Locked Heart

Chapters

Prologue: How I Died
Chapter 1: Drafted
Chapter 2: My First Day
Chapter 3: Tests and Terrorists
Chapter 4: Rough Currents
Chapter 5: L1+R1
Chapter 6: Consolations
Chapter 7: How Things Are
Chapter 8: Break
Chapter 9: Hunted
Chapter 10: Put to Work
Chapter 11: Ponyville
Chapter 12: Nibelheim
Chapter 13: Moving Forward

Prologue: How I Died

“It is a very nice replica.”

The zombified Aerith looked over the white materia the purple coated man held out to her.

“And it would complete your ensemble all the better Miss Stranger.”

“I thought you were going to make it yourself,” the Tifa cosplayer piped up.

“Well I was, but this could save me a lot of time” ‘Aerith’ replied “And you gotta admit Tiff; even if we do figure it out, I don’t know if we could make it this nice.”

“I assure you stranger, my trinkets are truly one of a kind…”

‘Yeah, that didn’t sound suspicious at all…’ Tiffany frowned at the vendor, his statement gaving her sudden goose bumps.

“We never buy things we can just make ourselves” Tiffany urged “If this was something we couldn’t make at the workshop then yeah maybe, but I'm sure Jessie could-.”

“Oh but surely such a little piece isn’t going to compromise your work’s integrity or lessen the pride” the coated vendor interrupted.

“This was a personal project too Tiff, so we wouldn’t have to worry about the shop even if using outside props did matter” The Aerith cosplayer agreed “What’s really up?”

“He's sellin’ shit out of his coat Liv!” Tiffany exclaimed “I mean no way is this guy an approved vendor!”

“I’ll have you know I guarantee the quality of every one of my pieces! I’ve yet to hear a single complaint!” the vendor looked appalled.

“Please, the only way to make you any more shady would be with a windowless van and free candy!”

“Well stranger at this price I would say it’d worth it even if it’s just for the day,” the vendor disregarded Tiffany and turned back to Liv, smiling at her from beneath his hood “Wouldn’t you?”

“That’ll work, right Tiff? Just for the day! We can still make ours and have another souvenir from the con!” Liv told her smiling.

“Getting it for the day would be pointless” Tifa stated, Liv’s eyebrow arching in response “What happened to the white materia when Aerith died?”

Liv’s eyes went wide with her mouth forming the ‘O’ of comprehension. The salesman realized it too, an anxious scowl peeking through his mask at Tiffany’s victorious smirk as she gave him a silent 'Ha-ha'.

“That’s right! It fell out of her ribbon, didn't it?! She wouldn’t have it as a zombie!” Liv realized and turned back to the vendor with an apologetic smile. “Oh I’m afraid she’s right. I'm sorry but I won’t be needing it. It is very nice work though, you should be proud.”

“Hey, How about a discount then?” he persisted, reaching out at Liv as the pair began to move away.

“Whoa!” the cosplayer quickly jumped back, turning hostile “I know you're disappointed but hands to yourself there pally!”

“But I think you're passing up-”

“You’ve lost the sale creep! Deal with it!” Tiffany snapped.

“For free then! You can just take-”

“FUCK OFF!” the two cosplayers yelled simultaneously. The nearby attendees stopped and stared at the display, a few even calling out for security before the man threw his hands up dismissively.

“Fine! Fine… have it your way,” he finally relented, losing the 'stranger' act “I was just trying to make your life more interesting.”

The two girls glared after the man as he disappeared back into the crowds grumbling obscenities. Scowls remained on their faces until they were sure he was gone, finally letting the tension drop as the crowd began to move along again.

“Prick,” the heavily padded cosplayer muttered “You alright Liv?”

“Yeah I’m fine, he never actually touched me” she answered, rubbing her arms “Good call on him though… You okay?”

“Other than being pissed off? Yeah I’m good...” Tiffany replied, trying to shake off the anger “Now then! Let’s see if we can’t find some more pleasent vendors shall we?”

The rest of the day continued on as pleasantly as before, their little incident practically forgotten. One of the security guards did take a report but ‘The Merchant’ was apparently a pretty popular costume that day and the masked nature of it left them with little hope of any resolution. Still, they carried on not letting the shady vendor ruin their geeky acquisitions.

“That was damn good find” Liv comment before a sly grin graced her face “Though it’s yet another thing from Final Fantasy. You know there are lots of other properties that have merchandise right?”

“They’re not all from the same game!” Tiffany defended herself jokingly as she readjusted the bag holding her new replica “And Kingdom Hearts doesn’t really count either!”

“Sure it doesn’t.” Liv giggled.

“I have bought other things! Besides, you’re hardly one to talk!” she said, shaking the bag she was holding up.

“I’m only teasing Tiff” Liv consoled, readjusting her own bag of convention buys. They were eventually stopped when someone starting calling out to their ‘names’.

“Tifa! Aeris!” a young man with his phone out smiled next to his friend “You mind if we get a couple pictures?”

‘AeriS? Ugh…’ Tiffany groaned internally.

“As long as you don’t plan on doing anything weird with them, sure” Liv joked.

“Mind the hole” Tiffany warned as they took turns standing between the pair for the last couple shots. One of their elbows had nearly brushed against the fake sword wound they had painstakingly applied around the red splotches stained on Liv’s dress.

The pair gave the women a sincere thank you and began to go their own way when a purple coat abruptly barreled into the two cosplayers, knocking them both to the ground.

“Hey what the hell man!?” one of the young men shouted after the masked figure stalking off back into the crowds “You could at least say sorry!”

The other helped Tiffany up and went to check on her friend, now slumped awkwardly as she sat on the ground. Worry suddenly creased the trio’s brows as they saw the girl sway slightly, unable to properly right herself even sitting down.

“Hey you alright Liv?” the Tifa cosplayer asked as she hefted the zombie guised girl off the ground, eliciting a weak groan from the young woman “Come on now girl, we’ve taken harder knocks than that…”

She draped the unbalanced girl’s arm over her shoulder before noticing that her hand felt sticky against her friend’s abdomen. Sighing, she realized she just messed up the fake wound. She pulled her hand away to find it covered in red… a wet and warm re-

“OH GOD LIV YOU’RE BLEEDING!” she panicked as she realized it was real. Her head snapped to the two men as she screamed “GO GET HELP! PLEASE!”

“HEY! HEY WE NEED SOME HELP! SOMEONE’S HURT OVER HERE!” one began shouting over the crowds and trying to wave down convention staff as the other called for an ambulance.

“Hold on Liv,” Tiffany began, holding her friend closer as tears began welling in her eyes “Just hold-”

Tiffany didn’t get to finish as her throat was suddenly torn out.

She managed to shove her blood soaked friend off of her, the surrounding crowd screaming and gasping as Tiffany fell back. She clasped her hands fruitlessly against the heavily bleeding tear before her friend lunged at her again with flat, white eyes.

Then Liv suddenly stopped, everything suddenly stopped. The crowds frozen mid-panic when a well dressed, bespectacled man in a a long white lab coat stepped between the two women.

“I must admit, I do find myself impressed” the balding fellow said calmly in a familiar voice, the exaggerated rasping now replaced with a far more cultured, German accent. He adjusted his glasses and summoned a stool from nothing to take a seat next to her, wrapping his hands around a lifted knee.

“Nearly all of zee others have just taken zee bait vithout question; hell most of them practically jump in zee boat for me!” he chuckled, glancing down are her rapidly paling face “Even zose who grow suspicious still juzt try to get the exchange over vith as quickly as possible.”

Tiffany gave a choking chough, misting the air with red.

“But You! You vould have nothing of it!” he announced boisterously, a flamboyant hand shooting upward “You knew something vas afoot and helped your little friend wriggle avay from mine hook.”

Tears streamed down Tiffany’s face, the edges of her vision already beginning to fray as the suited man’s voice started growing further away.

“You even told me to fuck off! I horribly bad decision had I actually been who I vas impersonating, but fortunate for you I am a gud bit more understanding than... zat man, if he can even be called zat” he stated, standing from his stool to examine the vacant Liv. Tiffany found it difficult to track his pace, her reactions feeling slower the more blood she lost “But that von’t stop what’s going to happen. I’ve prepared an experiment for zis girl and she iz going to partizipate.”

He affixed the white materia to the ribbon in Liv’s wig, its effect instantaneous. Dancing golden sparkles coursed down her form as she rapidly dissolved into white and green hued streams of light.

“Looks just like the Life Stream, doesn’t it?!” he asked with a grin as they watched the dissipating swirls of energy. He glanced over to see one of the dying woman’s hands weakly reaching out to her dissolving friend, her eyelids struggling to stay open as her face filled with despair. Both their eyes flared open however at what they saw next.

The blood on her hands began to glow.

“Oh! OH!-OH!-OH! Vhat is ZIS now?!” he cried excited, rushing over and lifting the woman to sit against the base of the stool “I can make it contagious?! Oh I do so love surprises; zey often have such interesting data...”

The enthralled time stopper tilted Tiffany’s head up to examine the wound, now glowing bright gold and letting off sparkles matching those from earlier. He ignored her pained groans of protest as the heat of the light grew ever warmer in her veins.

“Zis opens up so many more options! Heh, eet looks like I have a full day ahead of me at zee next zombie valk no?” he giggled, cheerful smile still plastered on his face “But before you are gone tell me, vhat are you feeling right now?”

Tiffany scowled at him; summoning what little of her strength was left, she focused everything into raising a shaking fist in front of his face and extended a single finger. He blinked at the unexpected sight and let out a boisterous and thoroughly amused laugh.

“Oh, I really do have some moxie don't you girl!?” he chuckled, his mirthful grin meeting her sight as he became the only thing she could see among the black “You vill make an excellent subject...”

He reached out to flick her in the forehead but the darkness already swallowed her whole.

She bolted straight up in the bed, clothes and sheets sticking to her in a cold sweat. Practically wheezing she brought a hand up, forcing herself to calm down.

’It was a dream, calm down… it was just a dream’ her breath evened out and she let her hand fall-

‘Wait. What?’

She let her gaze drop to what blocked the hand's path and, despite the dark only allowing a vague silhouette, she found a lot more than what had been there before. She stared down wide eyed for a moment, trying to register if the sudden ‘increase’ was even real or if she was still dreaming.

She slowly brought her hands up to soon find a very real and very significant weight meeting them. She lifted slightly and even gave a tentative squeeze, earning a small ‘eep’ from herself in confirmation.

‘Yeah, they’re real alright’ she thought, baffled of how it could have happened. She quickly rolled over to hit her light only find herself headed toward the floor, falling off the side of what should have been a lot more bed.

“What the hell?!” She exclaimed. She untangled herself from the sheets and clumsily groped along the bed until she found a night stand.

‘Oh right, the con… I’m just in the hotel room with Liv’ She remembered as she fumbled for a switch on the unfamiliar lamp, feeling silly over her reaction ‘And geez, was that my voice? Do I always sound so different in the morning?’

“Sorry Liv, but I need to see what I’m-”

Her voice caught in her throat, seeing the room as it blazed into view. This wasn’t the Hotel and Liv was nowhere to be seen.

“Where the fuck am I?” she whispered in the only vaguely familiar voice, eyes wide and pupils tiny. The single bed dominated the small room, the only other furniture a simple desk and chair next to an open door leading into a small bathroom. She moved across the small space to look in the full length mirror blotted to the back of the door-

“AH!”

The short yelp echoed through the room, the chair clattering loudly against the desk as she fell back into it. It tumbled to the floor with her as it failed to stop her momentum, both falling back against the bed and slamming it hard into the wall.

She stared in awe at the very real sight of none other than a frightened Tifa Lockhart staring right back at her. She shakily pulled herself up and took a few slow, weary steps back towards the mirror. With quite an audible swallow, she began taking her new self in.

She started at the feet, bare beneath a pair of long legs that led up to a very decent set of hips hugged by a comfortable, if rather plain pair of panties. She then saw she actually had a bit of a six pack, in fact she was pretty toned all over. It wasn’t terribly obtrusive, her form was still rather smooth and soft looking but there was still some very clear definition of a woman in very good shape.

‘And my MaGuppies have become Bazongas…’

Yes, then there were of course, the breasts; to many, Tifa’s most defining physical trait. Now they weren’t Gigantic as a lot of artists like to portray her with but no would ever be calling her small again, that’s for damn sure. She was now easily in the D to Doubles range.

Finally, she brought her head up, seeing a very pretty face under dark locks. The red eyes of the video game vixen looked into her own, deeply concerned under a frightened brow. They were familiar and unfamiliar all at once, not right but somehow not feeling entirely wrong either.

She tentatively began to bring a trembling hand to the face when a soft knock broke her focus.

“Miss Lockhart?” a feminine voice asked softly, slightly muffled by the door “Is everything okay in there?”

She opened the door very slowly, peering out to see a young woman peeking back through curiously.

“Is anything the matter Miss Lockhart? We’ve been hearing a bit of a clatter” the girl carrying a clipboard asked nicely as the rooms occupant stared at her with wide eyes.

‘Why is her skin yellow? Why are her eyes purple?! WHY DOES SHE HAVE A HORN?!’ thoughts screamed though Tiffany’s head.

“…Miss Lockhart?” the girl repeated, her genuine concern breaking through her shock.

“I… I tripped over the chair” she managed dully.

“Oh, I hope you didn’t hurt yourself. I think we may have something in the first aid kit if you need” the blue haired girl offered.

“No, I’m not hurt…” she answered still in a bit of a daze, but the girl certainly seemed nice enough “Where am I?”

Her brow shot up in surprise, the horned girl taken a bit aback by the abrupt and confusing question.

“Well, you’re at the Out of the Way Inn under Sector Six Miss Lockhart” she answered “Room Seven to be exact.”

“And why do you keep calling me that?”

“Oh, that’s what it says in the ledger” she flips through a few pages on her clipboard “Miss Teefa Lockhart, Room Seven; the note says you arrived earlier tonight after calling ahead to reserve the room for the rest of the week. Payed in full up front too. Did we get your name wrong?”

‘Paid in full earlier tonight? But how could I… What the hell is going on?’ her mind reeled.

“Uh, yeah my name’s not Tifa, it’s Tifa. Wait, what? No, sorry; it’s Tifa Lockhart” she sputtered “Errr no… I mean -mmnnnn!”

She slapped her now aching head, the horned employee’s brow wrinkling at her.

“Um... That’s what we have you down as Ma’am” she said, looking at the notes “T-E-E-F-A and L-O-C-K-H-A-R-T?”

“No, T-I-F-whoooa…” She stumbled, clutching the door frame as she fought for balance until the room stopped spinning.

“Whoa easy there… Are you sure you’re okay Ma’am?” the girl asked as she reached out to help steady the teetering woman.

“Yeah” she responded as she was already recovering “Yeah I’m-”

“I mean I think we may have some medicine in the office, or one of us could run down to the pharmacy over on the Wall Market’s main strip for you” she offered “We may even have an esuna materi-”

“No, no really; I think I just have to lie back down for a while” Tifa stopped her.

“Well if you’re sure… I’ll just go make the spelling correction to the ledger then; at least we got the pronunciation right huh?” the girl relented, giving her a consoling smile “If there’s anything else you need we’ll be just down stairs at the front. I hope you feel better Miss Lockhart, and have a good night.”

“Yeah, you too” she said as she walked away. She started slowly closing the door until she called down the hall to the girl “Th-Thank you!”

The girl turned and gave her a quick smile and nod before continuing on her way. Tifa closed the door and stood the chair back before sitting on the bed, staring once again at her reflection.

‘Ok, let’s try that again' she repeated internally.

“My name is Tifa-UGH! My name is TiffffffffaaaaannnnnNA!” Her vision swam again, almost sending her tilting off the bed “Why can’t I say it? I couldn’t even spell it…”

‘Tiffany? Ok… I can still think it’

“Tiffany.”

‘Okay I can say it too, I just can’t seem to say it’s my name’ she took a deep breath "Ok, once more- My name is Tiffan-!"

Thousands of voices screamed nonsense throughout her mind on a tidal wave of pain, far worse than any of the former attempts’ dizzy spells. A sharp gasp escaped her as she fell back onto the bed, hands clutching at her scalp.

‘OKAY! OKAY! I’M TIFA! MY NAME IS TIFA NOW!’ the voices ceased even faster than they had started. She pulled herself back up, looking into red, watery eyes.

“I guess I’m Tifa then… I suppose it’s not that different” she sighed before standing back up and moving to the window. She pulled open the curtains to maybe get a better idea of just where this ‘Out of the Way Inn’ was.

“Hello slums-ville” she muttered. It actually wasn’t that bad and it certainly seemed a lot cleaner and brighter the word slum would suggest; a ‘higher class of slums’ if there was such a thing. The dirt paths were bordered with surprisingly healthy grass and based on the room she was in now she was guessing the buildings’ interiors were nicer than the exteriors, which were still far more coherent and solid than what most would picture for slums. A few blocks down she could see what looked like a heavier concentration of buildings and neon “That must be the main strip she was talking about.”

Then she saw the people, and all the different kinds of them. Most looked human but like the girl who checked on her they all had very colorful skin and hair, and a handful of them had horns or-

“Wings?” she asked rhetorically. From this view alone she could see half a dozen pairs of big, feathery wings; most matched the person’s skin color but there were a few exceptions. Yet, as weird as they seemed, they were nothing compared to the standouts; what look like a minotaur and a glimmering-

“That guy’s made of crystal… That’s a crystal man” She stated bluntly.

Along with seeing a man made of shiny minerals walk below the window another realization suddenly hit her; the lighting was off. It wasn’t harsh or anything but it was an ever so subtle artificial yellow blended with a fainter industrial white. It also looked like it was coming from multiple sources. She looked up to indeed see a multitude of large hanging lights over the slums, and far above them even larger lights set into…

‘WHERE THE FUCK IS THE SKY?!’ her mind screamed before she began to hyperventilate. She followed the metal ceiling high above to a massive pillar beyond the slums and large piles of scrap metal. She could just barely see the thin moving lines of trains circling the massive support.

‘Oh… Ooooohhhhhhhh… aw crap…’

“I think I know where I am now…” she bemoaned, head thumping against the glass. All the pieces clicked together; The Wall Market, Sector Six, Esuna and all as she was standing there in the body of Tifa Lockhart herself. She backed away from the window and fell face first onto the bed before rolling over with tears pooling in her eyes.

She wasn’t dreaming, and she now knew that wasn’t a dream before either. Did she die and this was some kind of afterlife? Did that magic guy in the suit send her here?

She didn’t know. All she knew is that she was alone in an entirely new world that she knew for a fact was dangerous and with only a week of somewhere that was maybe safe to stay. She had no idea where Liv was or if she was even still alive… or undead. All she knew she had just lost her entire life.

‘I’m not even me anymore…’

The tears began to flow freely with choked sobs forcing themselves from her. She weakly cried the only thought she felt she could express at the moment,

“Well… fuck…”

Author's Note

So here we are at the beginning of my second published story! Much like my first story, while I DO have an outline of several plot points and resolutions, everything else will just be me flying by the seat of my pants! It’s been working pretty well so far, so let’s hope it’ll be as effective (and fun!) for this one!

Another small note, like any who have read my other story know: I DO NOT have an editor currently. I do however review chapters several times before publishing. Small things have and almost certainly will slip by but thankfully, from what I’ve gathered, they have yet to make anything illegible or terribly distracting. Still, I apologize in advance for any it may end up bothering and if you feel inclined to correct me or point out errors then please feel free to do so- I would be more than happy to correct things!

Now as always (or what will be always to any new readers)- Thank you all so much for reading and I hope to see you for the next chapter! Have a good one!

Chapter 1: Drafted

-6 Months Later-

“Sir! The signs clearly say no flying inside!”

Tifa looked out from the back to see the new girl, Sunshine… something, yet again trying to convince the gryphon and his friends to stay out of the air.

“You’re blocking the other customers' view of the screens! Please sit back down!” Sunshine insisted, finally coaxing him back to his seat. She avoided his pegasus friend’s grope and moved off the help the other patrons of the ‘fine establishment’.

Hops’ 6th Gate sports and karaoke bar, just a block off the Wall Market main strip; also the current work place of one Tifa Lockhart. She didn’t particularly like serving families and drunken idiots in a tight shirt and hot pants but she felt it was at least still better than working down at the Honeybee.

‘He is a gryphon right?’ she pondered, studying the patron as she rested her feet. She had figured out the differences between all the races for the most part, but still had to double check sometimes.

She had learned that apparently, a long ass time ago this and a parallel human world had collided and merged or something. She had no idea how and it could have just been a religious thing but it meant that this world had both colorful humans and colorful ‘ponies’ that looked just like the humans, just with horns and wings. Occasionally she’d see one with a horse tail or ears, but not often.

‘Yeah he’s a gryphon,’ she concluded; they were the ones with ‘normal’ skin tones and different colored wings, even if they still usually had weird hair sometimes filled with feathers. This one had kind of olive-tan skin and brown wings, a sharp contrast to his lime green and cobalt pony buddies.

“TIFA! Break’s over! We need you back on the floor!” Hops called. Hops was a tall and rather round earth pony, which almost always got shortened to just 'Eathies', and was almost never seen without a greasy apron. He also always carried a rather jovial outlook on life and had a definite 'appreciation of owls’, if you get the meaning.

“Here, take over seven” he said handing her an already full tray “I’m pretty sure they’re Shinra, so be nice and don’t be afraid to flaunt a bit; they can be real good tippers.”

“Thanks boss” Tifa said dryly as Hops just smirked and continued cooking. He was actually a pretty decent boss. Despite the skimpy uniforms and primarily female staff, he did seem to genuinely give a crap about them. And Shinra employees did tend to tip a lot better than the slum dwellers, so the extra gil would be nice.

Sure enough she came upon a quartet in upscale black and blue suits emanating a definite aura of authority. She put on her best fake cheer and approached the group.

‘Be nice, be nice, be nice- Big fake smile!’

“Hi there! I hope we haven’t kept you waiting too long! So I have a Canterlot strip, a double bacon burger, a veggie burger with extra tomato,” She listed off as each signaled which was theirs “And that’s means you must be the Celestia Salad. And of course here’s the basket of wings for all of you.”

She placed the salad in front of the blueish-gray girl with twin pig-tails before taking the wings off the tray, trying to ignore her staring at her chest. She had also learned this world was at least a bit more open and tolerant of same sex orientation, and she was still getting used to the 'gaze' now coming a little more often from her own sex.

“You have sauce on your under-boob; you’re carrying the trays wrong.”

Tifa was immensely proud of herself; her only tell was a single twitch of the eye. She didn’t even loose her fake smile.

‘Bitch’

“Thank you so much for telling me! It would have been pretty embarrassing to have it there the whole night!” she ‘thanked’ the… ‘human?’. Humans and earth ponies were particularly difficult to tell apart. Earthies tended to be more physically strong and durable but lacked much natural affinity for materia.

‘Not that such knowledge makes a visual guess any easier…’

“Is there anything else I can get you for now?” Tifa asked and was largely ignored as they began eating; not an uncommon occurrence.

“No we’re fine, thank you” the group’s only male, a large tanned man with a shaved head told her quietly.

‘Well, at least one of them is polite.’

“Well then, I’ll be back to check on you in a little bit. Enjoy your meal!” she concluded and strode away, face dropping in exasperation as soon as she left eye sight. She moved back through the kitchen toward the sinks when she spotted a familiar mane of green hair.

“Hey Zest, thought you had tonight off” she commented as she moved next to the pink girl bouncing and swaying to her head phones. She kept washing and bobbing until the darker haired female reached over to pull off one of the phones “I said Hey Zest! Thought you had tonight off!”

“Oh Hey Tif! Yeah, Starry called me to cover; something about her aunt or something” Lemon Zest explained, moving her headphones to her neck “And it’s just a half shift here in the back, no problem.”

The music lover grinned at her, of course it wasn’t a problem for her; dishes and bussing were her favorite assignments. She could just sit back here listening to her headphones and usually didn’t take them off when bussing either. It wasn’t as generous with the tips but she was hardly hurting for cash, not with her parents.

“UGH!” Sunshine stormed in and dumped a bin of dishes in off to be cleaned “I just had to get the gropers didn’t I? Meanwhile you get the big tipping Shinra mooks… why did I ever leave Dodge Junction?”

