were all rejects anyway, gamblers, drifters, mercenaries like the ones that had killed...

         Don't think about it.

         It had been a simple enough living, a dangerous enough living, but Ada had managed just fine. Had managed just fine, that is, until what she had thought was nothing more than a wide-eyed country hick had walked into her life with a sack of money hanging from his belt.

         Don't panic! I'll pull you up!

         Like hell you will!

         She cursed him again, cursed him and his sister with the massive sword and his big red dog and his father and his mother, and his entire family line, and all this was done before she'd even begun to process just how much she hated him.

         You ruined everything, you goddamn high-born prick . . .

         She tried to push herself up one more time, grunting with effort. With a strangled cry she managed to throw herself onto her back, flopping over like a drowning fish and staring at the ceiling.

         Great, Ada, now just do that again and this time get to your feet...

         She tried, but the drug in her system was still too strong. With a shuddering sigh, she collapsed against the ground. She would just have to wait it out, she supposed. Besides, she reflected as she glanced around at the hard concrete walls and the thick metal ceiling that surrounded her, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon.

         I had it made it just for you, my darling. Do you like it?

         Ada gritted her teeth. Whatever the drug was that the SOLDIER had hit her with, it obviously had some hallucinogenic properties. She was not normally this scatterbrained.

         Just don't show me that, she pleaded silently with her rebellious mind. Show me anything but that. I don't want to remember... that.

         Happy Birthday! Sweet Sixteen!

         She concentrated on her breathing, her heart beating within her chest. The cold feel of the concrete underneath her body. She flexed her fingers, experimentally.

         At least I can still play piano, she thought bitterly. She would have been glad to hear that.

         There was a loud sound, the sound of a bolt being slid open, cautiously.

         So they've come already.

         Get back in the bed!

         But it was much too late, and she was still too weak, and she knew it. She closed her eyes and pretended to sleep.

         She heard another lock released, and the sound of a door swinging open.

         I'm still out of it. You can see that, whoever you are. You don't want to drug me again because you don't want to use too much.

         "Looks like she woke up."

         I know that voice. The SOLDIER.

         "What did you hit her with, anyway?"

         The country hick. Almost angry.

         "Just a standard sedative, kid. Relax. Besides, if you're going to be in charge of moving her out of here, you're probably going to want her a bit sluggish."

         Moving--out of here?

         Back to them. Back to Dyson Corporation.

         I can't go back. They'll kill me!

         "You think she's awake?"

         "Yeah. She wouldn't have gotten off the cot if she wasn't. She's probably still sluggish from the drug, but once you wake up, you don't go back to sleep unless you get another dose."

         Shinra bastard...

         "All right, then. We've got to get going." Footsteps approaching, booted feet. The presence of someone kneeling beside her.

         Oh, if only I had the strength to break your neck...

         "Ada?"

         She didn't respond.

         She felt hands on her shoulders, gently shaking her. She despised the touch, but still refused to acknowledge it.

         "Ada? Ada, wake up."

         "Watch it, kid. She might be..."

         She lashed out with her right hand, a blind strike, hoping that her estimate of his face was somewhat on the mark.

         A lightning quick hand caught her own, and she was suddenly being pulled.

         "Good morning," the hick said cheerfully as he dragged her to her feet.

         She lashed out at him with another arm, but he caught it with barely an effort.

         "Such hostility. You know, you keep acting like this and I might get convinced that we're not going to be friends..."

         "High-born prick," she hissed.

         "Um, yeah," Devin replied, something strange in his eyes. "That's an odd insult, coming from the daughter of Reginald Dyson."

         "Screw you," she spit. "You know nothing about my life. Well, I'll tell you one thing about it, you high-born prick. You've ruined it. You've ruined my life." She smiled, bitterly. "Does that make you happy?"

         His smile momentarily cracked, and she saw to her surprise that she'd actually managed to hurt him.

         Why did that hurt him? I've said far worse in the past . . .

         Good, he deserves it.

         "Well, got to get moving," Devin said conversationally to the SOLDIER. "Don't want anyone seeing this, after all. I take it you've made the arrangements?"

         "Down to the letter," the SOLDIER agreed. "What does Admiral Highwind want with her, anyway? And, to put it quite frankly, isn't bringing her out while that Dyson bastard is hanging around kind of a risk?"

         "That's why she's being moved." Devin slid an unwelcome arm around her waist and began to pull her forward. She sagged against the ground, refusing to walk, and he grunted with her weight. "Move it, Ada. Unless you want me to turn you over to the Dyson executive upstairs."

         Not Dyson, please, not Dyson...

         "Isn't that what you're going to do anyway?" she asked bitterly, walking despite her better judgement, one of her limp arms draped over his shoulders. "Do me a favor and just shoot me now."

         "We're moving you OUT of the building, genius," Devin retorted. "You're about as dense as a brick wall, huh?"

         "Screw you," she muttered.

         In your dreams. Strangely, the reply came only from her mind, and not from his lips.

         "That's gratitude for you," Devin said conversationally to the SOLDIER.

         "Hmmph," the other responded. "Well, the hall is clear down to the exit passage. I've got two men I trust guarding that, and they'll let you through. No one else is going to see you leave, and we're moving one of the Shinra acting division into the cell to take her place. One of my men will guide you to the Airship Yard from there."

         Airship. Oh. So they're not just turning me over to some random executive. They're taking me home.

         "Hey, kid," the SOLDIER said, walking after them.

         "What?" Devin turned awkwardly to face him, still supporting her.

         "Take this with you." The SOLDIER handed him something that she couldn't see, since her head was hanging toward the floor and the exchange was made behind her back. "If she gets frisky again, shoot her with this and she'll go out like a light. Granted, you'll have to carry her the rest of the way after that, but hey, them's the breaks, kid."