“Oh we’ve got more Shinra types in?” Zest asked “Don’t worry Shine, Hops has us pool the tips remember?”

“Yeah and besides, I’m pretty sure they’re Turks,” Tifa added as she tried to lift and adjust to find the stain “Not sure you’d want to deal with that kind of pressure right away.”

“Turks?! Down here!?” Sunshine exclaimed.

“Again?” Zest asked “Group of four with a big bald guy? They were here last night too.”

“That can’t be good…” Tifa muttered as she was trying to angle the sponge right with the sink back’s distorted reflection.

“What could they be doing down here?” Sunshine asked.

“They actually come down here pretty often, more than up on the plate at least. They like to hang out down at the Wall Market Pub a lot during their down time... Maybe they’re just getting tired of it and are giving us a try” Zest mused, reaching a gloved hand out of the soapy water and taping the underside of Tifa’s chest. A quick strobe of magic sparkled and the stain dissolved.

‘Prestidigitation, gotta love it’ She thought as Zest gave her a quick wink.

“Thanks, and I guess you would know Canterlot girl” Tifa teased, now leaning against the sinks rim.

“Canterlot?” Sunshine looked confused “As in topside of the plate?!”

“Yep! Her parents are real big wigs up there, very respectable” Tifa smirked as the green haired girl shot her a look “She’s got a trust fund and everything!”

“Why the Stream’s name would you live down here then?!”

“Because it’s too fake up there, everything’s too easy” Zest grumbled “I want something real, to actually DO something. Not just flutter about fretting about appearances and reputations that don’t even matter.”

“Ah the classic independent princess shtick” Tifa jested “You want real you should just go to the Under City.”

“I don’t need things to be THAT real” she chuckled earning a laugh from the other two.

“CAN’T WORK THE FLOOR FROM BACK HERE LADIES!” They heard Hop’s call from the kitchen.

“Sorry Mr. Hops!” Sunshine scurried back out to the bar, giving their boss a quick bow as she passed.

“Don’t let him catch you using that materia” Tifa whispered as she passed. Hops held the belief that materia contaminated the food; it didn’t but he was the stubborn type.

“Don’t piss off the Turks” Zest shot back, advice Tifa wasn’t hesitant to take to heart. She only made it a couple steps through the door when the clatter of shattering dishware grabbed her attention.

“Oh don’t play hard to get now sweet cheeks, you’ve been flirting with us all night!” one of the gryphon’s drunken buddies was holding Sunshine by the wrist. She wrenched herself free and quickly retreated a few steps “Come on! We can afford the cover!”

“This isn’t that kind of place! You want some plot then the HoneyBee is just a few blocks over!” Sunshine snapped. Undeterred, the drunken pegasus sauntered forward still believing himself to be charming.

“I think you can make an excepti-huh?” a hand suddenly on his chest stopped him. His gaze began following the arm, hitting her shoulder but quickly detouring from his destination.

“Eyes are up here dumbass” he glanced up “And the lady said no.”

“Well, then how about I just get a feel of y-AH!” the drunk ragdolled back into the table, sending his friends sprawling to the ground as it tipped. The gryphon leader sprang back up, wings unfurling to make him look bigger.

“Oh you wanna throw down little girl?!” he taunted, his tough guy act cranked up to eleven as his pegasus and earth pony buddies took up positions behind him “We ain’t afraid to fight mares!”

“Oh good, neither am I” it took their intoxicated minds a couple extra beats to register the insult before the gryphon piped up again.

“Get her!” he called and the trio charged; Tifa just rolled her eyes.

Twenty seconds later, passersby outside had to dodge the bruised and bloodied trio bursting through the doors and frantically scrambling away from the woman calmly following them out. She stood in the doorway a moment longer before turning to see their bouncer for the night, a broad shouldered earth pony named Chunk, giggling behind her.

“And where were you?!”

“Like you really needed any help,” he smiled “Why do you think we love working during your shifts? It’s like free money!”

A heavy, aggravated sigh escaped her with another eye roll. She shoulder checked him as she passed to help Sunshine clean up the overturned table, unaware of the gazes of four pairs of eyes’ studying her.

“Not bad” one of the women with red hair under goggles commented, lounging in her chair “She barely even broke anything too.”

The one with the shaved head just grunted his agreement, calmly watching the martial artist.

“She seems more capable than we predicted, or at least notably stronger” the spectacled grey girl added plainly “This could be difficult if she proves uncooperative.”

“We’ll see…” the first Turk returned, pausing a moment to consider “See if we can call in the priss, she’s good at convincing people.”

“And if she doesn’t show up?” the last suited agent asked.

“Then we improvise.”

“Oh come on Lock! You can’t say that didn’t work out at least a little tension” Zest claimed as they walked toward their apartments. Zest lived just across the hall from Tifa, she’s actually the one who let her know the unit was available.

“Knocking around a few drunks in what couldn’t even be considered a fight? Yeah, not so much.”

“Well then I suppose you just need to get laid” She concluded as they reached their respective doors.

“Oh ha ha” Tifa replied flatly.

“I’m serious! Plus I doubt you’d have any trouble finding takers” Zest added “I know I wouldn’t mind a little T-L-C.”

“What?”

“Some Tifa-Lockhart-Contact?” Zest smirked.

‘God, just any contact sounds absolutely divine after so long.’

“Another time maybe.” Tifa returned plainly, wresting a sigh from the pink hued girl.

“You gotta learn to let yourself go Tif, express a little y’know?!” Zest sighed, letting it drop with a shrug “But fine, whatever. Suit yourself.”

“Have a good night Zest” Tifa chuckled walking into her apartment.

“I’m right across the hall if you change your mind!” Zest sang.

“GOOD NIGHT ZEST!” Tifa repeated, hearing the girl laugh as she closed the door.

‘Wild child that one’ she thought, already removing her uniform and headed toward the shower ‘Still, don’t know where’d I be if it wasn’t for her help.’

One shower later Tifa changed into a tanktop and skirt before flicking on the TV, she did find them unusually comfortable.

‘Another inherited preference I guess’

She didn’t much care what was on, she just liked background noise while she worked on her form; she had dropped her elbow a little early against the second drunk and it was bothering her. She didn’t really get a lot of opportunity to use the martial skill she inherited but that didn’t stop the irritation that came from getting sloppy with it.

“We’re here with the leader of our fair city and the CEO of Shrina Electric Power herself; President Celestia!” The unicorn woman on the tv announced.

‘President Celestia’ She thought, already losing focus on her choreography ‘That still sounds weird.’

She had figured out pretty quick after her arrival that this was some kind of My Little Pony world, however screwed up of one it was. That unfortunately didn’t help her much. Like the block preventing her from using her old name, there was something keeping a lot of her memories of the show suppressed.

‘I can’t remember what it is but I remember it’s important...'

'Isn’t that a bitch?'

She remembered Celestia was actually a princess and not a president, there were a lot of rainbows you didn’t want to mess with and that there was a lot of affection connected to the name ‘Derpy’; that was about it. Oh, and that Liv was way more into it than she was.

‘Hardcore pegasister that girl’ she thought and ended up making herself sad; she still had no clue what happened to her friend. To further complicate matters her memories of Final Fantasy VII and it's universe were spotty at best too; she remembered a lot more of that then the show though, so that was still something.

“So I am sorry but of course the first question I must address the shoopuf in the room; what is your response to certain groups’ allegations that harvesting Mako energy is harmful to the planet, that we’re literally draining its life force?” The interviewer continued.

“Such claims are completely unfounded. As we have said several times; we take every precaution and devote significant time and resources in insuring that very thing is not the case” the strikingly beautiful woman replied with a slightly tired smile. Her exceptionally fair skin seemed to shine in the studio’s lights as a long horn and flawless wings accentuated her majestic appearance. “Not that we do not understand their concern, but I assure you and all the viewers, there is no need to worry.”

Celestia was one of the few 'ponies' Tifa had seen who's color wasn’t perfectly aligned; her skin was just a few shades more tan than the pure white of her horn and wings. Eventually she reasoned that she might actually be white but, as one of the few thing she remembered being that she was the sun princess, maybe she was just tanned. She was actually a little proud of herself for figuring it out.

“And their insistence of using the illnesses of the Under City as examples to the contrary?” the hostess countered, a small, regretful sigh escaping the president in response.

“We have urged the citizens of the ‘Under City’ to relocate countless times; The cave structures alone make the area inhospitable but unrefined Mako crystals and exposed Hamony Stream wells can be exceptionally dangerous without any interference. The effects those groups claim are our fault would happen to anyone exposed for so long” The alicorn explained “We do what we can to support them, but we can only do so much without needlessly exposing even more people and ponies to unacceptable risk.”

“There have also been several reports of increased Shinra security activity in Midgar between them and us” the interviewer added.

“That is merely a precaution; I’m afraid we’ve received some… concerning reports about some the area’s organizations and we’re simply taking the first steps to prevent any future problems.”

“Organizations like AVALANCHE? Rumor has it they’ve been causing the company a good deal of grief lately.”

“I’m afraid I can’t disclose any more information, as it could compromise our sensitive investigations. You understand.” The company leader apologized.

“Hm” the interviewer hummed disappointed “Well then perhaps you could tell us about this new Wonderbolts project you’ve been teasing the public with-”

Her choreography already long forgotten, Tifa was leaning on the back of the couch watching the CEO talk when something suddenly bounced off the back of the martial artist's head. She spun to find no one there.

“What the hell?” she asked, thoroughly confused. She looked down to see what looked like a tiny cardboard box lying flat on the ground. She picked it up and immediately her phone beeped an alert.

-New App Available!- flashed on her screen. She looked back and forth between the phone and tiny box before tapping the notification. An instant later the box jumped out of her hand, constructed itself and snapped to a size big enough to fit someone inside. The next instant the phone's camera flashed and the box was gone.

She stood staring wide eyed at the empty air the box once filled, her phone still beeping and vibrating in her hand. She finally blinked and looked down to see the new alert -You have 1 new token!- with a picture of the vanished box. She continued staring until-

“Fuck it!” she exclaimed, dropping the phone and walking away with her hands up “Whatever! Not even opening it! Too much weirdness!”

She cracked her neck on her way to the fridge, trying to ease her sudden tension. She dug around for some leftovers and plopped them in the microwave. First the reminder of Liv and now her phone, her own phone from home mind you, was doing crazy things. The hum of the microwave calmed her mind as she drifted back to when she discovered she still had it.

-First Day in Midgar, 6 months earlier-

Tifa eventually stopped crying and regathered herself, sitting back up on the bed trying to figure out what she was supposed to do now.

‘A shower could be a good start.’

Groggily rising, she walked to the small bathroom and waited for the water. It was an interesting and unsettling experience cleaning an entirely new body; it almost like she was washing a stranger except she could feel it. She eventually got over the odd sensation and after bumping her new chest and hips several times, was finally clean and at least a little more relaxed.

She turned off the water and began to step out before stopping, sighing, and stepping right back in. She turned the water back on and lifted her new additions enough to rinse the new area she never had to worry about before. THEN she got out of the shower and unfortunately only then had the realization of,

“I don’t have any clothes do I?”

Sulking back into the room in nothing but a towel she began thinking of options. The top and panties she was wearing were now a little too damp from the shower and she still couldn’t very well go out in public in just that anyway. She checked around, not seeing anything in the drawers or closet. She was about to give up when she saw something sticking out from under the bed.

‘MY BAG!’ she dropped down and quickly ripped the large duffle from its hiding spot. She immediately noticed the difference however; for one it was a good deal fuller than it was before and a reddish-brown pair of reinforced boots, Tifa’s boots, now hung from the side. Right on top over the zipper was a simple note.

~Yeah I was a bit late to the draw, so here… Because moxie.~

She turned the note over and saw that’s all there was. She frowned at the paper, but set it aside and opened the bag all the same. Just like her, her things inside were now very different.

All of her clothes were changed and Tifa couldn’t help but notice they were mostly comprised of tank tops and skirts, there were a few other things but that seemed to be the running theme. There was also a few large and very sturdy looking bras and sports bras, as well as a decent number of panties for which she was very grateful.

The clothes however, were just the beginning. A few slightly glowing spheres were found beneath them next to a cellphone, a heavy bundle of paper currency she didn’t recognize and finally a small sack of what felt like coins.

‘Is this how I supposedly paid for the room?’

She left the money and marbles alone for the moment and picked up the cell phone. It was hers; the familiar Fenrir emblem on the cover gave that away. She quickly turned it on to find all her contacts missing; she still tried to manually enter one of her parents’ numbers but wasn’t terribly surprised to not get an answer. In fact it didn’t even complete the connection; they apparently used a dialing different system here.

'Or I just don’t have a carrier anymore.'

She checked the media and wasn't surprised to find that a good bit of it no longer intact either. There seemed to be a handful of pictures left but they appeared to be blocked by a password she couldn't remember. The rest of it was completely missing though, and it didn't take her long to figure out it included all the stuff with any trace of her in it.

‘Guess who I was really is just gone now huh? Even if I didn’t actually die, I’m still effectively dead…’ she thought, face dropping as she tossed the phone back in the bag.

She sat there staring at the floor, occasionally glancing at some part of her new body. What the hell was she going to do now? What could she do? She was in an entirely new world, alone and afraid. She didn’t know how to handle this! She worked in a damn practical effects workshop for goodness’s sake! She-

‘Tsuru, Tsuru, Tsuru, Tsuru...’

A quiet voice whispered from the back her mind, the onomatopoeia breaking through her second break down before it started. She stopped and sighed with a small, if tired smile.

“Dilly Dally Shilly Shally…” she muttered, feeling at least the tiniest bit calmer.

She gathered herself and decided it was finally time to leave the room. She got dressed, pocketed the phone and found what must be the room key on a hook by the door. Grabbing a few bills and coins of the unfamiliar currency and putting on a brave face she actually felt more than she expected to, she took her first step in exploring this strange new world.

‘Whether I died or not, I’m alive now and I won’t get anywhere dragging my feet here forever.’

She snapped out of her remembrance when the microwave beeped at her. She grabbed the food and headed back to her, as Zest put it, ‘rescued’ couch. It didn't take long to finish and she had just gotten back up to toss the plate when there was a knock at the door.

'Three distractions in just an hour? When did my life become so active?’

She approached the door cautiously; she only knew like eight people as anything more than acquaintances and only half of them knew where she lived. She peered out the peephole to see a pair of women in nice suits.

‘Aw crap.’

“Miss Lockhart we know you’re there, we can see the light flickering behind the peephole” she heard the same opal haired bitch from earlier declare.

“What do you want?” she called through the door.

“I suggest you open it,” she rounded to see a pair in black suits, the sloppy girl with red slicked back hair and the tall tanned guy still wearing his sunglasses “They’ll just do it themselves otherwise.”

She backed away from both the door and the two intruders; as to how they got in she didn’t have the slightest, but it wasn’t really important anymore. A second later the door clicked, slowly swinging open as the other pair entered. She bumped into her small dining table, already out of room before the turquoise girl with streaked purple hair stepped forward.

“Miss Lockhart, My name if Sunny Flare; this is Rina, Rude and Sugarcoat” She said “And you have something we need.”

“And this is how the Turks operate? You break in and make demands without even asking any questions?” Tifa stalled, leg slowly sliding behind a chair leg “I know the SOLDIER recruitment stuff you feed the media is bullshit, but I still thought you lot had a bit more style than this…”

“We find our patience in the matter has grown rather frayed. We’ve spent a lot of time and resources looking for-*GASP*”

The chair shattered against the turquoise Turk's face, sending her to the ground as Tifa was already closing on the next agent. Sugarcoat couldn’t even draw her gun before a fist drove her head back and left a sizable dent in the wall as she fell to the floor.

A sparking baton shot in front of her face as she leaned back just in time. She swung an high kick against her attacker only for them to dodge back as well while her partner charged in with a straight punch. Tifa redirected the attack and tried a low jab just to rebound off a guarding elbow. She slammed forward knocking him off balance with her shoulder and followed through with elbow strike turned back hand that forced the larger Turk to back off.

Rina left her no reprieve however as she launched forward again, electro rod sparking as she swung at the buxom human relentlessly. Tifa caught the Turks wrist on the cross of her arms during her next down swing, kicking straight out against Rina’s own counter. The displaced’s strength won out as she launched the suited female across her apartment and crashing through her coffee table.

Sunny and Sugarcoat tried to rise again when a heel swept across both faces. She completed the ark into an axe drop against the charging Rude, a quick snap kick following and catching him the chest, staggering him nearly enough to fall pry to the other foot flying up as the girl flipped backward. She just barely grazed his glasses, knocking them into the air as she continued her rush.

‘The other pair I got the drop on, but these two…’

The pair blocked and countered each other into a brief stalemate until the unmistakable sound of a shotgun cocking made the room freeze.

“BACK THE FUCK DOWN!” she heard a wonderfully familiar voice shout behind her.

‘Oh Zest I could kiss you!’

Tifa stood straighter and quickly stepped back, making sure Zest could have a clear shot against any of the disadvantaged group. She picked up the Turk’s sunglasses, putting them on and sticking her tongue out at him as her friend circled the group to stand next to her.

“Nice timing” she complemented the music lover as the floored Turks slowly rose to their feet. Zest was about to reply with something undoubtedly witty when the apartment’s windows exploded inward with blinding twin flashes.

Two pairs of Shinra security troopers repelled in and at least half a dozen more burst from the hallway flanking the pair, every one of their rifles leveled at the two women. They slowly raised their hands as Zest dropped the shotgun. The Turks regained their footing and moved toward them smugly but halted confused when half the troopers redirected their aim to them. Their bewildered expressions quickly grew worried when they heard somepony storming down the hall, complaining loudly.

A pure white and very pissed off unicorn strode into the room, glanced that the two women holding their hands up before glaring at the quartet.

“REALLY!? You couldn’t wait Five Minutes?!”

Tifa and Lemon were now seated at the small kitchen table, surrounded by the troopers as they all listened to the unicorn tear into her colleagues in the hall.

“-Completely Unprofessional! What was the point of even calling me down if you were just going to try and pull this! AND YOU TWO! This pair has the excuse of being new but I know that the two of you know better! Ohhh, when Sweetie Drops hears about this!-”

They could just barely see the one called Rude shifting uncomfortably and avoiding her gaze in the hall.

"Y'know Me and Rude are technically your superiours-" Rina tried.

"ALL THE MORE REASON-"

“I actually know those girls, we used to be friends,” Zest commented quietly “We were at Shinra Prep together; Sunny Flare, Sugarcoat and Rina ‘Indigo’ Zap. I had heard they’d become big shots at Shinra, but I didn’t think they were Turks.”

“Indigo?”

“It’s the color she used to dye her hair all the time… Or maybe it was the color she was always dying over? I don’t know; I always put my headphones back on during the less interesting conversations.”

“You always have your headphones on.”

“I don’t find a lot of interesting conversations.” The pair chuckled before the unicorn stopped yelling.

“Ms. Lemon Zest?” The woman came back into the room and walked up to the table as the other four Turks hung around the door looking dejected and, in the case of the newer two, a little bloodied “You’re free to go. You don’t have to worry about any legal repercussions for your actions; You were merely aiding a friend against an Unprovoked attack. Your shotgun has already been placed back in your apartment and you have my apologies for any inconvenience.”

The unicorn shot the unprovoked bit back over her shoulder at the gathered Turks while Zest glanced at Tifa unsure.

“Go on Zest, I’ll be fine. Thanks for the backup” Tifa consoled her, only to be caught off guard by a sudden hug.

“You be careful here girl” Zest whispered before letting go.

“Um… Yeah” Tifa replied awkwardly as Zest gave her a worried look and made her way out of the damaged apartment, one of the troopers closing the door behind her. The unicorn then moved to sit across from the displaced woman. Tifa couldn’t help but notice her suit was exceptionally well-tailored even compared to her colleges, and that her hair was impossibly maintained.

“Now on to you Miss Lockhart; on behalf of Shinra Incorporated, I sincerely apologize for the unauthorized and frankly Asinine methods of my colleges here. They really should know better,” She offered, glaring back at the group as she spoke before turning back to her “I assure you the company will comp any and all repairs required from this incident.”

‘They damn well better.’

“Just what is this all this about?” Tifa asked.

“Well, we recently learned that a very rare and rather unique materia somehow made its way into your possession within the last six months. A materia that may prove absolutely vital in ensuring the success of our mission” the woman with fabulous hair explained.

'Wait she doesn’t mean-'

“It is a very rare combination materia; one that’s bridged the gap between types and abilities. Such a feat is a very difficult thing to achieve for even just two abilities, let alone the several we believe this one might have the potential for. Not even our current level of materia fusion can produce them predictably or with any kind of frequency.”

‘Oh no...’

“Among other notable additions, this one managed to create a particularly unique melding of both the Enemy Skill and Mime abilities; creating what we theorize is a new method of duplicating and imitating abilities unlike either base skill, perhaps even absorbing power in the process. It’s this feature we’re so intent on utilizing.”

‘Aw crap…’

“Materia that bridge types tend to have a mixture of the types’ colors in a kind of swirling pattern, opposed to a mere blending of colors. This one in particular appears to of had a primary base of Yellow Command materia with swirls of either blue or-“

“Yeah, I know the one you’re talking about… it’s just, well… you see…” Tifa interrupted, sucking her lips in for a moment as she searched for the words “Um… I uh, I kind of…”

-A Few Months Earlier-

“Why the hell won’t it fit!? The other ones shrunk into the slots just fine! Why is this one bigger!?”

“Some Materia are just different Tif, this one definitely is. We can just get you an adjustable slot for it later. Stop freaking out.”

“Well… maybe if I just hold it real tight”

"I don’t think that’s such a good-"

*CRUNCH*

“…”

‘SHIT!’

“You… You broke it!?” the horned agent stared at her in disbelief.

“I didn’t mean to!”

“Lady even if you are freakishly strong enough to crush a materia, you wouldn’t have an arm anymore if you did” Rina snarked from behind the woman. The well coiffed Turk was about to respond when Sugarcoat strode forward and jabbed Tifa’s hand with something.

“OW! What the fuck!?”

“Sugarcoat!”

“...She's absorbed it, permanently it seems too; we may not be able to extract it” she stated after dropping the needle into a small tube of solution “The ‘internal slot’ is a very advanced technique; you shouldn’t try it if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

‘It’s a damn good thing this bitch is cute or someone would have stabbed her in the face with an ice pick long ago’ Tifa scowled at the girl while grabbing a napkin for the new hole in her hand.

“Okay!” The purple haired Turk rose quickly, waving them at to the door “All of you! Out!”

They quickly complied with only Rude faltering a bit upon reaching the door and glancing back at Tifa, or rather at the sunglasses perched atop her head.

“You’re not getting them back.”

The bald man frowned, flipping open a spare pair from his coat pocket and exiting with an annoyed grunt.

The unicorn gave a heavy sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. She let her hand drop to look up upset but suddenly she seemed to almost swallow the frustration, perking back up with a forced smile before taking out her phone.

“…Yes Hello Ma’am… Yes we found her Ma’am but there have been some complications… Yes with that but also with the team… Well, you see they took it upon themselves to-”

While the senior Turk reported to her superior Tifa looked down at the tiny wound, the bleeding had already started to slow but that wasn’t what was concerning her. The Rina girl was right; when a materia breaks the result is often quite explosive. She absorbed it though and never even noticed; and she certainly hadn’t used any magic or special abilities without actual materia.

‘Then again she said it was primarily a command materia, and I think the other color was blue meaning support… both usually need a deliberate attempt or are just passive effects’ she mused, those would certainly be easy to overlook ‘But Enemy Skill mixed with Mime huh? That’s not too bad actually.’

“Yes Ma’am, I understand… Of course, I’ll report when there are any new developments” Tifa watched the Turk hang up and sit down again “So it seems we have a new direction to take here Ms. Lockhart, one that now requires your cooperation.”

“I don’t suppose I have any choice in this, do I Miss…?”

“Oh where are my manners?! I’m Rarity, Rarity Belle.” she answered, shaking the human’s uninjured hand “And while I would so like to say you do, I’m afraid this has become a matter of national security. As much as I deplore the use of such tactics they would virtually freeze your accounts, relieve you of your employment, seize your apartment, probably threaten deportation and do I really need to continue this distasteful list Darling?”

“You really don’t” Tifa sighed, head thumping down on the table.

“You will of course be compensated for your cooperation and we will be able to rectify the… inconsistencies in your citizenship” she confirmed “We wouldn’t force you to comply and leave you out in the cold. In fact I dare say your situation will improve quite a bit afterward. ”

“Can I at least know what I’m being forced to do?” her words muffled against the wood.

“Yes of course dear,” Rarity answered warmly “We’re going to save the world.”

Tifa’s head shot up from the table.

‘Say what now?’

A blue and pink haired Turk gave the smallest of sighs after the call ended, a mildly irritated expression on her otherwise collected appearance.

"Hmmmm… Well this certainly complicates matters" she addressed the woman on the screen above the phone.

"Perhaps, but not to a degree we can't handle," the alicorn replied, absently looking out the tinted window as the limo passed through the city "As it was, the materia was merely a failsafe; the primary plan is still our best option.”

“Should we bring her in for testing then?” the agent asked, the president looking pensive for a moment before finally responding.

“I don’t think so, not yet… if what Agent Belle said is accurate then this Lockhart may in fact prove to be a potent ally after all” Celestia decided “Integrate her into the effort and make use of her abilities, at least until more develops.”

“Are we to tell her about-“

“No.” she abruptly cut the Turk off, a focused intensity in the president’s eyes as she continued staring out at her city “No, she doesn’t need to know. Until the time comes the fewer that know, the better.”

“She’s almost certainly started asking questions already; she may be more cooperative if she knows what she’s doing” Sweetie Drops offereded.

“By all means Agent Sweetie Drops, have your Turks explain what she’ll be doing as you’ve already instructed,” Celestia answered more understandingly “Just don’t tell them why. We don’t need this getting out and spreading confusion or panic. I'm afraid the masses wouldn’t understand until it’s already upon them.”

“Very well Ma’am, of course” Sweetie Drops acquiesced before shifting the discussion to another pressing matter.

“Now what are your orders regarding AVALANCHE?”

Author's Note

And there's Chapter one! Yay!

For those that don't know, the 'Tsuru' bit is actually what they say in the original Japanese of Advent Children instead of 'Dilly Dally Shilly Shally'- It's the japanese onomatopoeia for 'dragging' and can be used to point out when someone's dragging their feet. Sorry for any that looked at it wondering just what the hell I was writing about lol.

So quick question readers; Music or No Music? Some authors, including myself in my other story, often provide links to songs to accent the scene; be it for action, suspense, comedy or what have you. In this story I believe it would be mostly limited to action unless truly called for. But let me know what your opinion is; I'm personally on the fence as to whether it would add emphasis or distract from immersion.

As Always readers; Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed the chapter and I hope to see you for the next! Have a good one!

Chapter 2: My First Day

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)

Metal Knuckle- Fire, Ice ---- Upgraded Bangle - Time + Added Effect

Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn

Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Mythril Armlet- Barrier, Lightning

Other: Enchanted, Reinforced (and Perfectly tailored) Suit

Sunny Flare: Human

Shuriken- Afflict + Added Effect --- Mythril Armlet- Lightning + Water + Elemental

Other: Enchanted, Reinforced Suit

“So there’s Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity and Magic?”

Tifa walked through the Wall Market with Rarity and Sunny Flare as the morning lights over the slums shifted to their afternoon settings. It had been two days since the incident in her apartment, Rarity having thought it’d be best not to start immediately after the confrontation. For one it gave Tifa a chance to make sure that strangers weren’t in her apartment alone again as they fixed her windows, and it also gave her sometime to recoup and get used to her new, forced employment.

“Yes, that is correct dear” The horned woman answered.

“And we have to find these Elements?” Tifa continued.

“Regrettably, the true elements themselves have been lost for nearly a millennia” Rarity clarified “But! There are some… ‘stand-ins’ that should also serve our purposes.”

“Stand-ins?”

“Huge materia attuned to each of the Harmony Stream’s currents of the respective elements” Rarity explained matter-of-factly “Along with suitable wielders for each of the materia, we should be able to use them to largely the same effect as the originals.”

“So we have to find six huge materia And six people to use them? I’m guessing these six can’t be just anyone either” Tifa surmised.

“You guess right dear. Though we only have to find five of the materia; Shinra already has a huge materia that we believe has proven a suitable substitute for the Element of Magic” Rarity confirmed.

“And where do I fit in all of this exactly?” Tifa inquired further, the rookie Turk finally speaking up in response.

“You’re a failsafe; you’re here in case we screw up and can’t find everything” she said bluntly, glancing at her through a black eye. While her face wasn’t the swollen mass it was after the chair broke against it, she was still left with a pretty good shiner; even after the healing spells.

“Well dear, to put it a bit more thoroughly… we had hoped to be able to use the materia, the one now within you, to… well, to ‘fudge the details’ as it were” Rarity tried to find the right words “In case we couldn’t find all the materia or suitable wielders we planned to use your materia to imitate any missing piece and hope for the best. As you’re not a mere materia though, you could consider yourself a kind of reserve team rather than a failsafe.”

“Well if I’m just a back-up then why do I have to go with you guys and be part of this whole investigation and searching thing?” the buxom fighter asked “Why not just set me up in the tower and keep me safe there until I’m needed?”

“Because Shinra is a business” Sunny stated “It’s inefficient to waste talented assets when they could be best served helping with the cause.”

“I’m an Asset now?” she didn’t like the sound of that one bit.

“You really must work on your delivery Agent Flare” Rarity grumbled to the girl “You’re still a living being darling, but she is correct; it would be a waste to lock you away when your abilities make you so well suited for the kind of challenges ahead of us. That you were able to hold off Rina and Rude is testimony enough to that, even if they were only trying to incapacitate you. Think of yourself as more of an involuntary contractor; you don’t represent Shinra, but you do still work for us.”

“So I have to help because I’m just so damn good?” she snarked “You can’t tell me there aren’t far more qualified combatants at Shinra. Can’t you just get a platoon of SOLDIER on this? You’d think ‘saving the world’ would be on their to-do list already.”

“Much of SOLDIER IS working on this darling, or preparing for if it all goes kerfuffle. Our part is only one of a larger whole after all; a very significant and important part yes, but that’s why it requires so much more delicate maneuvering. We don’t want to incite panic or have word of these sources of power fall into the wrong hands after all. We’re also not the only team assigned to this particular task either” the senior Turk deliberated “There’s also the fact that it’s very possible any opportunities to use your materia’s abilities will only be available as they happen. I’ve seen it myself, when things simply can’t come together in time if they aren’t together already.”

“…sounds like just a lot of bureaucracy to me” Tifa muttered, to which the younger Turk give a light huff in response.

“We’ve been told to bring you with, so we’re bringing you with” Sunny stated plainly and not a little irritated “It’s not like you’re not being compensated.”

“Fine, whatever” Tifa relented as they came up to a large and very flashy building with a pair of Shinra troopers talking with the door guard “Though you still haven’t-”

“I'm afraid the rest will have to wait,” Rarity interrupted as they approached the main doors “Time to go to work.”

“Here? But this is Corneo’s place!” Tifa exclaimed, feeling grimy just saying the Don’s name “You can’t tell me this guy is one of the wielders!”

“Oh heavens forbid! May the Stream help us all if that were true!” Rarity gasped.

“Pfft yeah, I’d resign right here if that were the case” Flare added “Still, the slime ball has info and the reports say he’s been in contact with AVALANCHE sympathizers; we may be racing to the first materia already.”

“Agent Rarity” one of the troopers addressed them “the Don has agreed to see us but insists we disarm.”

“Well that is simply not going to happen” she countered before striding up to the door guard herself “You will remind Mr. Corneo of section 12- article 14 of Midgar security statutes and kindly inform the Don that despite the times Shinra has overlooked his questionable business practices in favor of region stability, it does not infer any authority over us and he should consider that we haven’t simply arrested him for conspiracy as a sign of good faith.”

The guard bristled under the shorter woman’s tone but returned inside to inform his boss all the same. Tifa stood by, impressed by the unicorn; even after seeing her tear into the other Turks she still got the impression of her being rather soft. She’d have to stop thinking like that if she didn’t want the Turk to get the better of her next time.

“The Don will see you now” the guard returned and led them through the gaudy estate. They passed a kind of office Tifa recognized from the game; this is where he’d line up girls to choose his favorite. They moved past the long desk to a pair of massive doors with the don’s own likeness carved into them. The height alone necessitated the use of automated openers rigged to the tops.

“Overcompensating much?” Tifa muttered “he must be tiny…”

Sunny and the troopers found themselves struggling to suppress chuckles while even the proper Rarity failed to hide a snicker. They all quickly righted as the doors opened, revealing a pudgy sack of grease with tiny wings lounging on a bed.

“Well well well, the latest fox in my hunting grounds,” the balding pegasus cooed “I told you I’d get you into my little love palace someday, didn’t I Tifa?”

The brunette woman’s skin crawled as his eyes danced hungrily over her body; she was now really wishing she wore more covering clothes today. Rarity quickly stepped forward to block the don’s view.

“Miss Lockhart is a member of our investigation Mr. Corneo, she’s to be treated with the same respect as the rest of us.”

“Oh don’t get jealous now, you still look equally delicious my little tart” Tifa saw Rarity’s shoulders tense as he leered at her “The dessert to Tifa’s meaty entrée.”

“I don’t think you understand the seriousness of the accusations levied against you ‘Don’” Rarity continued “That title that so impresses your little band of ruffians will not save you from the consequences of consorting with known terrorists.”

The Don’s face actually managed to reach a modicum of seriousness at Rarity’s threat. It was short lived however as a feigned ignorance took its place.

“Terrorists?! Why I have no idea what you mean! I would never consort with anyone set against our city’s most generous benefactors” he lied easily, the newer Turk stepping forward in response.

“We have some very damning evidence of multiple meetings between you and several flagged individuals ‘Don’” Sunny tossed a folder of photos and eye witness reports on the bed. Concern peeked through again as he sifted through the folders contents, Rarity gaining a smirk of her own.

“Now it would be a terrible shame if you broke your record of cooperation and made this city’s benefactors generously give you a new home” she delivered smugly.

“The kind with metal walls and barred windows if you’re too dense to catch on” Sunny continued for the ivory skinned woman “but if you start talking…”

The greasy lecher scowled at the Turks before looking back at the pictures.

“Yes… Yes now I believe I do remember meetings with some of these painfully serious sorts” he finally relented “But I assure you I had no idea they were AVALANCHE.”

“Funny…” Agent Flare cocked her brow “None of us said they were AVALANCHE.”

“Oh uh… Well-um-I mean who else could they be?! Are there other groups foolishly opposing Shinra?! I certainly haven’t heard of any! They’d have to be mad! Heh heh…” he sputtered rapidly.

“What did they want?” Rarity quickly cut in, not caring for any excuses.

“What everybody wants from me that’s not in my pants; Information” he delivered, failure of a suave smile on his lips “I came across some dated but still apparently profitable material about some dusty, old artifact...” he trailed off as five sets of eye’s continued to look at him expectantly.

“…Well?” one of the troopers finally broke the silence.

“Well what?” he mocked “I told you this was profitable information. I wouldn’t be a very good businessman if I let it go for nothing!”

“Seriously?!” Sunny snapped “You actually have the balls to try and charge us!? You’ll be lucky if we decide not to arrest your ass and leave it in a cell for the next twelve lifetimes! Assuming you’re not tried for Treason first!”

“We are here asking for cooperation we could easily force Mr. Corneo” Rarity threatened “The only reason the company has turned a blind eye to your little ‘enterprises’ down here is that fact that you have offered an odd semblance of peace to the area. But some infractions simply cannot be ignored.”

He studied the group pensively, determining the validity of the threats before finally relenting.

“But of course, I would be more than happy to assist agents of the company in any way possible…” he leaned back against the elaborate head board, arms spread wide along its fixtures. His left hand rested atop a blue ball lamp as he spoke again “it’s just too bad they never showed up.”

‘Oh crap!’ Tifa’s memory sparked. She tried to dash forward as the others stood confused.

The lamp lever swung down triggering the floor to fall out beneath them and even for all her strength, Tifa couldn’t push off something that wasn’t there. The others fell as she just barely snagged the edge of the trap door, fingers screaming as they struggled to keep hold of the wood. The don slipped off the side of the bed and stood over the hole.

“A real shame to lose such a prize, but oh well” he sighed, foot coming to hover ominously over her hand “Do you remember the first thing you said to me, you top heavy tramp? I think it’d be quite appropriate for this…”

The sandaled foot began pressing into the straining digits.

“So little Lockhart, 'you think you can do me a solid? And FUCK OFF?!'”

He kicked out and sent her plummeting into the dark, the obscenities echoing back up music to his ears.

Foul water engulfed her, invading Tifa's senses as she tried to keep her mouth closed and figure out which way was up. She breached the surface, the light barely enough to even see the sludge but ambient enough to show that she was slowly headed toward a drop.

She didn’t bother fighting the weak current and merely swam to reach the side, her fingers finding easy purchase long before the drop. She clawed her way out of the stream of filthy water and slumped against the sewer wall for a moment to catch her breath. She immediately regretted the first deep inhale, the smell so pungent you could actually taste it.

One lost breakfast later she was up and following the current, a small flame held above her palm for light. She had to be rather particular about her materia choices with her limited slots and was now glad she made the right call on the fire. She pondered if Shinra would ante up for some better equipment for her now that she was helping them; no doubt they kept the Turks well equipped.

She hopped down the drop that was a lot shorter than she thought and was immediately attacked; a terrier sized crab flying at her face. A single punch and the mutant flew back, shattered bits of shell raining in its wake. More splashed toward her from below the stream a moment after, earning a heavy sigh and eye roll from the buxom fighter.

A sharp gesture and a snap of the fingers later, the small group lay frozen in great chucks of ice along the surface. She ignored the weakly snapping claws and continued on, the first crab hastily hobbling its way back into the muck as she passed.

A cacophony of echoing shots rang out ahead, quickly sending the woman sprinting toward the source. She soon came upon a large battle, the four Shinra employees on a grate over the sludge and surrounded by grotesque bipedal turtles and slimy blobs inching towards them. One trooper unleashed another burst into one of the slime creatures, the rounds sinking harmlessly in to its gelatinous body. The turquoise turk shoved him aside, as sparks began to dance around her fingers.

“They’re flans idiot!” she snapped “You have to use magic!”

An arc of lightning flew from the Turk’s hand, detonating the blob before one of the turtles lunged at her. The creature’s trident soared at her face only to veer off course as a shot rang out next to her head, the monster’s head snapping back as it fell to the ground. Sunny flinched way from the rapport of senior Turk’s unusual gunblade, holding her ear as more of the creatures moved in.

Tifa sped forward, turning the flames above her hand into a fully-fledged fireball before it sailed toward the attackers. Half of the survivors scrambled in retreat as the rest turned to the new threat, one of the larger mutants striking out at the female. She easily sidestepped the trident, snapping the shaft with a swift kick before redirecting the strike.

The turtle monster seemed confident in the strength of its shell, not even trying to avoid the kick as it struck. As such, it then looked rather surprised as it found the blow hurling it back against its allies. The others slowly regained themselves as to see their clan mate’s limbs falling flaccid, countless cracks spider webbing out from the massive dent now across the surface of its protective covering.

Their beady eyes bulged at the fighter raising her fists up, ready to continue. They wearily stood their ground until a shriek escaped one warrior taking up the rear, a bright blue streak of light passing straight through its shell. They rounded on the ivory skinned Turk, her weapon glowing brightly to match her horn.

They took just a single glance between the two before immediately scooping up their wounded and retreating to the water, their best defenses proven useless against the pair’s abilities. It didn’t take long for the united group to mop up the remaining flans, the goopy abominations falling easy prey to their combined magics.

“Sorry we weren’t able to wait for you darling, as you saw we found ourselves a tad preoccupied” Rarity apologized “Very glad you made it down without injury though.”

“Yeah…” Sunny added slightly begrudgingly, a finger probing at her ear “Nice timing.”

“Oh terribly sorry about that Sunny dear” Rarity gave “but I figured I bit of ringing in the ears was better than a trident in the face after all.”

“No it’s fine, don’t worry about it” Sunny admitted before looking back to the troopers “You two alright?”

“We’re good, we’ve been on the sewer sweeps before” one answered, a small smile beneath his helmet as he slapped the other trooper on the back “Though it seems Norman here forgot some of the basics.”

“Yeah yeah, I screwed up” the other grumbled “Not exactly standard procedure here though.”

“Sewer Sweeps?” Tifa inquired before the turquoise agent elaborated.

“Every few months Shinra sends squads through the sewers to keep the monster population under control and escort maintenance teams to fix any problems.”

“So you know how we can get out of here then” Tifa shot to the pair.

“Not this section exactly but most of the city’s sewers follow the same configurations” Norman admitted “So we really shouldn’t be too far from an exit; if we just keep going we'll hit one eventually.”

“Alright…” Tifa started as they began walking “Now that we have a moment, maybe we can get back to what I was asking before-”

“Here we go…” Sunny muttered, earning a disgruntled glance from the fighter.

“I don’t think it’s unreasonable to want to know just what we’re trying to find all this stuff for.”

“As I’ve said several times Miss Lockhart; We’re trying to save the world” Rarity repeated.

“Yeah, I got that part. But from What?”

“I am terribly sorry Miss Lockhart but it has been deemed prudent to maintain a certain level confidentiality in-” Rarity began the practiced response before the younger Turk cut in.

“We don’t know” Sunny stated bluntly “The director and President have been pretty keen to keep it that way until ‘the right time’ too. There, you now officially know just about as much as we do.”

“They’re not even telling you guys?” Tifa stared at the pair, concern deepening on her face.

‘Well this whole thing just got significantly more shady…’ she added mentally, though Rarity still seemed to pick up on the context.

“I am willing to admit that it is a wee bit… concerning yes, but one doesn’t have to spend long in the upper levels of the company to learn just how dangerous even simple knowledge can be” she admitted “Just look at materia for example; half the reason they allow people to use magic is by imparting the knowledge to do so; some materia are forbidden just because most minds simply cannot withstand the knowledge within.”

“I always thought it was weird how such dangerous things can come from energies connected to the Harmony stream” one of the troopers replied.

“Harmony doesn’t necessarily mean peaceful” Sunny stated “true it usually suggests as much, but just like the musical term it can be happy, sad, peaceful, violent, angry or any number of things.”

“Is that an exit?” Tifa interrupted, pointing to the small shaft of light a ways ahead.

“Yeah I think so, not sure where we’ll end up but it should at least be on the street level again” Norman confirmed.

“I don’t understand what Corneo was hoping to accomplish with this other than ruining our clothes” the first trooper mused “It’s not like there’s anything down here that-”

The trooper suddenly thrown into air before slamming into the tunnel's wall, hurled by a giant fist crashing through the debris of a side passage as a thunderous roar filled the sewers.

A massive… THING barreled into the open space, chained arms and clawed tail thrashing about. The four still standing retreated from the swinging limbs as the abomination rounded on them, its hooves cracking the stone as it stomped forward and barred their escape.

Norman opened fire as he strafed toward his fallen compatriot, quickly drawing the beast’s attention. He blanched under his helmet as the horned monstrosity’s arm bore down upon him, only narrowly missing as something tackled him from the side.

The trooper looked up and found his vision almost entirely blocked by dirty white cloth, even when the woman on top of him was already arm’s length from the ground. Several deeper shots rang out beyond her as the two Turks drew the creature’s attention back to them.

“SURGING IT!” Sunny shouted, a geyser of the foul water beneath the grating shooting up into the beast and knocked it off balance. Before it could recover a line of freezing spikes streaked out from Rarity, the materia glowing brightly on her unique weapon as the geyser froze the monster in place.

The hold proved fleeting however as with a roar it quickly broke free, already charging the agents when a third woman jumped between them with fists ablaze. Torrents of flame crashed against the charger, sending it reeling back screaming.

“It’s weak to fire!” Tifa shouted back during the brief reprieve.

“Ummm… hehe, well…” Sunny began, sheepishness poorly hidden behind the pair’s unsure smiles.

“I’m the only one here with it aren’t I?”

The beast didn’t allow an answer as it lunged at them again, focusing on the fire bringer to snuff out the source of the flames. Ducking under the punch she leapt at its face still trailing fire, just to have its giant tongue lash out at her.

“Eww!” Tifa moaned, firing the flames out to rocket her away from the slimy whip. The monster scrambled back flailing panicked at the flames once again washing across his face. She landed back among the Turks still unleashing their ranged attacks at their opponent, their continuous assault finally showing a cumulative effect. Rarity began charging the shots as before, her horn further illuminating the cave as streaks of light pierced the beast again and again.

Another, pained roar assaulted the group before a loud snorting sounded above the echoes.

“How uncouth…” Rarity criticized the monster’s mighty intake. Offence soon tripled as the collected phlegm suddenly drenched them, a disproportionately large glob completely covering the trio “By the Stream, it’s EVERYWHERE! This is simply the WORST POSSIBLE THING!”

Disgusting as it was, Sunny quickly realized the true threat of the mucus, as every effort movement now felt like trudging through molasses. She quickly saw the others struggling to move at more than a snail’s pace.

“We’ve been SLOWED!” she called, even her words coming out at a drawl.

The beast smiled before bounding forward on all fours, tongue lolling as it leapt with a fist raised. It's smile abruptly fell to a scowl as the jiggly food flared brightly, the gooey filth shattering off her in a blaze of light. Tifa struck out against the mammoth strike with a fist of her own, an ear rending crack singing through the tunnels when they met.

The abomination reeled back clutching its broken fingers, snarling at the tiny food before trying to pound it flat. Tifa flipped over the arm to land a heavy sweep kick to its jaw, pulverizing stone as the beast’s head drove straight into the tunnel’s wall. Now bereft of one of its horns it, it ripped itself from the reinforced supports to see its meal now gathering blinding flames all around itself.

It turned to retreat to only receive a grenade detonating beside its head, the trooper now firing after his thrown explosive.

“PARALYZING!” Sunny informed them with another shout before sparks danced across the creature, its limbs going sluggish as they grew numb to the world. Another point of light lanced through the beast’s leg, finally breaking its balance and sending it right into the martial artist’s waiting strike.

'Where’s the fanfare when you need it?' Tifa gave a small smile as she delivered the full force straight with as much fire as her reserves would allow. The beast soared back through the sewers, right past their exit and crashing through the metal grates into the current below.

Tifa stood straight, humming the little tune since the world wouldn’t do it for her. She looked back to see the pair slowly liberating themselves from the unpleasantness clinging to them as the trooper dragged his compatriot over. A quick esuna later and Rarity was kneeling over the fallen grunt. She pulled a small bundle of fiery feathers from her coat, closing her eyes and illuminating her horn as she scattered them across him.

Tifa and Sunny waited as the senior Turk alternated between the item casting and her restore materia. Unlike the games, Phoenix Downs weren’t a sure thing here. Healing in general could already be pretty hit and miss with grievous wounds, and while it could still bring some back from far further gone than back on Earth… others weren’t so lucky. Dead was still dead; even in the games Aerith proved that.

The glow receded but the trooper remained motionless. The pair let their shoulders slump but then Rarity spoke up, her ear against the trooper’s chest.

“He’s still with us, but we do need to get him proper care quickly if we want him to stay that way” the other grunt quickly hefted his friend at her words and made way for the ladder. The senior Turk nodded at he looked back to them “Take him up first and get him to a hospital, we can take care of everything else on our own.”

He nodded back to the ladies and began trudging up. They waited below at the base of the rusted ladder, ready in case the soldier's grip slipped. Just as he reached the top and began opening the hatch Sunny spoke up, scowling upward.

“I swear I’m gonna put a bullet in that fat fuck,” she growled “right in his little pecker…”

“Even at point blank that’ll be quite the shot” Tifa quipped, earning a tired chuckle from the Turks before the Trooper called down.

“It’s clear! We’re in sector five near the border; it shouldn’t take too long to make it back to Corneo’s!”