         Tranquilizer. They aren't even going to give me a sporting chance, are they?

         "Um, thanks," Devin replied.

         "So...," the SOLDIER said, after a second. "You hear anything about what the President's going to do in response to this ultimatum?"

         What ultimatum?

         "He's going to stall as long as he can. Trust me, he's not going to give into Dyson unless there's no other choice. And, hopefully..."

         He paused, starting down the hall, pulling Ada with him. "Hopefully we can give him that choice," he muttered, almost under his breath.

         "Hope so," the SOLDIER said. "Good luck, kid. You'll need it."

         Soon, they stopped, and Ada managed to pull her head up enough to make out the forms of two Shinra soldiers. One of them pulled out a radio of some sort and hit a button on it, and a portion of the seamless wall slid open to reveal a narrow metal tunnel.

         "This way, sir." The Shinra regular stepped into the tunnel, followed a second later by Devin and Ada. Another press of the man's radio, and the door closed behind them, plunging them into complete blackness.

         Now's my chance...

         Unfortunately, her limbs were still weak, and Devin sensed her attempt to break away and stopped it before it could start.

         "Now, Ada," he murmered reproachfully. "Be a good girl."

         A second after that there was a loud clicking sound, and small lights came on, illuminating the length of the tunnel.

         "This way, sir," the soldier said, as Ada bit back her acid reply to Devin's order, and he starting down the tunnel. He pulled her after him, and she stumbled forward because dragging her feet was not going to do any good.

         Just relax, Ada. Let the drug wear off. You can escape once the drug wears off.

         She cautiously looked over at Devin, searching for where he'd put the tranquilizer the SOLDIER had given him, but unfortunately he wasn't stupid enough to have it dangling from his belt, like the first time they had met.

         "So these tunnels run underneath all of New Midgar, huh?" Devin said conversationally to the soldier.

         "Yes sir," the soldier replied. "Never can be too careful, you know. They also come in handy when the President needs a quick route to somewhere in the city and doesn't want to bother with the crowds."

         Now why the hell does my little country hick rate a 'Sir' from this Shinra loser? Probably just being polite.

         "So how far to the Construction Yards?" They turned a corner, and the soldier pressed a button on his radio to extinguish the lights in the fork of the tunnel they'd just exited.

         "Should be about fifteen minutes, at the rate we're going. This way."

         They traveled in silence after that. Ada could feel the strength coming back to her limbs, could feel the effects of the drug dissipating. She still didn't feel anywhere near her best, but she was recovering quicker than Devin probably thought she would. She was careful to remain as limp as possible, stumbling despite the fact that she could have walked with little trouble. She rather enjoyed forcing Devin to support her.

         When we get out this tunnel, he'll be tired and I'll be ready to go. Then I can get away.

         Unfortunately, Devin didn't even seem to be straining with her weight, and she started pulling against him, trying to test his limits. He remained as inflexible as ever. She had to give up, then, not wanting to tip her hand until they exited these tunnels.

         The rest of the journey was accomplished in silence. Five minutes later, they left the tunnel and started up a long stairwell. They climbed stairs for what seemed like an eternity, at least another five minutes, and then, finally, the reached a door.

         "Airship Construction Yards," the Shinra regular informed them. He hit a button on his radio to open the door. "Have a good day, sir."

         "Thanks." Devin's voice was somewhat strained, and Ada realized to her satisfaction that he was finally tiring. As they began to make their way out of the tunnel, she found herself in what looked like a darkened shed.

         Makes sense. Since these tunnels aren't common knowledge, they wouldn't want entrances in public places. I bet people are beginning to wonder why the Shinra President always walks out of sheds, though.

         "C'mon, Ada, give me a little help," he complained as he pushed the door of the shed open, and bright sunlight assaulted her eyes, which had adjusted to the darker interior of the tunnels.

         "I'll try," she agreed weakly, straightening, and then falling forward, as if suddenly losing her balance. Devin stretched forward to catch her, giving her the opening she needed.

         Still as dumb as ever, hick.

         She smashed her elbow into his stomach, jerking loose as he reflexively doubled over and sprinting away, letting out a triumphant shout.

         "Hey!" Devin called after her, but she ignored him, still sprinting, looking around desperately for any means of escape. "Stop her!

         She was on a high, raised platform, and she could see most of New Midgar laid out below her, all the way to the defensive barrier at its edge. Construction gantries were everywhere, and she saw many different types on aircraft, including the massive form of a Shinra Airship, all of the craft motionless, like a flock of sleeping metal birds. Somebody came after her, a tech, she realized, and she ducked the man's clumsy attempt to grab her and sent him sprawling to the deck.

         "Loser," she muttered, looking around desperately for some way to escape. She heard booted feet pounding behind her, rapidly glowing closer, and she realized the country hick was closing.

         How in the hell does he run so damn fast... ?!

         She turned to give him a furtive glance, and then suddenly the world was spinning around her, and the nearest construction gantry turned sideways, as she smacked painfully into the metal deck. Something had tripped her up, she realized in dismay. But there hadn't been anything in front of her!

         "Now where are you going in such a hurry, little miss?" a calm, male voice asked, as Devin belatedly slowed to a jog and stopped beside her, breathing heavily. She tried to struggle away, but someone grabbed her arms and pinned them behind her back, and though she tried her best to break lose or kick him, he would have none of it. She managed to get a look at him, taking in a mess of dark hair and a smug, white smile.

         "Who are you?" Devin asked in confusion.

         "Senior Technician Dack Highwind," her captor introduced himself, settling the end of the metal pike he held in his free hand on the deck and letting it rest there. "Now it's your turn. Who are you, and why are you trespassing on my construction site?"

Continue to Chapter 8