“Thank you Darling, now just go get him-” Rarity’s words were cut short as the grating behind them exploded upward, an enraged shriek ringing out. Beady eyes rounded on the pair as the burnt and bleeding abomination gained a sickly glow. Only half out of the demolished waterway the monster bellowed a guttural scream, a tingling wave of air washing over them as it surged through the sewers and beyond.

“What the hell?!” Sunny exclaimed “It knows Magic?!”

A faint rumbling met the trio’s ears, soon growing to the unmistakable roar of rushing water. The beast actually laughed as the torrent appeared, swirling and racing towards all of them from behind the creature. The tidal wave of sewage crashed into the monster first, instantly pulling him from sight as it passed. With it moving far too fast to even attempt to escape, Tifa had but a single though before it was upon them…

‘Aw shit...’

Corneo lounged smugly in his bed, nibbling on a plate of strawberries as he watched the young women on his TV bounce around in short shorts. He did so love girls volley ball; the hot pants, the jumping and jiggling, and all those deliciously suggestive grunts. He dragged a hand down his flabby chest until he found his lip curling.

He let out a disgusted snort; as much as he loved his little trap, he still lamented the odors that always managed to creep though despite his best efforts. He stood to spray yet another misting of air freshener when he thought her heard a commotion from downstairs.

“I swear to the stream if another one of you morons broke one of my vases I’ll-” he blanched as a burst of gunfire rang out closer. He froze; hearing shouts and yells among shattering furniture and dwindling weapons fire.

“No, no it couldn’t be! How could they have survived my sweet little Aps?!” he whimpered panicked before a loud bang hit his bedroom doors, a weak groan heard as something slid down against them. He scrambled back onto the bed and flattened himself against the headboard just before the doors flew off their hinges and a fresh wave of stink assaulted his nose.

A woman covered head to toe in filth stood in the opening, the fury of the sun itself in her eyes as she stalked forward. The terrified Corneo slammed the lamp down for the trap, only to have the woman stride straight across the hole on the massive doors now easily bridging the gap.

The lecher’s eyes bugged as he dove at this nightstand, fumbling with the drawers before a steel grip latched onto his throat. Powered plaster filled the foul smelling air as he felt himself slammed into the wall, his stubby legs dangling as he was held aloft by a single hand. He stopped dead as a fist struck an inch from his head, denting the reinforced metal behind the plaster as if it were tinfoil.

“So Don…” he stared terrified into the furious, manic smile of the buxom woman holding him. He could feel a warm wetness trailing down his leg as she spoke,

“Ya Think you could do me a Solid?”

Tifa plodded through the dimly lit hallway, the uncomfortable squelching of her boots sounding with every step. They hosed themselves off only after… ‘apprehending’ Corneo, having agreed to wait as to drag as much through the prick's estate as they could.

‘He should still be able to talk with some missing teeth and a swollen face right?’ she mused.

They were not gentle. Rarity had managed to keep Sunny from what she called ‘Degloving his Berries’, but the younger Turk still got in a really good kick… it might take the doctors a while to find where that dislocated orb ended up. Even after everything the he put them through in the sewers, Tifa still actually felt a little bad about that one.

Only a little though… maybe.

“TIFA!” the door across the hall flew open, its occupant immediately slamming a hand over her nose “Um… so… mmnn… so how was your first day?”

Tifa looked over to the pink woman who was trying to hold her breath and keep smiling.

“Shitty” was all she said as she lumbered into the apartment, not even bothering to strip out of any of her ruined clothes save her boots before stepping into the warm shower. She stood letting the hot embrace of the water course over her, washing away the day as she tried to relax.

‘Today could have ended a lot worse’ she thought tiredly ‘we nearly lost somebody… I nearly lost myself.’

She didn’t admit it to the Turks at the time but she had nearly drowned in the beast’s final attack, and was a little disturbed by just how undisturbed she was about it at the time. But now that she had time to actually think about it… she quickly shook the thoughts away, burying them as she grabbed the soap, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, and the little gift set of mini scrubs and other fancy stuff and got to work.

After several latherings and lots of scrubbing her stomach finally gave a lurching growl, forcing her to leave the comforting warmth and cleanliness of the shower. She glanced at the dripping, tried up trash bag of her clothes and decided she'd deal with it later. She threw on some pjs and headed back toward her living room when she heard someone moving around on the other side of the door.

‘Damn it, they said they wouldn’t bother me for at least a few days’ she thought before opening the door, about to tell the suited pricks to fuck off. Instead she found a mane of green hair swaying about as it emptied the take out bags marked with the logo of the Wutai restaurant on the corner.

“~Comfort fooooood~” Zest sung as she held up a couple boxes “~I got your faaavorite~”

Tifa smiled tiredly as some of the stress drained from her shoulders at just the sight.

‘How’d I manage to just stumble into such a good friendship?'

'Oh! You should tell her that- Tell her she’s a good friend. And don’t puss out like you always-’

“Thanks Zest.”

‘God fucking damnit Tifa…’

“Any time girl” Zest winked at her with a smile before sitting down, her music faintly heard from the headphones round her neck “So now that you’ve had your hour in the shower, how was your first day?”

Tifa sighed before taking a seat and grabbing one of the to-go boxes, eating a little before getting into the details. She didn’t much enjoy reliving the day but she did have to admit it had a kind of detoxing effect. Zest was also a pretty damn good listener, Tifa guessed it had something to do with the fact that listening was half her life when it came to music.

“You got to beat up Corneo?!” Zest yelled “You lucky bitch! How could that ever be a shitty day?!”

“Um, with virtually everything else that happened before that?”

“Well yeah okay, but still… you got to kick the Don’s ass! You can’t say that didn’t make the day at least a little worth it!” Zest laughed.

“Well… maybe a little” Tifa admitted with a small chuckle.

“Though hopefully his arrest won’t cause some kind of power vacuum” Zest added a bit uneasy, to which Tifa shook her head.

“The Turks told me they’d recommend more security to try and prevent that…” Tifa offered “Maybe they’ll see the city below the main plate needs a little more attention than the one on top…”

“Fat chance…” Zest mutterd “You need an esuna after being down in the sewers?”

“No I’m okay, thanks. Rarity already cast it on all of us after Sunny cast cleansing” the brunette answered before taking another bite and trying to enjoy the quiet moment, but having trouble not dwelling on the fact they’d be back within just a few days to pick her up again.

“So did you learn anything by chance?” Tifa snapped out of her daze at Lemon’s question “Y’know, with your enemy skill?”

The brunette blinked, having completely forgotten about the actual purpose of the materia outside of the ‘fail safe’ they wanted it for. Now that she actually thought about it, she could feel the little tingling of added knowledge materia gave at first.

Zest jumped as the buxom woman’s head abruptly met the table, making everything atop it jump with her.

“Um, Tif?” Zest asked hesitantly as her friend only groaned meekly toward the floor.

“Sewer Tsunami…”

“…What?”

“Sewer Tsunami!” she practically shouted “The very first ability I get and it just had to be summoning a literal tidal wave of shit that also hits me!”

Zest blinked a few times, processing what she just heard. A blush rose in her cheeks as she pulled her lips tight, small tears welling as she struggled to control herself.

“Pfffffffffff-”

“Go ahead” Tifa sighed, head still resting on the table.

“BA-HAHAHAHA!” Zest burst out “OH that is just too fitting!”

Tifa’s head snapped up, looking hurt as her supposed friend continued to laugh at her.

“Oh don’t look at me like that! I didn’t mean for you!” Zest argued between bouts of laughter “I mean for this whole thing! One day you’re just serving your tables and the next thing you know a wave a crap hits you and pulls you into this shitty situation.”

“Well, when you put it that way…” Tifa grumbled.

“Hey look at the bright side, at least when this is all over you have a perfect way of showing them just how much you appreciate it” the music lover grinned at her, it only growing more mischievous when her next thought struck her “And just think if you learn typhoon or tornado to go with it.”

“Let ‘em deal with the ‘shit-storm’ they brought upon themselves?”

“Literally.”

The pair burst out laughing, Tifa finally relaxing fully.

‘Ok, maybe all this will be worth it after all.’

“She matched the strength of such a creature?”

“According to agent Flare’s report, she actually surpassed it by a decent margin Madam President” Agent Sweetie Drops read “True her strength didn’t completely out class it, at least based on what she observed; but it would seem there’s even more to this woman than we suspected…”

Celestia continued looking through the paperwork, pausing only to glance over the latest memo at the director's unsaid thought.

“How many times must I repeat that you are free to speak your mind in my presence Miss Drops?”

“Well... perhaps it would be prudent to fully assess her abilities and perhaps prepare some sort of containment-”

“She is not one of the Professor’s experiments Agent Drops” the president stated sharply.

“No, of course not ma’am; I did to mean to suggest-” the Turk leader paused to regather herself “I simply meant we should know the full extent of her abilities; to not only see if she can indeed serve the purpose we may need but-”

“Yes I know…” Celestia sighed, already regretting snapping. She knew Agent Sweetie Drops wasn't too much happier with the possibilities than she was. Setting down her paperwork, the Shinra leader stood up and strode to the window to look over her city. Unless they pulled off a miracle, if things didn’t go just right… It was regrettable yes, but it would be for the greater good.

“We need to know for when her sacrifice might be needed…”

Author's Note

So I didn't see any answers if you all would like music in the story or not- It would probably just be something like just little blurbs of [Optional Music] for certain scenes but let me know down in the comments what you think... If you feel so inclined.

But YAY! Finally a second chapter! Sorry about the wait readers. Admittedly I'm not entirely satisfied with how this chapter turned out, I don't hate it by any means yet it's still not as much as I was hoping of myself... BUT thankfully I think my writers block is starting to dissolve. I AM looking forward to the next chapter quite a bit though so I know it'll be good (We get to see a little of another of the Mane 6's roles in the story :raritywink: )- so stay tuned readers!

But until then, as always: thanks for reading and hope to see you for the next chapter! Have a good one!

Oh and P.S. - Don't look up pictures of degloving, seriously- just don't. It's gross.

Chapter 3: Tests and Terrorists

To returning readers- There have been some notable but still mostly minor changes to the earlier chapters- Tifa’s displacer is more obviously not ‘The Merchant’, Sunny Flare’s Weapon has been changed to a Shuriken like Cissnei's, and certain aspects of Tifa’s absorbed materia have changed (Notably that while merged materia aren’t terribly rare, combination one’s like hers are, and that's it).

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)

Metal Knuckle- Fire, Ice --- Upgraded Bangle - Time + Added Effect

Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn

Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice --- Mythril Armlet- Barrier, Lightning

Other: Enchanted, Reinforced (and Perfectly tailored) Suit

Half the group flinched back when the tentacle backed hound hit the window, dissolving back into pixelated particles.

“~She’s gonna break your recooord~”

“Oh shut up” Sunny grumbled at Rina’s teasing, though not taking her eyes off the show like the others.

Two more canine shaped holograms stuttered into sight in the simulated slums before a spark of mako flashed to give them substance. The new hounds rushed to join the others supporting the squad of virtual Troopers bearing down on the test’s buxom participant.

“Keep the arm up…” the group’s bald member muttered just before the butt of a trooper’s rifle crashed across the fighter’s face.

“Three targets dealt with only to drop it on the forth,” Sugarcoat added “she has sloppy focus.”

Tifa snarled, snapping back and turning the recovery into a brutal back hand. Rina let out a low whistle as the offending trooper flew across the area and crashed straight through one of the virtual scrap metal shacks.

“Geez, I’d hate to see this chick’s limit…”

“If she’s keeps going we just might” Rarity countered as they watched Tifa sprint toward the last two of three troopers, the third currently held off the ground before her to shield against their fire. They fell quickly under the fighter’s assault, a chime from the speakers signaling the last phase of the round. The low drone of propellers filled the fighter’s ears as a trio of large guns attached to a hovering central core materialized.

“Bet she wishes she carried a lightning materia now, huh?” Sunny quipped as the heli gunner drone spun in place and aimed its weapons at the seemingly unfazed Tifa. The woman snapped her fingers and the drone dropped like a stone, its propellers frozen in great blocks of ice. Sunny stared on, her brow high as Rina laughed.

“You were saying?” the red headed Turk shot back as the machine struggled to even turn itself over. After a few moments it simply shut down and dispersed back into pixels.

The tone chimed again and the system began to reset the location as the fighter readjusted and itched at the awkward goggles meant to further immersion. Her surroundings shifted to a grassy plain with large, rocky outcroppings jutting harshly out of the ground. Another hologram shuttered into view, stretching high above the ground before the mako current sparked through it.

“A dragon” Tifa muttered meekly “…wonderful.”

She began her rush as the beast roared, a torrent of flame erupting from its maw to meet her approach. Tifa flung her hands before her without breaking her stride, a freezing mist scattering the fire just enough for her to sprint through. The tactic however seemed to be coming up short as she was forced to stop just to keep the flames even close to tolerable, her focus so centered she missed the small tingling at the back of her mind as the heat surrounding her grew.

“A clever use of what she has available” Sugarcoat admitted “Though she wouldn’t have to if she didn’t overspecialize in hand to hand combat.”

“You can compensate with materia” Rude stated quietly.

“Not the way she uses it” she shot back just before the simulation shuttered. The gathered Turks all tensed slightly as the arena and dragon dispersed before Tifa gave a heavy sigh of relief “What’s happening?”

“Someone’s overriding the system from the upper booth…” the technician explained as he scoured over the controls. Rarity’s glanced up curiously through the resetting testing area to the reflective glass of the VIP observation room, seeing two vague silhouettes through the window’s glare as the tech spoke again “She’s being bumped up to level 12 by… Whoa…”

“Was that supposed to happen?” Tifa’s voice piped up in the empty chamber “Did I lose or something?”

“Stand by Miss Lockhart” the tech spoke through the microphone before turning back to the others “the override’s coming from a Level 7 executive code.”

“Oh holy crap” Rina muttered.

“President Celestia is watching?!” Rarity gasped as the environment constructed anew around the confused martial artist. She of course realized that Ms. Lockhart was now an important part of the company’s plans but for Celestia to come observe such a routine test herself… Maybe she was underestimating the true severity of the situation.

Tifa looked around as her surroundings built up into a Y shaped intersection of the city; one with a small kiosk style market, a café with outside seating and a generic sports bar surrounding her. She looked up to see the goggles filling in the city's skyline, the extent of the simulation impressing her. The level data in the corner of the goggles’ Heads Up Display updated, skipping straight to level 12 and indicating she was on phase 1 of 1 with 4 out of 4 enemies remaining.

Her head snapped to the quartet of figures materializing, her eye’s widening as she recognized the threat. While the each had a degree of personal customization, they all shared the similar enough indicators of their position; thick leather belts and suspenders, round metal pauldrons and knight like helmets obstructing most of their faces.

‘SOLDIER’

The two in light blue fatigues broke from the group in a pincer approach, the first with a masculine build wielding the traditional SOLDIER longsword while the other looked to be a female wearing a pair of pneumatic gauntlets. The buxom fighter leapt back as the sword cracked the pavement, dodging the lunging straight of the second and returning a quick elbow and a jab to her torso.

“That’s the one based off Canyon Crusher, isn’t it?” Rude stepped closer, now more focused on the exchange between the two hand to hand specialists. He made a slightly impressed grunt as he saw her keeping the gauntlet wearer between her and the swordsmen, relegating him to token assistance.

At least until a lightning bolt shattered the street lamp above her. The Canyon Crusher copy took the opening to land a solid blow across Tifa’s face as the burning glass rained around them, the second rushing past with an upward swipe. Tifa threw herself back while trying to turn away from the blade, only to still feel the sharp pain lance into her shoulder.

A quick flash of fire erupted between Tifa and the SOLDIER, throwing them all back. Tifa quickly flipped and landed with a splash in an unseen puddle, skidding slightly at she looked back to her opponents. They weren’t pushed back nearly as much as she hoped, her face falling as she saw they were barely fazed at all by her quick spell.

‘Of course they’re resistant to magic, their SOLDIER… Come on Tifa, Think!’ she either needed a way through that resistance or force them to stick to physical combat. She rose clutching her shoulder as she worked her jaw, the simulation greatly muted most actual damage but it still felt real. With water dripping from her form she realized the puddle was the only one present in the simulation, having come from her melted defense against the dragon. Meaning it wasn’t supposed to be there.

Her thoughts broke as the pair closed again, forcing her to drop into a defensive ready stance. A spike of ice shattered against the metal of her gloves, freezing the droplets on her skin and accentuating the bite of the cold. She faltered several steps back as the two slowed, waiting to strike as the glow began fading from their materia when the thought struck her-

‘That’s an idea, a stupid idea but...’ she waited, hoping the simulation wouldn’t consider the variable and act in her favor. The sword wielder launched forward again, thrusting for center mass. The blade sailed past as she shifted and punched out, her retaliating fist easily avoided as it flew past his head. The other leapt at the vulnerable martial artists with her fist ready.

‘Please let this work!’ Tifa slammed her elbow back against the SOLDIER’s helmet as she kicked out his footing. She pivoted and spun them in place, swinging him straight into his comrade’s heavy strike. The other faltered as her gauntlet crumpled the swordsmen’s helmet, Tifa rolling over his back and bringing her heel down on her helmet as well. A quick kick off and she landed just at the edge of the puddle, an icy mist surrounding her hands.

“Well I’ll be damned” Rina grinned as the participant swept her hands up and the materia in her glove pulsed. The puddle rushed up the unbalanced, soaked pair, adding just enough to the spell to encase them.

A much taller figure stared down from the room above, her tone also a little impressed… if still a bit critical.

“Well… she certainly shows a lack of experience, but she’s still proven herself resourceful if nothing else.”

Tifa braced with a smirk while wiping the sweat from her brow and threw herself at the helpless pair when a shadow flared in her peripheral. A pair of curved blades came spinning at her, the winged 2nd Class SOLDIER still airborne in their strike. She only managed to catch one on the small plate on her glove, the other scoring a shallow hit along her forearm. With grunt the buxom fighter shoved back and threw the elite off, a quick orb launched from the Griffon SOLDIER as she flew. The ball of magic splashed over Tifa, leaving the simulation perplexed as it seemed had no effect.

‘Slow won’t work on me’ she internalized before the SOLDIER was on her again ‘but holy crap is this girl fast!’

Tifa barely dodged another pair of attacks before missing her counter as her opponent spun away with a flourish. A short yelp escaped the brunette as she stumbled back clutching her collarbone, another bright red line glowing under her hand.

‘Real or not these hits still hurt like a bitch!’

The dual wielder flew at her again to find the woman crashing into her, jerking up and rolling her over her shoulder as she found purchase. The winged fighter twisted and landed with ease but found herself quickly rolling to avoid the café table hurled at her a moment later. A loud cracking sound issued from the iced over pair as the dual wielder sprung back to her feet to see her opponent covered in an amber glow, the materia on her bangle shining bright.

“So you wanna play with time magic?” Tifa muttered as a temporal glyph appeared beneath her feet, the clock face within speeding up exponentially.

Before the SOLDIER trio could even finish recovering, a knee was driving itself into the 2nd classes’ gut. An uppercut snapping her straight up an instant later and setting her up for a one-two combo, then a three four and then several more numbers all delivered in the span of a few moments. A boot swept up and finished off what was left of the soldier’s helmet, knocking her off her feet. A steel grip latched onto her ankle and the dual blade wielder found herself crashing through the market kiosk. The others only just managed to free themselves when the brunette was on them as well but, unfortunately for Tifa, they were saved moments into their own assault.

Finally taking action, the last SOLDIER was on her in an instant. Her hasted state let her manage to dodge the first swipe but not the follow up of the sword’s pommel slamming into her side. A static sensation spread across her form from the hit until the glow of her haste spell literally shattered off of her.

‘Aw crap’

She sprung away before he could follow up again, her focus entirely on the first class. A mistake she realized the hard way when twin lances of pain shot across her back, the second class passing to stand with the rest. Tifa stumbled back barely keeping her footing, completely spent from not only the attacks but also pouring the rest of her reserves into the haste spell.

‘How did they say I could forfeit again?’ she thought tiredly as the first class stood before her, sword held forward as a fiery blue aura engulfed him and the small bit of horn visible through his helmet began to glow ’Well, this is gonna hurt.’

Launching forward he delivered a rapid string of eight slashes, each more devastating than the last.

The spectators looked on, a few disappointed sighs released as they saw the test’s participant fall back. The victorious first class SOLDIER stood straighter while his second class compatriot stood behind to nurse a bent wing. The third classes, functional but more heavily injured, fell to a knee before they started to disperse with the rest of intersection as the simulation shut down. Mako filtered back into the power lines and the room turned back to its default state.

“Well, that was fun!” Rina said, jumping off her counter seat “Come on Rude, we’ve got all that wonderful paperwork to get back to.”

The bald headed man gave a small, noncommittal grunt as he and the other Turks left the room while Rarity went to check on her charge. Above, the two figures continued to watch as the medic team carted the woman to the recovery area.

“Even if it was by exploiting an extra variable; she temporarily disables two third class SOLDIER, harries a second class and may have even given Armor’s duplicate a small bit trouble had she been given the chance…” the Shinra CEO mumbled, whether her tone was awed or just confused it was hard to say; they were just simulations after all “How could this woman have stayed under our notice for so long?”

“We’ve been trying to figure that out since her name came up during the materia search” Sweetie Drops answered, looking through the dossier “Her strength alone should have tripped some kind of flag but we can’t find a single hint of her beyond six months ago. We’ve sent a request to our foreign contacts regarding any possible immigration but the earliest record we have is that ledger from the inn.”

“I suppose I’ll get the chance to ask in person…” she began when her phone buzzed. She gave a small sigh before ignoring the call and continuing. There was something so… familiar about the girl and how she fought, but she just couldn’t put her finger on it “Keep searching, but first let us go have a talk with our new hire before you-know-who starts panicking that I’m behind schedule again.”

Tifa blinked through a haze as she felt herself being moved from one bright white room to another bright white room. What felt like a healing spell washed over her but it held a bit less substance. The lingering sensations of the simulated wounds faded away, replaced by a headache as she tried to stand.

“Easy now darling, just because the simulation’s wounds aren’t entirely real doesn’t mean they’re exactly fake either” Rarity cooed as one of the medics put a hand on her shoulder, guiding her back down. A second wave of the lighter magic washed over her before the Turk moved to help her to her feet “There we are now, feeling better?”

“Yeah… thanks” Tifa blushed, still exhausted but not in as much pain. She was grateful when the door opened to save her from any bumbling, at least until she saw who walked through; A very well known figure with both wings and a horn towering over any in the room, flanked by the Turk Director.

“That was an impressive display to say the least Miss Lockhart. I hope you haven’t suffered any lasting damage” the Shinra president complimented as she offered her hand. Tifa nervously took it, her mouth fumbling for words as she looked up to the alicorn.

‘I wasn’t expecting her to be so tall…’

“Thank you ma’am, I’m fine ma’am” Tifa delivered stiffly, the alicorn woman giggling in response.

“Relax Miss Lockhart, before you sprain something” she delivered in good humor. Tifa tried to force herself to calm down as the president continued “My apologies for any confusion from the sudden stage skip. I’m afraid my schedule wouldn’t allow me to observe the entirety of the tests and I felt the SOLDIER program would be a more expedient gauge of your abilities… and I must say, you did not disappoint.”

Tifa found herself fumbling for words as the president complimented her.

“Eh, I- uh- It was just luck really. If that puddle hadn’t been there I’m not sure I could have even lasted against the first two. It was still a pretty solid loss even with it anyway…”

“You nearly matched two third class SOLDIER and notably ruffled a second class just after. Simulations or not, that requires a bit more than just luck Miss Lockhart. Don’t denounce your accomplishment or-” Celestia countered until one of her aides walked in, a phone in their hand and a consoling look on her face.

“I’m terribly sorry to interrupt Ma’am but she’s being even more insistent than usual.” they gave the phone to the alicorn woman now rolling her eyes with an amused smile “You might have better luck calming her down.”

“~Hello~ Yes, I know- Please, calm down- Then I’ll just have to have the pilot fly twelve minutes faster, won’t I?” the president put the phone to her shoulder with a sigh and flashed Tifa a warm smile “And here I thought I’d get away with at least a few minutes. My apologies again Miss Lockhart, but I must cut this even shorter. Let me just thank you for all your cooperation, and say; ‘Welcome to Shinra’.”

“Thank you Princess!” Tifa managed to blurt out before the leader and her aides left the room. All present paused and shot the woman befuddled looks. An amused and confused Celestia spoke first.

“P-Princess?” the president repeated with a small chuckle “I’m flattered Miss Lockhart, but I don’t think my position is quite that prestigious.”

“Did I say- I didn’t mean- ugh…” the brunette fumbled out, forcing an awkward smile “Sorry, I must have been hit harder than I thought.”

“Not at all Miss Lockhart, I could always use a laugh. Have a nice day now” Celestia smiled and turned to leave with her aide. Once on the other side of the door she hesitated and glanced back, a look far more pensive now on her features. She however shook her head and dismissed the thought, continuing on to the hanger.

Back in the recovery room Tifa was busy burying her very red face in her hands as her Turk acquaintance suppressed a giggle of her own. Their attention snapped back as the senior Turk that stayed behind spoke up.

“With the unorthodox progression of the test, the analysis may take a bit longer than usual. Once we know what level of equipment you’re deemed fit enough to use though, we’ll let you know” Sweetie Drops explained “Until then please feel free to use any of the Turk level facilities; Agent Belle, she’s in your charge.”

“Of course Ma’am” Rarity replied as the Turk leader was already walking out of the room “So then Miss Lockhart, allow me to show you to the specialist wing.”

“Sorry you got stuck with babysitting duty again.”

“Oh don’t fret dear. True, ‘babysitting duty’ can be a rather dreadful assignment when you’re guarding some eccentric scientist or fussy debutant but other than that unpleasantness in the sewers, you’ve actually been quite the pleasant charge” Rarity smiled at her “and the fact I don’t have to try so hard to protect you is very nice as well. If anything, after that performance I think you might end up protecting me as much as I do you. Ah, here we are then.”

The pair stepped off the elevator and Tifa stood a little uneasy as Rarity gestured about the spacious halls.

“There’s a small gym down to right in case your little workout wasn’t enough. The café is across the hall while the breakroom proper is the big area on the left here and-”

“You guys get an entire floor as a break room?” Tifa asked incredulously “All to yourselves?”

“Oh no, there are actually a few floors like this open to all employees” Rarity explained “Though I’d be lying if this one didn’t see mostly Turks and SOLDIER, seeing as our primary offices are on the surrounding floors.”

“Hm” Tifa grunted absently as Rarity continued leading her to the left. About halfway to the next set of doors she spoke again, a bit more hesitantly.

“Not to judge your tactics Miss Lockhart, but if I may ask…” she began “Why didn’t you use your limit? Surely the simulation’s previous levels offered enough to get you there, didn’t they?”

‘Wait, Limit breaks are real?!’ Tifa’s mind exclaimed, brow furrowed as she searched for an answer. She knew people could pull out some crazy stuff like what the SOLDIER did when he handed her own ass to her, but she always figured they were just advanced techniques or magic. She’d never been pushed far enough by her few altercations in this world to have anything like a limit break happen. In fact, the simulations and the sewer incident had been the biggest test of her abilities to date.

“I uh… well, I’ve never actually used mine… I don’t know how” She fumbled into the incomplete truth. Rarity actually stopped to stare back at the brunette. Wide eyes blinked at her as the Turk seemed to have trouble processing the information, making the fighter wonder if she just revealed too much.

“You’ve… Never broken your limit? But with how well you fight and how strong you are, then surely… it’s something most manage pretty early, even if it’s just the most basic boost…” Rarity finally began processing, until a small smile broke through her confusion and severely eased the worry on Tifa’s mind “You really are an odd one, aren’t you dear?”

“You can say that again…” Tifa muttered, earning a slight chuckle.

“Well, here you are now,” the unicorn announced as she led her into an open room. A large screen dominated one wall as some couches and a few tables filled the rest of the space “I’ll be off to wrap up a few things and see what I can do about getting your results faster. As the director said, the odd progression may have complicated their evaluation. You have my number if you need anything.”

With that the well-groomed woman turned on a heel and strode off, leaving Tifa to meander over to one of the couches toward the back of the room and promptly fall into it face first. Rolling over, she ignored the curious glances it earned her from a few of the room’s occupants and heard a small chuckle from a pair at a nearby table. She glanced up to see Rina and Rude sifting through a sizable stack of folders unenthusiastically, the former shooting her a quick smirk.

“You earned it girly” was all the messy haired Turk said before going back to their forms. Tifa draped her arm over her eyes and found herself falling fast asleep.

“Well that was an entertaining diversion…”

“Oh yeah, a real blast! Especially that part where I got my ass handed to me.”

“Oh I don’t know. I think it went pretty well, all things considered.”

“I guess I did get further than I- wait… wh-”

“-Your phone’s ringing.”

The brunette jerked awake, trying to blink away the sudden blindness caused by the inset lighting above as something vibrated against her chest. She fished the offender from her shirt and her brow peeked at the listing.

“Hey Zest” she answered tiredly, but still with a small smile.

“Hey girl, you pass your test thing?” the familiar voice of the brunette’s neighbor chirped through.

“In a matter of speaking. Did decent up until I got my ass kicked by some SOLDIER.”

“Well that’s kind of their whole deal isn’t it?” Zest consoled “Anything else exciting?”

“I got to meet the president, which was… interesting.”

“Oh yeah? Didn’t I tell you she was even prettier in person?”

“Yeah, though I was more surprised with just how tall she was” Tifa delivered as she sat up and started to wake up proper, searching for a clock to see how long she’d been out. Rina and Rude were gone and there were only a couple employees still around.

“Oh I know right?! I first met her at this fancy event my parents were involved in. You think she seemed tall? Imaging seeing her as a five year old!” Zest laughed “I actually hid behind my mom she was so intimidating. That didn’t last of course, but still…”

Tifa grinned at the imagery. She couldn’t help picturing the miniature Zest fiddling with a pair of headphones far too big for her as she sheepishly peered from behind her mom’s legs to greet the much taller woman.

“That sounds adorable!”

“Shut up!” Zest shot back halfheartedly, Tifa was about to push the teasing further when a tone chimed above, she would have ignored it like the few others she heard that day but it seemed this one was for her.

“Would ‘Tifa Lockhart’ please report to the specialist armory? Miss Lockhart to the specialist armory” a smooth voice announced softly as her phone beeped in her hand, a quick glance showed a text notification from Rarity just received.

“Sorry Zest; seems like they're ready for me to jump through more hoops. Catch you up later?”

“You better!” Lemon warned jokingly “Have a good one girl, stay safe.”

“You too” Tifa stood as she hung up and stretched, not realizing she was doing her digital counterpart’s infamous ‘victory pose’. She checked the text from her designated Turk as she rubbed a bit more sand from her eyes.

- In a briefing sry. Go up 4 flrs to reach the armory. Your picture’s been given to security so just follow any instructions if asked for clearance and you should be fine. We’ll meet back up soon! ;) -

‘Holy hell I’ve been asleep for hours!’ she realized, noting the phone’s clock as she read the text. She made her way back to the elevators and hit up. The elevator stopped briefly halfway there as the camera in the corner whirred lightly as it focused. A few more moments passed before the elevator began moving again.

She stepped out into a small, relatively simple seating area in front of a reinforced wall. Several posters and notices of policies and safety procedures peppered the rest of the room save for the full length window looking over the city all lit up under the night sky. Next to a metal door was a gated opening over a counter, similar to what one might see in a bank or pawn shop. A friendly looking man waved her over.

“Miss Lockhart?” Tifa nodded as she approached, seeing isles and isles of equipment behind the counter. The rapid clacking of typing keys echoed as the clerk looked through his files. She caught a glimpse of another clerk escorting what looked like a first class SOLDIER though the expansive armory shelves just before the first spoke up again “Ah yes, sorry it took a bit but it seems you’ve been cleared for Grade C Specialist equipment with limited access to Grade B on an item by item clearance.”

“Uhhh… Neat?” the fighter quipped, earning a muted chortle from the clerk.

“Specialist equipment is what the Turks and SOLDIER use; Graded C through S” he explained “Trust me, even at Grade C there’s some pretty nice stuff available, and you even have a list of recommendations from some that have seen you test recordings… Once one of our clerks is free they’ll show you though your options. It shouldn’t be too long if want to just take a seat until then.”

Flashing a half-hearted thumbs-up she retreated to the seats, snagging one of the complementary bottles of water on the table. After a few moments of playing with her phone the elevator pinged again and opened to a young unicorn woman in a lab coat and carrying a tablet atop an overstuffed clipboard. She strode to the counter with an air of purpose, not necessarily confidence but certainly with a goal.

“Ah! Our esteemed treasurer! Let’s see here then…” the clerk warmly greeted the horned woman, who fidgeted slightly at the exuberant welcome. After another bout of rapid typing later, a small frown found him “well it seems it’s still not quite ready yet; it looks like they had a bit of trouble implementing the extra slots due to the… ‘unorthodox’ nature of the… tool. I can go see how much longer it’ll be or what they may be stuck on.”

The purple haired unicorn sighed before glancing at her watch, one of her heels tapping slightly with either impatience or annoyance.

‘Probably both’

“Uhg, fine” the woman grumbled and turned to the seats. She immediately perked up at the sight of the brunette though “Oh! Miss Lockhart! How fortuitous you’re still here!”

The lavender skinned woman quickly moved and took the seat across from her, scrolling through her tablet while the papers shuffled on their own within a purple haze. She smiled slightly as the papers stopped and reattached to the clipboard as it floated over to Tifa.

“I was going to just delegate this but since you’re here we can get this out of the way and sorted nice and quick. So if you’ll just sign here-here-aaaand here,” little magical pointers actually appeared over each line her stylus pointed to “And if can get your thumb print on my tablet here… and we’re done! You should be receiving your first week’s pay iiiinnnn…”

Tifa’s phone rang a quick notification.

“Now!” the unicorn woman smiled with pride.

“Just like that?” Tifa asked confused and not a little surprised “No ‘Next pay cycle’ wait?”

“Pfft” the young woman scoffed “Those are just excuses for disorganized companies.”

“Well cool then” Tifa smiled and checked her phone as she took a sip from the water, and then nearly sprayed it all over the treasurer. Coughing over the impeded spit take, she rasped out “That’s for just a WEEK?!”

“Well actually if you see here,” she turned the tablet back to her, a small list with number amounts next to them on the screen “The standard weekly freelance salary isn’t actually that high, but there’s also the mission commission, and I even managed to get you a partial percent of the bonus we usually award troopers for sewer sweeps and an extermination bounty for that odd creature detailed in the reports as well; that last one’s the bulk of it actually. I figured you could use a little boost after your… ‘involuntary’ employment.”

“Geez, no wonder you Shinra types are such good tippers” Tifa quipped, earning a giggle. Rarity hadn’t been kidding that her financial situation would improve; even without the bounty it was still well above her wage at Hops’.

“We Shinra types Miss Lockhart” she corrected with a smile and a small hint of pride.

“Miss Lockhart? We’re ready for you” the clerk announced, prompting her to stand. The unicorn woman also stood with her, apparently not willing to wait for her ‘tool’, whatever it was.

“Well thank you for your time Miss Lockhart, you've helped me recover a good bit of my schedule without even trying” she smiled as the martial artist passed before turning to her tablet a moment, rearranging the list to fit her gained time.

“Glad I could help” Tifa returned. She glanced to window as she moved to the counter, she didn’t really like heights but it was a pretty nice view of the plate. She stopped however when she saw something glide up into view, something big.

’Oh it’s an airship… really close and right outside… and turning a very large cylinder toward-’

The horned woman gave a sharp cry as the fighter suddenly tackled her from behind, the whole window shattering an instant later as a massive hooked javelin crashed straight though the space the pair occupied a scant second before.

“Wh-wha?” was all the treasurer beneath her managed before heavy metal panels slammed down over the armory wall and the hooked anchor caught with a deep trench through the floor. Tifa leapt to her feet and quickly wrenched the girl beneath her to hers, looking out to see armed figures now running across the grapple’s barrel thick tether.

“We should move” she said urgently, noting the bright red warning light over the elevator.

“The stairs are this way! Quick!” the other woman shouted and barreled through the rooms only other door. Tifa caught up and saw the familiar dedicated room for wide unconnected stair cases. However once they entered they could hear it; the sounds of gunfire and combat echoed from both above and below. The treasurer however held resolute and called “We need to get to the security buffer on sixty, we should be safe ther-”

She was cut off as she ran straight into a masked figure at the top of the first flight, the startled intruder rounding with his weapon raised as soon as he recovered. The purple female was shoved aside, the sharp scream that followed sounded even over the rifle’s report.

“MOTHER FUCKER!” was heard just before the assailant smashed into the far wall, another more irritated yelp sounding just after. The horned treasurer leapt to her feet to help the martial artist that was now holding a bleeding hole through her bicep “Why did I do that?!”

‘Note to self: Don’t punch with an arm that was just shot.’

The sound of a much closer burst of gunfire from below prevented any kind of answer and spurred them to climb faster. The quick glimpses each floor afforded them shown that not every floor was under siege but it still sure sounded like it. Several more floors and another close call later they stumbled through the doors of the 60th floor, immediately coming face to face with whole different threat.

Two heavy cannons snapped straight at the pair, attached to a four legged automaton towering over them with its long tail arching over from its rear. Several Troopers behind the guard scorpion leveled their rifles at the sudden guests as well.

“Aw crap…”

Several floors down, Rarity flinched as a round shattered against the cover an inch from her face. Sweetie Drops emptied her handgun in return before ducking back down and flashing the defending agents a quick series of gestures before reloading. Quick nods followed and they braced, waiting for the signal.

“Now!” the director shouted, the Turks breaking cover to lay down suppressing fire. Rina and Rude vaulted over obstacles as glittering, pointed panes of colored light flashed in front of them, Rarity’s horn glowing with the barrier marteria on her armlet. The pair made quick work of the small group of attackers once they managed to close the distance. The rest rose to join them over the fallen troops, Rarity fidgeting at a pair of new holes in her suit.

“You hurt?” Sweetie asked, Rarity sighing with a shake of her head in response.

“Oh no, the enchantments did their job. Just a little sore is all” she returned before muttering under her breath “I just made this…”

“Where the hell is SOLDIER?!” Rina complained, looking around the workstations and back at the few scientists still hiding along the back after their escape was cut off “Not that we can’t handle this but we can’t afford to lose the proxy.”

“There weren’t many here tonight, and those that are seem to be otherwise preoccupied or blocked off” The director delivered curtly. Rina was right though, they couldn’t afford to lose the element proxy or even the floor. It was the main materia lab and too valuable even if it wasn’t the resting place of the one crucial element they’d managed to secure for their mission so far “We can’t let them have the huge materia, even if we have to-”

The director couldn’t finish the sentiment before the wall to the stairway exploded, sending fire and deris flying right at the gathered defenders. Rude dragged a now unconscious Sugarcoat to safety as an injured Sunny fell back into cover, both having taken the brunt of the blast. The rest stood their ground for the attack’s follow through before quickly realizing the mistake. An exceptionally large, heavily armored man stepped forward with a masked squad following close, a massive cylinder slug on his back connected to a multi-barreled death machine in his hands. The Turks quickly leapt to join Sunny, putting as much as they could between them and the now revving up weapon.

“BARRIERS!!!” The director screamed, three layers of the translucent magic walls appearing before the consoles they were currently crouched behind. The rounds that didn’t still make their way through shattered and ricocheted everywhere, and when the defenders tried to pop up in an opening the man’s cohorts would suppress them with a burst from their own rifles.

“Two rifles and a magic support!” Rina tried to call out the opposition over not only the chain gun’s constant report but also the labs several alarms. Rarity sighed internally, not helping but to think of all that work now being pulverized as the exceptionally large man’s weapon shredded the lab. She angled her gun while returning blind fire, using its polished blade to see the supporting pair trying to make their way to the reinforced cylinder of the chamber’s main station. The larger of the two returned her fire with a burst from what looked like a light machine gun rather than a rifle, hefted like it was no heavier than a carbine. She also realized the smaller of the two carried one too.

‘Geez these guys might be as strong as Tifa!’ she thought before they caught a lucky break, or rather their opponents caught an unlucky one.

“W-WOAH!” was heard as the heavy gunner was now slipping and twisting desperately to keep his balance atop the multitude of fallen materia now rolling beneath his feet. Unfortunately for both sides the bullet hose was still firing, now keeping friend and foe alike stuck in cover as his flailing sent rounds flying everywhere.

“SHOES WATCH OU-!” the magic support shouted before the giant man crashed right into her and sent both tumbling down the stair way. The Turks moved to take the advantage when a whole new disaster reared its head; the main containment module pulsed erratically as its alarm blared, a deep crack in the materia's form behind a cluster of clean holes in its clear tube.

“YOU LOT! RUDE! WITH ME!” the director shouted as the two agents made for an immediate beeline for the chamber’s control station with the left behind science team, leaving Rarity and Rina to deal with the remaining pair now moving to cut them off. They quickly dove in close to make it more difficult for the pair to use their long barreled weapons properly, the less refined Turk choosing the larger male of the group. Even if not as large as the minigunner, Rarity noted that he still had significant height and bulk beyond the average man and easily out classed them physically.

Before she could worry about Rina’s chances, her own opponent forced her to reconsider her own. An expertly placed kick was only just barely avoided, the reprieve short as the machine gun’s stock swung at her face. Catching it roughly against the side of her gunblade, she finally had a second to take stock of her opponent; a female with a few inches on her and while the mask and body armor hid much she could still tell this woman was in exceptional shape. A fact only enforced by her brute forcing past the block and the following shoulder shove driving her back a few paces alone.

“HIT THE RELEASE! NOW!” the director screamed behind them, the remaining scientists scrambling between consoles before the chamber’s heavy safety shutters fell in place over the clear tube “LAUNCH IT!”

The emergency protocols completed and the destabilizing materia was rocketed through the building and high into the night sky, but unfortunately not before a massive burst of magic flared from within the chamber. Great ribbons of unstable magic spread forth, easily slicing through their reinforced confines and then the room and surrounding floors.

Rarity fell back as one of the glowing bands swept right between her and the masked attacker, a sharp scream still sounding even through all the chaos in the magic’s wake. She had little time to consider it however as a large section of the ceiling and floor collapsed.

Once the ground stopped shaking Rarity groggily pushed herself off the floor, her face and clothes caked with blood and dust. She managed to stand to see most of it wasn’t hers as a large trail of red started at where her attacker had been and led off down the stair way. She heard coughing behind her, looking back she could see the director and others suck on the other side of the debris and small fires.

“Rarity go!” Sweetie Drops called “Don’t let them escape!”

“Right!” the now less well coiffed Turk took off, keeping track of the blood trail and the large footsteps tracked through it. She landed heavily as she hit the landing a couple flights down, mindful not to slip in the slick redness and noted the sound of an airship from the other side of the door. She braced against its frame, renewed her barrier spell and took all of a second to breathe and focus.

She charged through the door and the roar of the flying machine filled the space from its position right outside the window, enough to even drown out the clatter of automatic fire now bouncing of the Turk’s magic defense. She had a perfect shot at the now unmasked pair that began round on her from the ships open hatch, the larger male carrying the female now cradling the bleeding stump of her forearm. The unicorn woman stood ready, ignoring the flashes of deflected rounds as lined up her sights, ready to fire when the woman’s gaze locked to hers.

And froze as bright green eyes under blonde locks stared into her.

“Applejack?!” Rarity gasped, disbelieving as her aim began to drop. The moment broke when not only the room, not even just the building, but when the entire city suddenly shuddered and shook violently. The huge magic materia now high, HIGH above it all after its ejection finally destabilized fully and erupted with enough force to make even the plate itself quake far below.

Once the vibrations finally stopped, Rarity warily pushed herself up. The tower remained standing and a quick glance outside confirmed the plate was in no danger, but the airship was gone. She stayed her ground even as a quick pounding of steps echoed from the stairway behind her and Sweetie Drops appeared in short order. Noting her subordinate’s relaxed pose she slowed her gait and holstered her sidearm as she approached.

“I’m sorry Ma’am, I’m afraid I let them get away” Rarity reported, her gaze still turned away toward the broken windows.

“Did you at least get and I.D.?”

Rarity tensed almost imperceptibly, hesitating a moment. She sighed and finally turned to the senior agent.

“No ma’am, they were still wearing their masks” she lied, conflicted and obviously distressed “The best I got was what may have been the AVALANCHE emblem on the inside of the airship.”

The director studied her for a moment. Rarity could almost feel her see through it, but then the director’s stance relaxed as she released a sigh of her own.

“Damn…”

“I’m sorry ma’am.”

“Don’t worry about it Priss, I’m sure you did all you could have” Sweetie Drops consoled her with a small, tired smile; the use of the ‘affectionate’ code name confirming the sentiment. She was disappointed but knew better than to deride one of her team, especially when she seemed just as disappointed. “Come on, the others still need us back in the lab.”

Tifa sat back against the wall with the other non-combatants tucked into a corner of the security floor, away from any open fire lanes. Not that such a thing was as much of a concern anymore; the fighting had all but stopped after that explosion that shook the building nearly a half hour before. They were just waiting for the all clear.

“Really Miss Crusher, to prioritize my safety over the others is not only unnecessary but rather irresponsible for a SOLDIER.” Her purple skinned accomplice complained to the second class once again standing nearby. Thankfully when they burst onto the floor right in front of the guard scorpion, the elite was quick to call it down and usher them aside so it could have a clear shot at any pursuers. They also learned they weren’t the only ones to think of seeking refuge here, though ‘SOLDIER Crusher’ still seemed to be keeping an eye on her specifically.

“I assure you Miss Sparkle, I can protect everyone from any remaining threat just fine from right here” The elite answered coolly, before adding with a playful tone “Besides, you’re not the one who’d have to answer to your brother if something happened to you.”

The treasurer huffed and refocused on the cure spell she was casting on Tifa’s bicep; sans any materia the martial artist couldn’t help but notice. That brought back up and compounded one of the first thoughts she had about the girl, and since they still seemed to be stuck there at the moment she figured she might as well ask.

“So Miss Sparkle, If I may ask,” the brunette questioned “why does a treasurer need to wear a lab coat and know how to cast unassisted magic?”

“Oh, well I… uh… I’m not actually the official treasurer. They retired a little while ago and I’ve just been filling in” the magically adept woman answered a bit clumsily “I used to lead one of the science teams, until… well, that position became a non-option for me. The president insisted I stay though, so I’ve just been helping out wherever I can ever since. I’m really good with organization, numbers and planning; so the treasury seemed like it’d be a nice fit until… whatever comes next… I also try to help President Celestia with her scheduling... not that she ever follows it...”

Tifa snickered as Miss Sparkle grumbled the last little bit, realizing it was probably her panicking over the phone earlier. Though the pauses and occasionally defeated tone of the answer only lead to a deeper suspicion of the girl’s circumstance. One made all the more evident by the scar running down almost the whole side of her neck that Tifa couldn’t help but notice as the treasurer turned away. The materia-less caster perked up however as she turned back.

“Though if I may now ask a question of you Miss Lockhart,” she began before reigning it in slightly.

"Shoot."

“Well I’m sorry if this is asking you to admit too much but my curiosity demands to know" she elaborated "Before the president skipped you ahead to the SOLDIER round, your strategy against the dragon seemed to be coming up short. With that option failing, how were you planning on beating it?”

Tifa leaned in a bit as if sharing a secret, but then very bluntly and honestly answered,

“I wasn’t.”

Miss Sparkle blinked at her a moment, perplexed until the implication hit her. She tried to stifle a laugh but didn’t hide it once the martial artist gave her an honest smirk.

“Well at least you know your limitations!” she managed as the laugh petered out. As the girl worked to finish the cure with a small grin Tifa noticed the SOLDIER glance back, an incredulous and slightly befuddled smile on their lips as their gaze shifted between the two. She then squinted slightly as she studied her, before shrugging and turning back to the door.

‘What was that about?’ she wondered before a two tone chime sounded and the lights shifted from the emergency lighting back to their normal settings. A series of radios about the room crackled, sounding the all clear and issuing instructions to the different security divisions. Miss Sparkle helped her stand with everyone else, the fighter smiling as she looked down to her arm.

“So doc, am I all good?”

“Well you'll probably be tender for a few days and a some more cure castings over the next couple definitely wouldn’t hurt, but as long you stay well hydrated and don’t over exert the muscle I’d say you’ll be just fine” she smiled back, before a voice called out to her patient.

“Tifa Darling! There you are!” the fighter’s ‘keeper’ crossed the floor to them, many notably moving aside for the suited female “Oh and Twilight dear! So very good to see you safe as well.”

“Hi Agent Rarity, y-you too” Twilight returned awkwardly “Well as much as I’d… love to stay and chat I should go and see what I can do to help organize the clean up until the President gets back. Have- well, try to have a good rest of the night.”

Twilight excused herself and began moving to the surprisingly still working elevators but stopped short and quickly looked back a little abashed.

“Oh and uh, thank you for, y’know… Saving me… twice” she quickly muttered and redoubled her pace. Rarity gave a sympathetic half smile at her back.

“Poor dear. She was never the most social but ever since the accident she’s never been quite the same...” the Turk trailed off before perking and refocusing “Anyway darling, you’ve been cleared to leave whenever you want. I doubt we could arrange a ride, I’m sure you can understand but did you need an escort back down stairs?”

“No I should be fine but no debriefing or anything?” Tifa cocked an eyebrow.

“Well how much do you know about the attack?” the Turk asked simply.

“…uhhhh, it… happened?”

“Exactly” she smirked back “Just don’t talk to the press and we can handle all that later.”

“Well alright then, if you’re sure” Tifa replied a little hesitantly “Good luck with all of this.”

“Thank you dear, enjoy the rest of your night.”

“Ehhh, I don’t know Tif…” Zest offered before taking another bite of her steak. She had surprised Tifa outside the tower, having been on the plate to see her parents and heading over when news of the attack broke “The whole thing?”

“No, just the front… probably.” Tifa clarified, her friend still looking pretty skeptical.

“…Is it moving?”

“Yes.”

“Well then no” Zest finally answered bluntly, the brunette looking a little insulted.

“Not even a ‘maybe’?”

“Well come on Tif, I know you’re like crazy scary strong and all that but a SUPLEX? Knocking it over or off the tracks? Sure. Stopping it? Maaaybe, if you’re not in front of it. But no, I don’t think you could suplex one.”

"Hmph..." Tifa slumped and pouted degectedly, resting her chin in her hand. Zest just rolled her eyes with a playful smile and turned her attention to the game currently all over the bar’s screens; a friend from her old team was playing and, according to her, was kicking ass. Tifa didn’t know much about the sport but the reminder of Lemon’s school days did bring up another thought.

“I don’t suppose you know a Twilight Sparkle do you?” Lemon Zest had known some of the Turks and Twilight seemed like the same age group and certainly the type to get into Shinra Prep. Tifa figured it was maybe a long shot but-

“Purple Smart? Oh sure, she was our classes’ valedictorian” Zest answered nonchalantly “Not the most friendly girl. Not that she was bitch or anything, especially compared to some of the other students. No she was nice and all but just pretty socially incompetent. Not surprising she ended up at Shinra though; she head of their science division or something?”

“She’s the treasurer at the moment. Though she did say she led one of the science teams but there were definitely hints that something happened that lost her that position; something bad and at least sort of recent…” Tifa explained “Still wore her lab coat even.”

“Oh she’s been wearing those forever” the pink woman waved off “Wait, so is she was the one you took a bullet for?”

“That would be her.”

“Sooo…” the music lover began with a somewhat amused curiosity “You not only tackled this girl out of the way of a giant harpoon but then, not even knowing her name yet, shoved her out of the way of a rifle and got shot in her place? For what was essentially a complete stranger?”

“I… I guess I did…” Tifa admitted. She really hadn’t thought much of it at all until it was phrased like that. Why did she risk herself so much for a stranger?

“Damn girl, I always knew you were a bit of a badass but I never knew you were so…” Zest offered not a little impressed as she looked for the right word “…Heroic.”

“Yeah,” the ‘heroic’ woman muttered “Me neither…”

‘When the hell did THAT happen?!’

Now she couldn’t be sure, as it could have just been someone at another table, but she swore she could hear an echo of someone giggling at the thought.

Author's Note

OH MY GOD I FINALLY DID IT! Uhg! Why is this story so much harder to write than my other one?! :rainbowhuh:

ANYWAY- Sorry again for the exceptional wait readers, life has sucked pretty hard this past year. Still working an things but hopefully I can get my writing rolling a little easier from now on.

Not entirely satisfied with this chapter but I don’t hate it and now that it’s done I can finally try to keep going lol. So until next time readers, as always; Thanks for what I hope is still many of you reading and have a good one!

Oh and P.S. for a slight spoiler: No that second voice in Tifa's head isn't Liv, for any jumping to that conclusion. But please, feel free to speculate :raritywink:

Chapter 4: Rough Currents

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Knuckle- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: Enchanted, Reinforced (and Perfectly tailored) Suit, Earrings

Rina “Indigo” Zap: Human
Collapsible Baton- Lightning + Elemental --- Shinra Alpha (Bangle)- Pyramid, Neo Fire
Other: Enchanted, Reinforced Suit, Tough Ring

Celestia sighed into her tea as the gentle hum of the airship’s engines threatened to lull her back to sleep. Currently turned away from her desk to the large window, she gazed at a sun higher in the sky than she was used to so shortly after waking, making her lament missing its rise. A gentle golden glow lazily danced over her horn as she, completely unperturbed by the glare, watched the point of light shine down on the glimmering sea.

She stayed like that for a time with a tired yet still content smile on her lips as she just took in the moment. At least until a shadow passed by her window and another airship slowly drifted into view as it followed her craft. With an appreciative eye she studied its long sweeping curves, bright colors and intricate designs that served as a sharp contrast to the typically far more utilitarian designs of Shinra. Not that every Shinra airship lacked a certain flare; Celestia’s own ship was quite the work of art itself, but she always admired the aesthetics of the neighboring continent.

A small knock on her door suddenly echoed as her working life was looking to find her once again.

“Come in” she called just before a young, dark haired woman entered with her gaze down to her tablet.

“Good morning Madam President, the captain has just informed me that our escort has arrived,” the bespectacled aide informed her, eyes still on her tablet. Celestia gained a playful smirk and pointed over her shoulder.

“Yes, I can see that” she returned with good humor. The woman finally looked up and blushed as she spotted the large airship just outside the window.

“Oh, hehe… sorry ma’am” she smiled sheepishly, eliciting a chuckle from the president.

“Not at all Raven,” she assuaged the woman “Please, continue.”

“We should be arriving at the capital within a few hours” the assistant continued on “So communications with Equestria will soon become less and less immediate and thus less reliable. So hopefully nothing like last time happens again as we’d be hard pressed to even hear about it quickly, let alone able to return in time to make any difference.”

“I doubt anything like that will happen again so soon. It would seem our adversaries spent and lost quite a few resources on the assault themselves, not to mention those we managed to apprehend that they are now deprived of” the president consoled her “And I’m sure the department heads can handle anything that does happen.”

“If we can trust them…” Raven grumbled before she could stop herself, immediately sputtering after “I-I’m sorry ma’am! I didn’t mean to speak out of turn or-”

“Calm down Raven, you’re more than entitled to an opinion” the alicorn woman quickly interjected “I rue the day everyone agrees with me and my appointments after all.”

‘Especially when I don’t fully trust most of them myself’ she added mentally as her smile slipped a little. She sighed internally at the thought, regretting yet another necessary evil of their goal. She could only hope it would be worth it in the end. She banished the thought and with another sip of her tea she refocused.

“So, back to work then?” the president smiled warmly at her assistant.

“As always” Raven smirked before they dived back into that wonderful world called responsibility.

Tifa squinted at the sun just barely cresting on the horizon as the wind swept her hair into her face. She brushed the locks back behind her ear as she watched the pilots continue to prep the helicopters. She fidgeted with her gloves and double checked the rest of her new equipment; it wasn’t a lot but it would help and the materia could have been tricky to get a hold of outside of Shinra.

‘Perks of working for a company that owns half the world I guess’ she thought before spotting Rarity emerge onto the helipad with the other senior Turks, the ones she knew about at least, and what looked the be Ms. Sparkle. The purple haired agent waved as the pair of unicorn made their way over to her.

“Good morning Darling! I love the new touches to your usual style, very sporty!” Rarity complemented the small additions to the martial artist’s typical skirt and tank top. It was just a black leather vest, a hip pouch she got with her new equipment and a short pair of spats under her skirt “Tired of giving everyone those little peaks eh?”

Twilight blushed slightly behind her as the Turk just smiled coyly. While it was true that she didn’t feel like giving a free show on this mission with what she had been briefed on, Tifa was surprisingly unconcerned with the brief flashes one may glimpse in combat actually. She figured the more distracted they were, the better.

‘I don’t really mind the bouncing either come to think of it…’

‘At least as long as it doesn’t cause a black eye right?’

“You said we might be climbing” Tifa replied simply with a small smile, before turning to the other woman that very much dressed for an expedition; she even had a pith hat on “Good morning Miss Sparkle, does the treasurer usually go on missions like this?”

“Oh, and good morning to you Ms. Lockhart! And uh, well no…” Twilight giggled a little awkwardly “Most of the science staff is still busy recovering and cataloging after the attack, including all those qualified enough to help with this mission. I was available however and with my… previous experience, I was asked to assist.”

“The copters are prepped! Let’s Go! You can talk in the air!” Sweetie Drops’ shout interrupted the exchange and urged the trio to board. They climbed into the smaller copter with the director, Rina and Rude as a decently sized squad of troopers loaded into the larger craft with the majority of the equipment and the medic team. The takeoff was fairly smooth and soon enough they were well above the city and headed towards its borders.

They had just crossed over the barrier wall when Tifa suddenly realized this was the first time she was actually outside of the city, bringing up a whole myriad of questions she hadn’t really thought of. Was this continent like the Gaia of the game? Or the Equestria of the show? Or like the rest she’d seen was it some mishmash of both? She already knew it wasn’t the whole planet, what with the neighboring continents and all, but she didn’t even know what was right outside the city.

“Never seen the city from above I take it?” the director asked, snapping the brunette out of her haze.

“Never even been in a helicopter before” she answered back, glancing down and taking in the sight of the receding plate nested atop the mountain range. From here the second plate below it looked like little more than a shadow “Sure looks a lot nicer from above than below…”

A few shrugs and slightly uneasy expressions acknowledged the somewhat somber observation. People knew that the lower support plate known as Midgar was a far step below the luxury of the plate above it known as Canterlot. They weren’t destitute by most means, particularly where Tifa lived in Sector 6, but things could always be better. A lot better for some of the other sectors especially. Twilight was the first to say it though;

“It could always be worse; you could be stuck in the Undercity. Surely you saw those conditions.” Tifa arched an eyebrow at the treasurer’s comment.

“Why would I have seen the conditions the Undercity?” she asked, the lavender woman matching her confusion.

“Well if you didn’t fly in and we don’t have any record of you going through the gondolas or checkpoints then I just assumed…” she trailed off before then asking “did someone sneak you in then?”

“Oh um… yeah, something like that” Tifa answered quickly before turning back to the window, hoping this current line of questioning would drop before-

“So where ARE you from anyway?” Rina piped up.

‘Fuck’ the martial artist’s face dropped. By some miracle she’d managed to avoid or dodge this question all this time, even with them occasionally reminding her of her ‘questionable citizenship’. It wasn’t like they could deport her when she technically wasn't from anywhere but the more lies she told them the deeper her hole got and she couldn’t very well tell them the truth; they’d think she was insane. ‘Kalm? Junon? No, they practically own those places. Wutai? No, that won’t work. Oh come on Tif! Think! The longer you stall the more-’

‘Nibelheim.’

“Nibelheim” She quickly repeated aloud with her best poker face, still looking out to the horizon. She could still see Ms. Sparkle's perplexed reaction out of the corner of her eye though, along with an unsubtle ‘pfft’ heard from the less kempt Turk.

“Fine, don’t tell us” Rina shot back, leaving Tifa to ponder the implications of her answer. Thankfully the conversation then turned to one a lot less stressful or personal. With the focus off her she continued to watch the scenery pass by below as the rhythmic humming dulled her thoughts. She eventually found herself being stirred awake by Rina trying to ask her something, having falling asleep against the glass without even realizing it.

“So Tif… Tif wake up! Has Zest ever told you why she doesn’t play anymore? I heard she didn’t even try to get on a team after graduation!” Rina exclaimed.

“Oh uh… no, no she hasn’t told me why” she fumbled out eventually “but if had to guess it has something to do with her independence and whole ‘money don’t make me happy’ thing.”

“Did any of the teams ever try persuading her though? Surely at least Sour’s team has tried with the kinds of tricks they used to pull off together in school” the red-head reasoned.

“Oh yeah, even in just the time I’ve known her she’s had a few recruiters track her down. She’d always hear them out and get a free meal out of it, sometimes even both of us one, but she’s yet to bite” Tifa explained with a stifled yawn “I think she’s just not too interested in that kind of life.”

“Fuck’n-A man, I’d jump on that in an instant if it were me. Fuck this government shit if you can have that kind of life” the Turk bemoaned, earning an irritated look from her superior and an eye roll from Rarity.

“It may not many of ours’ first choice but we are still doing a very important duty Rina dear” the well coiffed woman countered to which her compatriot just shrugged. Tifa’s interest however was piqued.

“So what was your first choice then?” Rarity’s expression faltered slightly at the brunette's question, falling to a more somber smile. Before she could answer however the pilot announced their descent, the unicorn mouthing ‘Another time’ with the interruption.

‘I slept through the whole trip? Geez, good job learning the lay of the land Tif… I need to start getting some better sleep...’ she mentally berated herself as the craft slowly weaved through the trees and touched down in a clearing. Climbing out she took in the forest surrounding them as the troops unloaded the gear.

“So where are we supposed to be finding this… whatever? Do we even know what it is?” the martial artist asked. The director spoke evenly as she checked her sidearm.

“We have a good idea, and given the area and what we’re looking for I’d surmise it’s in the nearby ruins or their connected cave systems” she explained before they started moving “And with the new information Corneo gave us we can finally bypass one of the obstacles the excavation team has run into.”

A pair of troopers took point as the group started on their way, their machetes chopping as clear a path as possible. The director was right behind them with Twilight in tow acting as navigator, though how she knew where they were going in all this overgrowth with just a compass and her tablet was beyond the brunette. The troopers and Turks chatted amongst themselves as Tifa mostly concentrated on not tripping or falling into the walls of vines and trees all around them.

They finally came up to a large set of ancient stone doors carved into a suddenly steep incline and a trio of field researchers milling about examining the runes. Their trooper escort straightened as he spotted the director before what was apparently the excavation team’s leader finally took notice and jogged up to Sweetie Drops.

“AH! So that garbled message Was that we would be receiving visitors! Though I must say I certainly wasn’t expecting Turks! Let alone the director herself!” the excitable man rambled before collecting himself “but on to business then, right? What can I do for you?”

As the senior Turk explained the situation, Tifa hung back with the others. She shifted back and forth as the scientist began reading through a folder Sweetie Drops handed him, his growing interest contrasting the group's increasing boredom. Tifa didn’t even realise that she began singing softly to herself.

~”What can I do for you, What can I do for you, What can I do for you?”~

~”I can’t hear you!”~ Tifa jumped almost imperceptibly as Rarity and Rina suddenly finished the lyric for her, each with their own smile.

“Didn’t figure you for a Dazzlings fan Lock’, I’d think they’d be a little too ‘pop-y’ for you” Rina smirked. The brunette just shrugged back; she actually hadn’t heard much of the Dazzling’s music, her singing triggered by a sparked memory she only just realized she had forgotten.

“Well I’d say it means you have wonderful taste in music!” Rarity proclaimed proudly, saving her from having to potentially bluff her way out something else today.

“Says the girl who likes Sapphire Shores” Rina teased the pale Turk, earning some laughs from the troopers. Even Rude give a small chuckle.

“Oh Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!” the scientist began spouting excitedly, drawing back their attention “This is exactly what we’ve been looking for! With this we could finally be able to access the ruins proper!”

With that he immediately grabbed his colleagues and dove through the doors as their exasperated guard quickly moved to follow. The rest followed through a wide, stone passageway boarded with portable lights, piles of gear and small stacks of wall etchings.

“Quickly! Quickly! Rotate that slab over there! No, the one above that!” the team could hear from further down the hall. When they caught up they could see the science team scrabbling back and forth in front of a much larger and more intricately designed door than the one leading outside. “And… TURN!”

With the final synchronized twists the great doors began to rumble and pull apart, revealing! …a rather ordinary looking cavern. The only real thing of any interest Tifa noticed was the intricate stone work beneath their feet. The science team and Miss Sparkle seemed enthralled but the rest... well, underwhelmed is a good word. Sweetie Drops instructed some of the troops to stay behind and secure their exit before addressing the rest of them.

“Watch for pressure plates and traps, ancient Equestrians just loved to pack these kind of places full of them for some reason” the Turk director warned the group. Sure enough it wasn’t long before one of the scientists, a unicorn with his horn aglow, cautioned them to stop before marking a floor tile with a small flag.

After a few more flags and having to actually set one trap off to proceed, the large pendulum blade thankfully only swinging directly over their pressure plate, the group reached a large chamber with another intricate door at the the other end. As the researchers rushed toward it, Tifa took in the surroundings. Another fairly uninspiring room overrun with jungle growth along the walls and lit by large cracks in the ceiling above them.

“Why didn’t they just force their way in though one of those?” Tifa asked looking at the openings, the answer coming as a surprising huff from the lavender unicorn behind her.

“It could compromise structural stability, maybe even throughout the whole ruins” she delivered briskly “Plus with how few resources we’ve been able to give them out here, they probably wouldn’t have even found them anytime soon. In fact, our budget for all the science departments outside of-”

The surprisingly impassioned rant from the normally timid treasurer was suddenly cut short by a rustling amid the dense vines of the wall. The Turks and troopers readied their weapons at the potential threat…

Only for a small white rabbit to emerge and take a seat at the tip of a broken branch sticking out of the foliage. It tilted it’s head curiously at them, completely unconcerned about the amount firepower currently pointed at it. With an eye roll, Sweetie Drops held up a hand for the rest to stand down while holstering her own sidearm. Along with a few relieved sighs, Rina was the first heard.

“What the hell’s a rabbit doing in the jungle?”

“Well there are actually a few species of rabbits that-” Twilight began when the ‘branch’ the rabbit was set upon pivoted down and the room began to shake. The reason why soon became clear as the floor grew steeper, pitching toward a growing darkness opening below the far door. The researcher trio were the first to disappear, being the closest to the edge.

The few fliers among the troopers took flight and moved to help when the sound of several heavy shots rang through the cavern, knocking them from the air to tumble down into the pit. Tifa couldn’t see the shooter and was unfortunately a bit too preoccupied trying not to slide down the the rapidly tilting floor to try. Even the handholds she and a few of the others managed to grab were rendered moot when more holes exploded all around them and sent the stragglers plummeting with the rest. The only thing the brunette managed to see before the light cut out was a glimpse the rabbit on the lever.

'Was that little shit Waving?!'

As the darkness engulfed her she felt the wide expanse of the hole replaced by a narrow tunnel, separating her from the others as they were shunted down other chutes. After a few dips and curves she found herself falling into a dimly lit room, key word on falling. After failing to tumble as well as she hoped to, she started to raise with a groan. Again with a keyword-

“OUF!” Tifa grunted as she found the weight of someone slamming into her back from above. The body pushed themselves up to take a seat on her, legs straddling on either side.

“Hey thanks for the assist Lock’!” Rina’s voice delivered with good humor, patting the the brunette on the back before bouncing her plot lightly against Tifa’s own “Guess all your extra cushioning didn’t just go to your chest, huh?”

Even in the dark, the flat glare the martial artist shot back was clear. The Turk just chuckled back before getting off the fallen woman. She did at least help her up after though. Tifa stretched and brushed herself off before trying to check herself over but couldn’t see much in the near dark. A subtle crack sounded next to her before a Rina’s image, holding a large glowstick, became much clearer.

“Here,” reached up and flipped down the sunglasses perched on Tifa’s head, the room instantly several shades brighter.

“Whoa” she replied with slight surprise. It was far from daylight but at least she wouldn’t be tripping over herself with these “No wonder Rude wanted these back.”

“Oh forget that, he has tons and puts darkness protection on all of them, what with his weird compulsion to always have some on. Besides, I’d say you earned them by now” Rina waved off as she took in where they landed. Far less constructed than the room above, the naturally carved cave walls were marked with small, faintly glowing crystals providing the only other light besides the agent’s glow stick.

“Is this natural materia?” Tifa asked as she learned in to take a closer look.

“Almost, bit more time and they could be. But no, this stuff's not concentrated enough to be used as actual materia; you can tell by how pale they are and the lack of color. But!” Rina explained before tapping her her stun rod on one of the larger protrusions, eliciting an odd but not unpleasant chime “It does mean we’re on the right track. We’re definitely over a mako surge. Come on, we should keep moving.”

Tifa had no complaints and followed as the Turk took point. Still watching for traps, they slowly made their way down the only path they had until they came to a another heavy door. This one lacked any of the complicated components of the the other two, it was just down and blocking their way forward. Tifa simply stepped forward and squatted before it to get a handhold and, while certainly not without effort, hefted the door high enough for the two to slip under. After the loud thud of it falling back into place she turned to see Rina smirking at her incredulously.

“You sure you’re not a Earthie? I’d say even most of them would be hard pressed to match you girly.”

“Pretty sure I’m human… even if I still have trouble telling them apart...” Tifa shot back with a smirk before mumbling the last part.

“Preaching to the choir there Lock, I still haven’t figured out what the hell the director is and we’ve been working together for years now” the redhead laughed as they moved on “but if it helps; Me, Sunny and Sour are Human, Rude’s an Earthie and of course Rarity’s-”

“Is someone there?! Lady in distress here!”

“-Just ahead apparently” Rina finished as the voice echoed from ahead. The pair ran forward into a cavern to find one of the pegasus troopers dead at their feet, a hole through his wing and his neck broken from the fall. Rina summed up the sight fairly succinctly with “Aww shit…”

“Rina?!” a shout sounded from high above. A small purple light ignited to show the porcelain skinned Turk dangling from slide identical to the one the pair exited earlier, except this one was far higher off the ground.

“Hold tight Priss! We’ll try to find somethi-” Rina started before the woman next to her simply shouted,

“Just let go!”

“What?! Tifa dear even IF you manage to catch me it’s much to far of a-WHAAAAA!” the horned Turk was cut off when a tremor shook the room, breaking her grip and sending her screaming towards the floor. Clenching her eyes she waited for the sudden stop, though when it struck her that she’d been screaming long enough to need to take a breath she cautiously cracked one open… just in time to see herself drift gently into the martial artists arms “....uhhhhh”

“Gravity materia” Tifa said a bit winded before setting her down. With the blushing unicorn’s fellow agent snickering nearby, Rarity quickly righted her suit and hair before sighing heavily at the sight of the dead trooper and bringing the group back to reality. Tifa fidgeted uncomfortably as the Turk crouched down over the body searching for something; The only dead body she’d ever been around like this was her grandfather’s when he passed. She knew it was kind of silly but still couldn’t shake the uneasiness, at least he had died of natural causes though.

Rarity rose a moment later with what seemed to be a dog tag and after nodding to her cohort the pair simply started walking on. Tifa stood and gave a quick double take between the pair and the body.

“Wait, we’re just leaving him?”

“We’re still in hostile territory Lock’, we can’t afford to have him slowing us down” Rina replied simply, to which Rarity cut in.

“As callous as it is, I’m afraid that’s the just standard procedure darling. ‘Until the area or at least an escape has been secured, agents are to retrieve identification if possible and leave the fallen behind’” she explained “I’ve activated his tracker, so for now we just have to focus on our task and hope the company will send a retrieval team when all this is over.”

Tifa frowned but nodded. She understood the reasoning, she didn’t like it but she understood and didn’t argue as she took up the rear. She didn’t have time to dwell though when another temor vibrated beneath their feet, though without Rarity’s screaming they could hear a distant echo of an explosion through the tunnels this time.

While still mindful of traps the trio quickly picked up the pace as they continued toward the now near constant clamor of what sounded like gunfire echoing ahead. Between the urgency and darkness Tifa almost didn’t notice the walls were now carved or constructed again, unlike the natural cave she and Rina fell into. Though even that didn’t seem to stop the solid mako protrusions from forcing their way through, which only got bigger and brighter as they delved further in the tunnels.

They passed through a final archway and suddenly found themselves in a massive cavern on a stone catwalk above…

“Is that…?” Tifa began, staring down at the great, glowing river made of multi-chromatic ribbons of light and magic flowing under and through the earth beneath them. She could see that some of it also seemed to branch off to crawl up the walls and ceiling toward-

“Down!” a shout sounded from above just before a barrage of shots nearly shattered Rarity’s barrier. The fashionable Turk fell to a knee, fishing for something from her pockets as the other pair crouched behind the cracked shield. More shots rang out above them though thankfully aimed elsewhere, at what looked like more mako crystals sticking out from the wall. The resulting explosion sent more tremors through the rock that began threatening their balance.

Tifa then finally spotted the source of the shots, what looked like a living cloak weaving wildly through the chamber. She couldn’t even make out anyone inside the dancing crimson ribbon, only the bright flashes and booming rapport of the seemingly endless shots coming from within and toward a group of troopers on the lower catwalks with them. Without a protective barrier like Rarity’s they were forced to simply try avoiding it. The martial artist grimaced as one unlucky rifleman took a shot to the chest, knocking him off into the stream below.

“We need to move up!” Rina yelled as Rarity held the barrier, still searching for something on herself until the former jammed what looked like a morphine syringe into the latter’s leg. The cracks in the barrier disappeared almost the instant after while the purple haired unicorn shot a rather nasty glare at the other Turk, who just ignored it and continued “To the center! Stay close Lock, Rares can only cover one direction if we want full protection! ...Move!”

The trio crouch ran as quickly as the could toward a wide platform in the room's center under a ring of the upper catwalks. The flash of red wiped past them when Tifa thought she saw an opening and quickly casted another gravity spell centered on the threat, hoping to drag it into the pit. Her only reward was to see a brief humanoid silhouette with wings before it flashed and a tight grouping of shots struck her shoulder, her bangle’s defensive charm only barely deflecting them into a pair of deep gashes across her bicep.

“Not to deride your efforts dear but maybe you should just keep your head down! This kind of fight doesn't exactly seem like your forte” Rarity offered consolingly as they reached the center. Tifa obliged and took cover behind the Turks again, far more exhausted than she expected.

‘That armory clerk hadn’t been joking when he said this materia was strenu… holy shit…’ Tifa’s thought was quickly derailed as she looked up.

Suspended right there above them, from what looked like a mass of huge coiled roots covered in jutting, glowing crystals, was an unrefined materia the size of her torso that simply radiated with a pinkish magic.

‘Well, they did say there’d be no mistaking it’

“Hey Boss!” Rina shouted next to her, breaking her out of her awe enough to follow the agent’s gaze. Perched on the edge of the of the ring above was the the rest of the team, along with two of the scientists and Twilight scrunched under a domed barrier spell behind them. The Shinra treasurer clutched her pith hat tightly against her head with her horn glowing brightly within her protective bubble. Agent Sweetie Drops paused mid-aim to glance down at her subordinate's call “Are you a Human or an Earthie?!"

The Turk director rolled her eyes with an irritated huff and returned to the task, emptying her side arm before deftly dodging another barrage of bullets. As Rude rushed to her side with a barrier of his own she looked back down at them, her gaze shifting between Zap and Tifa. She knew so long as their opponent kept up this pace and their seemingly endless ammo that it wouldn't be long until they were whittled away enough to finish off. The arrival of the two gave her an idea, even if she didn’t like it…

“GaH!” another trooper cried out behind her when a heavy round caved in half his helmet, sending him falling to a bridge below. She let out a heavy sigh as she relented and with a frown, ached an eyebrow at the bald man next to her who returned a quizzical look.

'It's just so stupid.'

“PITCH IT!” she called out. A beaming smile immediately exploded onto Rina’s face.

“Really? You’re saying that?” Rude asked incredulously.

“Shut up you'll ruin it!” Rina was practically bouncing “Lock, that arm still work?”

“Uh, yeah mostly. Why?”

“NOW!” Sweetie Drops yelled out before an answer and broke away firing, drawing the cloaked enemy's aim. The rest of the troopers caught on to open in full too. As the streak of red danced and weaved through the fire above, Rina had sprinted back down the catwalk and was now charging straight back toward Tifa.

“Ally-OOP!” the Turk called as she planted a foot in the cup of the surprised martial artist’s hands. The brunette’s wounds protested but she thankfully caught on quick enough and heaved the woman straight up to her partner, who was now glowing along with a materia under his sleeve. Flipping in mid-air she landed against a pulled back forearm that launched right back out.

“EEP!” the cloak tried to stop as a sloppily dressed red-head was suddenly an foot from her face, a pale figure finally visible as it tried to reverse its flight. It’s eye’s bugged and pupils shrunk as it realized it was too late.

“FASTBAAAAALL-SPECIAL!” Rina cheered with way too much joy and cracked her baton against the flier’s face as hard as she could. Their opponent landed in a heap on the center platform between Tifa and Rarity, who were the first to see it was a pegasus woman under all those layers of a tattered red. She began to stir as the remaining Shina forces moved to surround the downed shooter.

“Noooo…” Tifa heard the girl groan angrily and a pair of blood red eyes under ratty pink locks suddenly caught her own as the girl pushed herself up. The gaze snapped about erratically to the approaching threats before locking back on to her’s, Fury and pain shone clearly in the intense orbs; Fury, pain.. and fear “I won’t go back there…”

Pale yellow bat like wings with odd patches of askew feathers flared out when a shot shattered the stone before her.

“Don’t move!” Sweetie Drop’s voice echoed with strict authority, sidearm aimed unerringly at their opponent.

“I’M NOT GOING BACK!” the red-eyed woman screamed, head whipping around frantically in an enraged panic. She suddenly snapped her massive handgun's aim upwards at the hanging materia “I WON’T LET SHINRA TAKE ME AGAIN!”

Another shot from above struck the girl’s chest, sending the shot wide and into the roots. Unfortunately, it became abruptly clear it hadn't been wide enough.

The chamber began to to shake even more violently as great cracks of light spread from the hole. Everyone struggled to keep their footing as the mako flow intensified and grew to an almost blinding brightness. To worsen an already bad situation the currents flowing up the walls now blocked the ways out. Even in her short time here, Tifa already learned that making contact with raw, unfiltered mako was a very bad idea.

“GET TO THE CAVES! YOU’LL JUST HAVE TO PUSH THROUGH!” the Turk director’s distorted voice called through the rumbling. Tifa and Rarity sprinted down the catwalk with the remaining troopers, the brunette only barely catching the pegasus woman mumbling a mantra of “Never again” over and over as she passed. Another pang of guilt hit her as she left the girl behind, but they couldn’t afford to stop with their footing readily crumbling beneath them.

They had nearly reached the exit when a beam of pure white engulfed the narrow path from above, erasing it from existence. They couldn’t even turn around before the catwalk fell out from under their feet…

Sending them into the surging stream below

-Several Hours Later-

The three Turks sat huddled together under blankets in front of a medical tent near the landing zone, trying to shield themselves from the essentially constant gale the presence of so many more copters cramping the clearing had created. Holding oxygen masks up to their faces as as IV drips fed a mako neutralizer into their systems, the trio looked like death.

Sweetie Drops looked again to where the needle met her arm, failing to ignore just how much she hated the stuff. She of course knew it was deathly important but even the smallest amount made the patient feel like complete shit, even worse than what was causing it in the short term. But still, Mako poisoning wasn’t something you messed around with.

All things considered though, their exposure was pretty minor. With the full treatment and how quickly their support arrived, most of those that were lucky enough to be on the upper walkway would be better within a day or two. Maybe not feeling too great for a while yet, but not in any danger.

‘Those that were on the lower level though...’ the director thought grimly. A grunt from Rude immediately refocused her attention however. The larger Turk jut his chin at a group in hazmat suits wheeling a trio of isolation pods into another tent. The Turks immediately rose to follow.

“Hey now you need to-MRPH!” a medic protested until a hand latched onto their face.

“Fuck off” Rina grumbled as her partner easily shoved the poor fellow to the ground without even breaking her stride.

“Did you find them?” Sweetie immediately asked as they entered the tent, her tone calm and even but still clearly without the patience for any bullshit. One of the hazmatted medics turned but appeared to be struggling on how to answer.

“Yes, and they’re… well, there’s some… complic-” he faltered, before cutting himself off and with a heavy sigh just gestured “See for yourself.”

The group shouldered past, Sweetie and Rina stepping between the two on the left to look in the pods' observation windows. Rarity and the yellow woman they’d been fighting both lay unconscious within. By some miracle they looked fine, other than the wounds the girl received in the fight they looks perfectly unharmed. A least until they realized-

“Are they glowing?!” Rina balked, her fellow Turk looked to be illuminating her entire pod in a deep purple light. She turned back to see the pegasus was the same, only glowing a bright pink instead.

“See what I mean? They’re completely saturated yet have virtually no symptoms typical of mako poisoning” the medic shrugged “And that’s just them, her on the other hand… forgive my bluntness but I’ve got NO damn clue.”

The pair followed his gesture to the last pod that Rude was standing over, staring down in stunned confusion. Seeing him slack jawed and with glasses having allowed to fall askew, the two shot each other concerned glances and rushed over.

It was then that those in the tent witnessed a far rarer sight than a mere shaken Rude. Sweetie Drops had been in the game longer than most Turks and had seen more than most anyone else in the company, which was saying something considering her age. There was nary a sight that could shock her. Oh sure she could get flustered or even angry, and there were still plenty of things she knew better than to assume she knew or to think there was any lack of what could still surprise her. But she liked to believe herself disciplined enough to never be completely caught off guard. So when she looked at something and her only response is,

“What the FUCK?!”

Then you know that something was seriously wrong. For there below the trio in her pod was Tifa Lockhart, lying unconscious like the others.

And with her entire form covered in large, brightly shining cracks of light.

‘Uuuuugghhh...’

‘Hey! There you are! You were out for a while there.’

‘Uhhhh …hwha?’

‘Yeah, that lifestream can be pretty nasty huh?’

‘Stream?’

‘But good news! You’re still alive! But you really should probably wake up’

‘Wha-AAAAHHHHHH!!!’

‘To find out what’s causing tha-

Tifa awoke with a scream as an electric current surged through her. Her panicked attempts to flee quickly revealed she was restrained, suspended vertically in a great ring by her arms and legs. The voltage mercifully stopped and let her fall limp in the shackles, leaving her panting and her eyes wrenched shut in pain.

“THIS IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE! SHE’S A SAPIENT BEING DAMNIT!” she could hear what sounded like Sweetie Drops shouting at someone, though it seemed a bit muffled and distorted. With some effort she cracked an eye open to see she was on a raised platform behind some kind of safety glass, little bleeps and whirs of monitoring equipment sounded around her.

“Oh it was just a little wake up jolt. It’s nothing a specimen of her caliber can’t withstand” a flanged, female voice the martial artist couldn’t describe as anything other than sadistic answered back over an intercom “See?”

Tifa cried out as another shock ripped through her, this one lasting just a little longer than the first. Though it certainly didn’t feel like it to her.

“STOP IT!” the Turk leader demanded, which Tifa was immensely grateful that is seemed to work. She sagged down as low as the restraints would allow again, a pitiful groan escaping her as the director continued “You have no right to-”

“I have every right!” the voice interrupted smuggly before quoting “-With the exception of the company president herself with support from the board, the head of the science division has full jurisdiction and final say of all matters both scientific and medical-. Meaning you have no place here Turk! Let alone any authority! I'd say you’re lucky you still even have a place in this company after losing the third one like you did!”

“Policy doesn’t allow you to just ignore-”

“SECURITY!” the intercom squealed slightly with feedback at the interruption “Agent Drops seems to have gotten lost on her way to the security offices. Please see she makes her way there.”

“This isn’t over professor” the woman warned as a quartet of guards escorted her out. Tifa watched helplessly through squinted eyes as her only rescue was forced out. The intercom clicked again as the doors closed.

“And bar the Turks from the detention area, in fact no unauthorized personnel are to permitted on even the surrounding floors!” the voice added.

“Yes ma’am” one of the guards confirmed before relaying the instructions.

A moment later Tifa heard a pressurized door open behind her and footsteps making their way over. Vision still blurry, she couldn’t completely makeout the woman she could only assume was ‘The Professor’ that stepped in front of her, only the general details: Lab coat, Glasses, Dark grey skin, flat turquoise hair hanging limply down over her face, and what even with her hazy sight seemed to be an exceptionally jagged horn. Tifa tried to speak but found she could barely manage small choking sounds, a small collar around her neck impeding her voice.

“Now then…” the scientist purred as a complicated contraption lowered in to view behind her. The device sparked to life and began radiating waves of mako around it’s tip as the changeling smiled deviously “Let’s see just how ‘Broken’ you are...”

“Oh no. OhnoOhnoOhnonono this isn’t good” an excitable woman paced frantically back and forth in her office, bouncing nervously on the balls of her feet as she tried to wear a hole in the carpet. She turned back to her screen, double checking the logs and schedules “This is very bad.”

The woman stood back straight, trying to think of an answer. With the sudden addition of the professor’s ‘new toys’, she had pushed up several of her other project plans to get the out of them the way; Including the one the woman had been working so hard to postpone. In her near hysterical state she turned so suddenly that she banged her leg into her cabinet, nearly knocking her little pet project off to the-

A huge gasp immediately filled the room.

“THAT’S IT!” she cried before quickly clamping hands over her mouth. She quickly snatched the bundle down with a small giggle.

Rarity jumped as Tifa unceremoniously collapsed to the floor before the door even closed behind her, the guards that shoved her in completely unfazed as they walked away from the cell. The martial artist stirred but failed to make any traction in her condition.

“Easy now darling…” the unicorn quickly knelt next to the fallen woman, trying to hoist her up to at least sit against the wall. Brushing the brown locks away from the woman's face, she tried to best to assess the damage. Between the deep bags under her eyes and the sickly pale tint to her skin she looked like hell, but Rarity released a small sigh of relief that were no obvious injuries “Alright, let’s get you on the bed now.”

“No, no I just… I’m fine, I just- I don’t wanna move right now…” Tifa managed, eyes still closed as she weakly waved the woman off. The Turk seemed to accept it and stepped away. The martial artist had lost count of how many times she lost consciousness as that grey woman repeatedly exposed her to different forms and concentrations of mako. She wouldn't have thought something like that would hurt all that much; she was wrong. Even worse the professor never seemed to recreate whatever she wanted to and Tifa had a feeling she wasn’t the type to just let it go.

“Here you are dear” she cracked an eye open as she heard Rarity return, seeing a cup of water in her hands. She took an unsteady sip as the disheveled unicorn retreated to take a seat across from her on the cell's only bed “Your... ‘session’ was even longer than mine. I’m guessing she was indulging herself looking for something other than another potential wielder.”

The human's eyes shot open and shot her a quizzical look, uncertain she heard what she thought she did.

“Yes, so... We found one... Yaaaayy...” Rarity delivered with in mock celebration before sighing heavily, her head hanging low “Actually it appears we found two from what little I overheard from the guards. Both that pale pegasus woman and I were apparently glowing after they recovered us from the stream, which of course led to my own 'examination' and the discovery that I'm one of the very things I was assigned to find. Not sure why she’s so interested in you though.”

“She said something about me being ‘broken’, whatever the hell that means” Tifa answered after a moment, her head clearing ever so gradually. “How long’s it been?”

“Since we fell in? About two days from what I’ve gathered. I haven’t seen any of the rest of the team since I woke up and the professor had us taken for ‘observation’ ... I think we’re on our own here darling” she answered solemnly before placing her head in her hands. She seemed to be just barely holding it together herself. She slid them to the back of her neck, staring at the floor in her hunched over position “...I’m sorry Ms. Lockhart.”

“Hey I’m not blaming you, not when you’re sitting here in the same cell as me” she responded truthfully, Rarity had been nothing but as upfront with her as she could be during this whole mess “Besides, I'd be lying if said I didn't kind of see this coming. If it wasn't one thing I'd figured it'd eventually be another.”

“Heh, I guess there are some pretty nasty rumors about us out there isn’t there?” she scoffed with dark humor “And I’ve seen that at least some of them are true personally but, I didn’t think they’d ever just… I always felt that at least the president was always trying to keep us on the better side of things. That while the means could be undoubtedly questionable, the ends were usually worth it for the greater good. But if she can condone the methods of a woman like the professor, not even to mention some of things I've heard about the others on the board...”

She trailed off before they both just let out another heavy sigh together. From there they shared what little they gleaned to try to fill in the blanks but ultimately there just wasn’t much to say. The conversation died off and the two eventually drifted off to sleep, still exhausted and having no idea what to do about their current situation other than wait.

A few hours had passed before an odd whirring noise caught the pair's attention, even waking the resting Tifa. A churn of a lens focusing rather loudly drew their attention to the small black dome covering a corner of the ceiling. The sound grew louder and began to stutter continuously until they saw a small spark flare behind the dark glass and a deep *fRRzzZT* groaned down at them.

The two glanced back and forth between each other and the dome a few times before Tifa finally voiced the shared thought.

“Did the camera just… break itself?”

Rarity began to open her mouth with a shrug when a loud clunk echoed from a the vent at the floor along the cell’s back wall. Several smaller thuds echoed from what sounded like something fumbling around behind the grating. Both pairs of eyes snapped wide as the cover’s screws began to push themselves out from the other side. As soon as the last screw fell out the grate immediately tripped forward, allowing what Tifa never expected to see in this version of Equestria to step out.

Standing on four legs ending in smooth, marshmallow like hooves, a brightly colored pony about the size of a large house cat or small dog emerged from the vent covered in dust. And not like the 'basically human' ponies she'd grown used to here, but an actual tiny horse with vibrant pink fur walked out of the vent wearing a small cape on its back and a tiny crown perched atop its particularly poofy mane.

The two just stared in a shocked awe as it somehow shook every last particle of dust off itself with a single tremor that slid from the tip of its muzzle to the end of its tail. A pair of bright and very large blue eyes snapped open as it found them with a simply beaming smile.

“HIYA!”

Author's Note

I BACK, BABY! And with a new year's resolution to FINISH MY DAMN STORIES! :rainbowlaugh:

To any you readers returning: thanks for coming back! and to anyone new: Welcome to the madness! I still wouldn't expect any kind of set schedule of releases but by harmony if I'm not gonna try to keep things moving and accomplish that resolution. :raritywink:

Stay tuned readers, more of both Locked Heart and Nano Machines and Magic are on the way. But until then, As Always: Thanks for reading and have a good one! :twilightsmile:

Chapter 5: L1+R1

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Knuckle- Fire, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect, Gravity
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: Enchanted, Reinforced (and Perfectly tailored) Suit, Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Carbon Bangle- Transform, Manipulate
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

The pair sat there trying to process the small pink thing smiling at them. Tifa knew what it was, but didn’t understand how it could be what it was in this world. Rarity on the other hand, simply had no clue.

“Um… hello?” the tiny pink equine looked quizzically up at them, only somewhat breaking through the initial shock. Tifa opened her mouth but failed as her face fell back to bewilderment. Rarity however did manage a response.

“Uh, hello there little… cat thing?” sort of a response at least. For her part the little quadruped just giggled.

“I’m not a cat silly, I’m Pinkie Sith!” she announced proudly.

“Pinkie… Sith” Rarity repeated slowly while Tifa finally found her voice.

“You’re a pony” she stated plainly.

“Pony? Darling that is not in any way a pony, I’m a pony” the very human looking woman with a horn declared.

“No no, she’s right!” Pinkie bounced excitedly on the tips of her hooves and learned in close with a look of wonder “No one else has ever known that!”

“A small horse is also called a pony” Tifa turned back to tell the Turk who continued to look back and forth between them incredulously.

“...Horse?” she asked after a beat.

“Yeah horses, like…” the martial artist faltered; they didn’t have horses here. A few monsters were vaguely horse shaped but those were definitely not horses. Everything was chocobos as she understood it, but she could have sworn there was somethin- “Odin! Er, Orin’s mount rather. But y’know, with fewer legs.”

Rarity still looked unconvinced. She supposed the were some vague similarities what with the hooves and muzzle, but this was no Sleipnir.

“If you say so,” Rarity shrugged “More importantly though, why are you here?”

“OH! Right, I forgot,” Pinkie giggled again into her hoof. She then straightened to stand tough and proudly declare “I’m here to rescue you!”

“You’re here to rescue us?" Tifa repeated flatly.

“Yep! ‘Cause if you think what the professor’s done to you so far was bad, then Ho Boy you don’t wanna know what she put in her notes that she hasn’t ordered for yet!” the caped quadruped explained, and then started listing things anyway “Pain tolerance testing, forced breeding, vivisection, personal Mako extraction-”

“MAKO EXTRACTION!?” the unicorn paled, sputtering as she tried to process “But that’s- it’s- NO! She wouldn’t even dream of it! The president would never allow it!”

“The president’s not here,” Tifa pointed out “Also what’s Mako extraction and how could it be worse than everything else she listed?”

“You know how Mako not only flows through the planet but also every living thing?” Rarity asked to receive a confused nod from the pugilist, one that slowly morphed to reflect the horror that began to dawn on her “Exactly darling, it’s akin to ripping out one’s soul essentially.”

“I say we go with the pink pony in the cape!” Tifa voted anxiously.

“GREAT!” said pony chirped “Oh! But I have one condition, you also need to help my another friend of mine escape too.”

The two bipeds looked to each other and shared a shrug.

“If we're already on our way out, I guess it couldn’t couldn’t hurt to have some more help” Tifa reasoned.

“Okie-dokie then!” Pinkie beamed “I’ll go get the door, though I’m afraid I can’t help with the guards from inside the vents.”

“How many are there?” the displaced asked.

“Two at the end of the hall. Everypony else was shooed off the floor by the professor.” a tiny beep from her crown spurred the pony back into action “Oh, gotta get going before the bypass fails. Try to be ready!”

With that she leapt back into the vents, several clangs and bumps heard as she rushed back up and overhead. Tifa quickly moved to the door, hands flexing.

“Tifa dear, I know you technically don't need weapons but without our bangles and materia those rifles will chew through us before we take two steps” the Turk pointed out, only for the brunette to turn and wink at her. Before she could inquire further however a soft chime issued from the door and the woman had already leapt into the hallway.

“Hey!” Rarity heard a guard shout at the captive now inhaling deeply through her nose.

‘What in the world is she-’ the purple haired woman’s thought broke as a torrent of flame erupted from martial artist’s mouth, slamming into the guards and driving them to the back wall. As soon as the stream of fire cut out Tifa was sprinting down the hall with Rarity peeking her head out just in time to see one guard receive a fist to his helmeted temple followed by a roundhouse to the other’s jaw. The singed guards crumpled to the ground as the Turk approached her ally, who was now coughing up small puffs of smoke.

“Ugh, that’ll cause some reflux…” Tifa grumbled, rubbing at her chest before seeing her bemused companion “What? Did you forget the whole reason you guys picked me up in the first place?”

“Why yes, I suppose I did” the unicorn answered with a chuckle “Well, it seems we’ll have to make do with their equipment for now.”

“NOPE!” the pair jumped as a voice squeaked from above, a small vent hiding a dark silhouette directly overhead “Meet me ‘round the corner!”

The pair followed the thumping in the ductwork cautiously but soon saw that the mare was right, the floor seemed abandoned other than the two unconscious guards. Tifa would have been more concerned about them y’know, dying of head trauma or something, but apparently that wasn’t really much of a concern in this world. Evidently the people here were simply made of tougher stuff and were able to bounce back better, which she learned rather quickly given her inherited proclivities. No, what she was the concerned about was what she saw waiting for them around the corner.

In no unsimple terms, it was a large deformed moogle.

“Is that the robotic mog from the Hearth’s Warming party?” Rarity asked rhetorically “I thought the R&D department dismantled it afterwards. They only built as a joke afterall.”

Another clang issued from above as their pink savior dropped with a vent cover and landed on her plot. Shaking away the cobwebs, she stood and made her way over.

“He got lost thanks to some confusing paperwork, didn’t you Moggy?” Pinkie explained, giving the white furred robot an affectionate pat as she passed the group. The mog just gave a deep pitched hum and reached its large mit into its even wider mouth, pulling out a small wrapped bundle before offering it to Rarity. Gingerly taking the thankfully dry package, the Turk opened it to find all of her confiscated gear. Another package was subsequently handed to Tifa, followed then by a pair of tiny, bite sized cupcakes for the two of them.

“Uh, thanks” the brunette offered as they took the tiny confections. The mog seemed indifferent and moved to join its master now typing away at a console near of a large chamber for observing specimens. How the pony was typing with its marshmallow-esq hooves escaped her but even within the few moments since they met, Tifa was already learning to not question how the mare operated. Instead she found herself distracted by the glowing window of a large, reinforced dome opposite the viewing platform. She slowly ambled her way over despite something telling her to not look inside.

‘Don’t look inside’

She leaned in.

‘Seriously, you don’t want to look inside’

She already was looking inside.

...

There was nothing inside.

‘...huh, never mind then’

“Ah shoot!” the pony’s frustration drew the brunettes attention away from the empty chamber “They still haven’t pushed through the transfer… Okay, change of plans! We need to get down to Specimen Holding.”

“Miss Sith, that’s twelve floors down! Past a security checkpoint and doors we don’t have ID cards for!” Rarity protested “And why is your friend in Specimen Holding?”

“Because he’s- urg, it’s too complicated to explain. It’ll make sense when we get there!” the pink mare was becoming flustered “Look, you can take the main stairs to the the floor above the security checkpoint, and from the vents I can trip an alert to draw them away while you bypass the checkpoint with the emergency scaffolding. From there you can get back on the main stairway-”

“The emergency scaffolding?” the Turk interrupted “You mean that glorified plywood hanging off the side of the building?!”

“Well, it’s either that or stay up here and throw the security troopers a welcome party” Pinkie smiled nervously at them.

The unicorn looked like she was about to lose it when she caught and regathered herself. With a sharp huff she examined the pony before turning to the brunette, who gave a tired shrug in return.

“It’s not like we have much of a choice” Tifa pointed out.

“That’s the spirit! I’ll meet you down there!” Pinkie cheered with an oblivious smile “Come on Moggy, back in your safe space!”

“Saaafe” the mog groaned slowly as he dissipated into glowing particles that were absorbed by a red materia set in Pinkie’s crown. A moment later the mare was gone again, disappeared into another maze of ducts. The left behind pair shared a sigh and made their way to the stairwell.

Like before the stair cases were separated by the different floors, creating a moment of tension everytime they had to expose themselves while swinging around to the next decent. They had made it less than halfway to their goal when flashing red lights went off all around them.

“All security personnel, prisoners have escaped the holding cells on the 67th floor. Converge and secure. All other personnel will follow protocol 617. Repeat: All security-”

“Seems our ‘pony’ friend triggered that alert a bit prematurely” the Turk griped before they heard rapid footsteps echoing from both above and below “Quickly, through here.”

Rarity led the pugilist into a floor dedicated to the most oddly arranged offices and cubicles Tifa had come across. The pair scanned for anywhere they could hide from the closing security forces when a stroke of luck found them.

“PSST! Agent Rarity!” a loud whisper hissed from an anxious unicorn woman peeking out from a door to their right. She frantically waved them over, stepping aside as they rushed inside not a moment too soon. Several troopers burst into the room in a sweeping formation not a moment later. The treasurer issued a frightened "EEP!” as one of the trooper’s rifles landed on her still peeking from the door.

“Miss Sparkle! My apologies!” the infantryman immediately dropped his aim “You should stay in your office for now ma’am, a pair of prisoners have escaped the science team’s holding cells.”

“Oh um well, I haven’t seen anyone this floor. Not that I’ve been keeping watch or waiting or anything like that. But I didn’t see them, certainly not in my office at least, so you, you know um, don’t have to come in to check or anything” Rarity and Tifa both face palmed from behind the door at the other unicorn’s rambling.

“That’s uh, that’s okay Miss Sparkle. We’ll just do a quick sweep and leave a guard by the stairwell. If you… do see anything you can report it to him” the trooper trailed off, his tone suggesting he was almost afraid of upsetting the woman.

‘Wait, that seriously worked?' the brunette thought ‘Oh my god. Is she literally so awkward that all that blathering actually seemed normal for her?!’

‘Oh that poor girl... think she has any idea?’

The dejected look the purple woman wore as she closed the door suggested that she did.

“Thank you Twilight, I always knew you were one of the good ones” the Turk offered quietly, a hand on the girl's arm.

“Oh well, you uh… you’ve always been real nice to me and with how I still owe Miss Lockhart here for saving me and all, I figured anything I could do to help…” she trailed of, then perked up “Oh, I know!”

She scurried off to a filing cabinet, finding whatever she was looking for in an instant and then moved to her computer. While the treasurer was furiously typing away, Tifa took in the office as Rarity listened at the door. Unsurprisingly, everything proved to be meticulously organized. Even the few framed photos that were scattered about the room looked to be at precisely placed angles, one in particular catching the martial artist’s eye. A tall white unicorn with blue hair stood with a smiling Twilight, there was something very familiar about him but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

“Okay” Twilight spoke up and scampered back over, holding a pair of plastic cards “Here, I managed to pool your accounts into a another anonymous account that should elude the typical freezing process. Especially since I’ll probably be the one they have do it anyway. Sorry I couldn’t keep the funds separate, but on such short notice it-”

“This is wonderful dear, more than we could have hoped for” Rarity caught the fellow unicorn off guard with a hug, saving her from another apologetic rant “This will be an enormous help.”

“Yeah besides, I really didn’t have much in there anyway” Tifa added in consolation “Now we’ve just got to get down to Specimen Holding somehow and then out of the actual building and your effort won’t go to waste.”

“Specimen Holding? Oh! I think I can help with that too!” Twilight exclaimed as she broke away from Rarity. She stepped over to Tifa and dragged her to stand rather close to her well coiffed companion, adjusting their positions with gentle nudges as she seemed to be measuring the ground between them. When she finally appeared satisfied she gave them nervous smile “Okay, hold still. I haven’t really done this to other people much.”

Twilight stepped back and scrunched her face, eyes closed tight in concentration as her horn flared with a bright purple aura.

“Wait, haven’t done what to other-” and suddenly the whole room erupted in light and Tifa felt her stomach do flips as the world spun out from under her. Then as abruptly as it left them, everything snapped back in sharp relief and sent the pair flailing as they tried to blink away the spots floating around them.

“Oh my, a little more warning would have been nice Twilight” Rarity huffed out, trying to clear her head with a shake. Tifa pushed herself off some kind of metal gating when something violently crashed against it, snarling and snapping. Jumping back with a yelp the brunette now saw a feral, tentacle backed guard hound locked in what she now realized was a cage. Blushing, she straightened and brushed herself off before seeing Rarity trying to suppress a smile “Don’t worry Darling, I won’t tell a soul.”

A clamor of shifting hooves drew their focus as they saw a pink poof of hair proceed its owner when she poked around a stack of crates.

“Oh wow, that was quick. Well great! Let’s do this thing!” Pinkie spouted happily and forged a path through the cages and creatures. Weaving through the maze of animal prisons ranging from the simple cage to wholly recreated habitats, Tifa spotted a few iconic adversaries but there was an absence of a different kind that she couldn’t help but notice.

“Shouldn’t there be like handlers here or something?” She asked. She wasn’t complaining for the lack of obstacles but it struck her as strange they’d only seen guards so far.

“It’s the night shift dear. Didn’t you notice how dark it was outside Twilight’s window, or how no one else was in the offices with her?” Rarity quarried, a concerned look shot at the human.

“I guess I didn’t…” the brunette muttered back, another blush creeping up.

“I wouldn’t fret about it, it’s been quite the long day after all” the Turk consoled her before nearly tripping over the pint-sized mare that suddenly stopped in front of her.

“This is it!” Pinkie announced as they found themselves in front of a large metal box that was notably isolated from the rest against the back wall. It had no view ports or cage meshing but instead was a near solid cube with a series of air holes along the top and bottom. A faded ID number of ‘S-91k3’ printed in on its front the only other defining feature.

Tifa noticed a hastily painted yellow outline surrounding the crate as Pinkie trotted over casually, oblivious to the large ‘FIRE HAZARD’ warnings bordering all around it. Only after that discovery did she see that several of those air holes were bordered with dark scorch marks.

“Pinkie…” Rarity started warily as the pony hopped up to cling to the a panel next to the container “When you said transfer I thought you meant an employee stuck working in this department. Just what kind of ‘friend’ of yours is this.”

“Why would an employee need rescuing silly? Well, I guess you could say he technically works with the people who work here, does that count?” the mare mused still messing with the panel “and as for what kind, you can see for yourself!”

“Pinkie wait!” the unicorn tried but a pink hoof had already pushed the button, triggering the whole front of the cage to pop off and hit the ground with a deafening clang. The two escapees started inching away, the Turk’s hand hovering just above her weapon as the shadow within began to stir and stand. Stepping next into the floor’s dim light was another quadruped, but another little pony it most certainly was not.

What stalked out was roughly the shape and size of a lion or some other big cat, though other than the claws and sharp teeth most of the similarities ended there. It was covered in dark purple, armor-like scales save for its underbelly which shone with much smoother, pale green scales more like those of a snake. A ridge of rounded spines in a more saturated shade of the same color ran from the top of its head to nearly the tip of its thick tail that ended in what seemed to be an actual flame burning bright green.

‘Holy shit it’s a fucking dragon.’ was the first thought that resembled anything coherent in the brunettes head. For its part, the reptilian fire breather merely studied the pair passively before looking down to the pink pony grinning broadly up at him.

“Friends of yours?”

“It can talk!?” Rarity exclaimed.

“Yes… I can talk” the dragon affirmed flatly in a deep but still somewhat young voice, its gaze returning down to the pony again “So?”

“Yuh-huh!” Pinkie confirmed his earlier question. The fire-breather gave a small hum and continued his earlier study, particularly the hand still on the unicorns holstered weapon.

“If that’s right then I assure you that won’t be necessary, not for me at least.”

“OH! Yes, yes of course excuse me. It’s just, well you…” The Turk fumbled until reaching some semblance of control “You can talk.”

“Yes, that's been established” the reptile quipped, a small smirk appearing on his lips. Rarity once again corrected herself before elaborating.

“I’m sorry, but I was under the assumption that all sapient dragons had gone extinct.”

“Well there's at least one left as far I know, so not yet they're not” the dragon shrugged.

“Not to interrupt” Tifa interjected “But we’re still escaping right?”

“Oh yeah!” Pinkie chuckled “Okay then! Now we just have to head down to the Fiftieth floor to reach the fire escape stairs.”

“Cutting it a little close there between the SOLDIER floor and their director’s but I suppose that does seem the best course. ...Ugh, all those stairs though” Rarity sighed before giving Tifa a less than eager look “Hope you’re ready to work up a sweat darling.”

The brunette didn’t look any more enthused, even without the memory of the game it didn’t take a genius to figure out that fifty flights of stairs didn’t make for a fun time. Thankfully it seemed like the elevator would actually be safer to get them down to the determined floor at least. Since it wasn’t a vital area, Rarity said security wouldn’t be pinged to question the looping feed Pinkie apparently set up.

“This is the break room floor you took me to right?” the buxom fighter asked.

“The very same, it hasn't been two weeks but it seems so long ago now doesn’t it?”

The doors chimed and they piled out. Pinkie finagled with the panel and managed to activate the emergency stop; it wouldn’t hold up any longer than a call to maintenance or security to flip a switch but it would still buy those extra few seconds. The unicorn woman also sealed the door with a quick flash of her Ice materia.

Satisfied, they started their way across the floor when a glowing clock rune suddenly appeared under their feet, spinning rapidly before abruptly stopping. None of them had a chance to to even budge before they no longer had the ability to, save for the groups only human.

“Here everypony is rushing to the cells when the most obvious way out is right below them” a cool feminine voice echoed as a side door opened between them and their goal. A tannish woman stepped out wearing the dark red uniform of a 2nd class SOLDIER, the telltale glow of mako infusion clear in her eyes. Placing a pneumatic gauntlet on her hip and flipping her long, dark grey hair out of her face, she smirked at the brunette in front of the Stopped escapees “But then again, maybe they just remembered I was here and knew they wouldn’t be needed.”

Tifa immediately recognized the elite as Canyon Crusher, the same one who watched over Twilight so vigilantly during the AVALANCHE attack and who she later found out was one of the 3rd classes she faced in the simulation. Evidently, she’d gotten a promotion since that template.

Swallowing audibly, Tifa slowly raised her fists and fell into her usual stance.

“Oh you’re kidding, right?” the SOLDIER practically laughed “What? You think because you sort of beat up a couple old 3rd class simulations and held off Rina and Rude when they were deliberately trying not to hurt you that you’re hot shit now?! Do yourself a favor love, and just give up.”

The human risked an uneasy glance back to her frozen allies, it was true she didn’t think she could win on her own but if she could just break Canyon’s concentration or keep her busy until the Stop effect wore off then they could probably take her all together. She could at least do that, right? Steeling herself, Tifa took a deep breath and charged the woman before dropping into a slide against the SOLDIER’s exposed feet.

The elite stepped forward into a wide stance at the last moment, absorbing the strike and stopping it so solidly that Tifa’s momentum actually snapped her almost back up right. A metal covered hand snatched one of her suspenders and yanked her the rest of the way, straight into the other gauntleted fist slamming against her face. Hitting the ground, Tifa quickly scrambled backward as the earth pony woman brought a hand up to a chortle.

“Oh wow, I knew you looked a bit sloppy in the test recordings but now I just kind of feel bad” Tifa stood scowling, hands raised again. The SOLDIER barely gave her a moment before retaliating with a charge of her own and a fist reared back. Tifa braced to block high, absorbing the strike and preparing a counter. Or rather she was until the fellow pugilist continued forward, shoving into the brunette while sweeping her leg, the other pneumatic glove catching her in the stomach on the way down. Tifa shouldered back and arced her fist around only for it to be deftly caught, the stressed grunt of the SOLDIER a cold consolation indeed. Tifa kept pressing the punch to try to unbalance her opponent with little success “Now don’t get me wrong girly, you’ve got the strength alright… But you have no idea how or when to use it!”

Crusher spun out of the to hold to guide Tifa’s own strength past her and smash a backhand into the back of her head, accelerating the brunette’s face first trip to the ground.

‘Shit, I didn’t think I’d do this badly’

‘Just got to try and hang on…’

“And while I’ve never seen a style quite like yours…” Tifa pushed off the ground into a sweeping kick that her opponent easily jumped over and returned a knee to her face for the trouble “you broadcast so much you might as well call your attacks through a damn mega phone. Looks like the little pink thing has one you can use.”

The earthie casually circled her with her arms loosely crossed as Tifa struggled back up to her feet. As soon as she had a semblance of balance she swiped her arm up with a rapid retreat, sending a wave of flame rushing at the mako infused fighter. The SOLDIER burst straight through without so much as a blink to descend upon her again, lecturing her while emphasizing each point with another strike.

“This isn’t some bar fight to break up!”

A backhand snapped her head to the side.

“Real fighters aren’t stumbling drunks!”

A kick slammed into her ribs.

“You have no idea how to read your opponent!”

A head butt crashed against her already bleeding nose.

“You only use your materia as an afterthought!”

A painful current from the SOLDIER’s fingertips coursed through her.

“And you can’t even keep your damn arms up!”

A one-two followed by a quick three and four found her just before her suspenders were in her opponents grasp again, their other arm primed over a shoulder.

“Or in other words: You’re Green."

The SOLDIER’s clenched her fist in preparation... only to see the girl’s head loll back, eyes closed with pain. Crusher realized her grasp was one of the only things keeping the buxom novice vertical. The arm dropped and the clearly disappointed elite just lazily pushed the brunette away, watching her fight frantically to just stay on her feet. She sighed as the stumbling finally stopped and began to give way to gravity.

So it’s understandable that Canyon’s blinked in disbelief when a leg to shot out, saving the girl from the floor.

“So the newbie's got some grit huh?” the super soldier droned out, already growing bored of the distraction. She put the hand back on her hip as the woman began to take a deep, ragged breath, arms and head still hanging limp towards the floor “It’s admirable, really. Color me impressed by that if nothing else but, believe it or not, I really don’t want to keep hurting you. So please, just stay dow-”

The word caught in her throat at the uncertain sight of the girl releasing the breath.

‘Did she just… shimmer?’ The SOLDIER tried to process the brief flash of what looked like countless, very faintly glowing cracks sweep over the woman’s form. It was missing the telltale aura of subtle colored flames of a limit, so she knew it couldn’t be that. The bloodied martial artist abruptly stopped trembling and lifted her back foot slightly, her head still down. The elite leaned forward to curiously study the movement.

Until the foot shattered the tile beneath it and the girl was suddenly a foot from the mako infused woman’s face.

“HOLY FUC-!” A red glove smashed into the 2nd class’s face, the first solid hit from the brunette since they started managing to drive her back a good couple feet. Barely catching the next punch, the SOLDIER tried to turn the attack again. She balked when her target twisted in turn and swung back before she could, the strike knocking the wind out of her as a fist drove into her gut. Still taking advantage of the hunched response though, Canyon snapped up and caught Tifa’s chin with the back of her head.

“Where from the stream did all this come from?!” Crusher demanded, blocking and deflecting against the now relentless assault against her. A pair of simultaneous tackles slammed the pair’s shoulders together, their hands becoming locked as mirrored counters cancelled each other out. The moment finally allowed Canyon the chance to see her opponents face as her head came up to meet hers.

And all she found was a silent, hard stare that gave even her pause. Gone was the panicked fear of a novice; this was the steel gaze of a veteran.

“What in the goddamn?” she muttered before Tifa jumped away, her grip still locked in the elite’s and dragging her off balance. The SOLDIER caught sight of the brunette shifting into a low stance but couldn’t react before the heel of a palm struck her chin, followed by two more. She only then regained her footing and shielded her face the next blow.

“I’M A SECOND CLASS SOLDIER! I WILL NOT BE BEATEN BY A ROOKIE!” Canyon roared, dumping her mana into a single overcharged shock and detonating it between them. Both were thrown back but the SOLDIER’s unnatural resistance let her power through and launch at her stunned opponent. She halved the distance when a snap echoed through the room and she was hit with the sensation of gliding through molasses.

Her eye’s flew wide as Tifa’s face snapped up with a scowl and she realized her error. The bloodied and beaten woman stepped forward and reared back an arm. Canyon’s pupils nearly vanished when a flaming aura surged over the the buxom martial artist before dissipating an instant later, leaving her fist with a subtle glow.

‘THAT’S NOT POSSIBLE! HOW COULD A GREEN HORN LIKE HER-’ and then it hit her. It hit her like a frag grenade strapped to the front of a double decker bus and exploding point blank in her face. The wall next to the fire door cratered as a body crashed into it, flaking away into large chunks as it slowly slid out. Now it was the elite’s turn to fight gravity, catching herself for just moment to stare uncomprehendingly at the other martial artist.

“What the fuuu...” she slurred out and crumpled unconscious to the floor.

A satisfied hum chirped from the smirking Tifa as she stretched her arms out behind her. Aching her back into it and thrusting certain assets slightly more skyward, she sung a very familiar victory tune under her breath as she took the in moment.

She collapsed not a second later when another shimmer washed over her, legs splaying to either side as her knees and tail bone met the tile. A quick arm shot out to catch the rest of her while the other hand flew up to grip her head. She swayed uneasily as the room refused stay still until a gentle hand landed on her shoulder to steady her, a cure spell soon washing away some of the pain and dizziness.

“Easy now darling, we’ve got you.” Rarity cooed softly and repeated the casting. The victorious brawler shook away the last of the effects before lifting her head, marveling at the scene around her. Her gaze whipped around between the fallen SOLDIER and her freed companions. Wide, searching red eyes finally landing on the Turk’s.

“What happened?” the trio flinched back in surprise. They all traded a worried glance with one another before turning back to the human.

“We were about to ask you the same question.”

Tifa arched an eyebrow and opened her mouth to respond when a metal grinding noise demand their attention. Several bangs and muffled grunts sounded from the still frozen over elevator

“Perhaps later then!” Rarity relented. Spurred back into their escape, the four of them barrelled past the prone super soldier and into the stairwell. Another chill fell over the group as this door was encased in a thick layer of ice as well.

“We’ll not make it more than a few floors before they’re through that, any ideas?” the sapient dragon queried.

“We JUMP!” the pink pony announced with a smile. She leapt onto the exhausted Tifa’s shoulder before hanging down to her bangle and popping out one of the materia “Don’t worry Tif-Tif! I’ll cast this one!”

The bipedal pair moved to argue when they heard the guards breach the elevator. With some unhappy hums and grunts they hopped up on the railing, the narrow opening of the spiral not even enough for them to see the bottom. Accomplishing an uneasy balance on the bar, they took a deep breath.

“OKAY! ON THREE!” Pinkie yelled

“ONE!”

“TWO!” The pink mare shoved them as she jumped herself.

“WHAT HAPPENED TO THREE!?” the purple haired unicorn screeched they plummeted toward the ground.

“HAVEN’T YOU EVER GONE SKYDIVING?!” the pony cried, giggling all the way down in contrast to the women’s screaming. A magical hum barely sounded over them as a dark aura enveloped the quartet, gradually slowing their decent and letting go with just a half story to go.

The dragon landed solidly with the pink mare bouncing onto his back. The other two hit the ground a bit less gracefully.

“I vote we never do that again” Tifa groaned as they rose on violently shaking legs.

“Party poopers” Pinkie teased. The focus was reacquired when the Turk cleared her throat.

“Don’t let your guard down, we’re not quite out of this yet ladies. And gentle… drake” the well coiffed woman added “Come on, I can lead us the rest of the way.”

Several back alleys and a harrowing climb down a loosely supported cable later, the group found themselves sprinting down a train tunnel to their next destination. They’d gotten lucky with the train schedule so far, not only were there only a few that ran this late but it seemed the company shut them down to impede their escape. Too bad they had no intention of riding any.

They just hit a fork in the tunnel when a gout of red and black flame erupted before them.

“Heya Priss” a familiar voice spoke from an alcove set in the side of the tunnel “See that Rude? Told you she’d bring ‘em through here.”

The tall Turk stepped out from the opposite side to Rina, moving to block their way forward with his partner. Rarity stalked forward with a fierce look.

“Move.” she demanded with a deadly serious tone. Rina just slumped her shoulders with a dramatic sigh.

“All you had to do was stay put. The president would have returned and-”

“And how long until she left again and we were once again at that madwoman’s mercy, or until one of the other division heads decided to see how much ‘use' we could be?” the unicorn spat back “No, for her to have even tolerated this kind of corruption is damning enough alone. I won’t sit around waiting for this to happen again or follow a woman who could have allowed it to happen in the first place. The ends no longer justify the means. Now move.”

“We can’t let you get her Rare.” the red head side stepped to stay in her path.

“You will not keep me from my sis-”

“DO YOU REALLY WANT HER INVOLVED IN THIS PRISS?!” Rina snapped back, dropping the easy-going act and stopping Rarity in her tracks “She’s a kid, she shouldn’t have to live as a fugitive just because you lost your faith in the company. Besides, the boss already picked her up.”

“WHAT?!” the pale woman screamed, stomping forward.

“She’s a close contact that needs to be monitored until the search is called off. She’ll stay in Turk custody until deemed appropriate.”

Rarity faltered at that, her eyes narrowing suspiciously at the pair.

“Turk custody?” she asked warily. Rina shot back a confident smirk.

“Well you escaped a high security holding area.”

“It’s a security matter now” Rude finished calmly. The unicorn stepped back, gaze down as her mind raced.

“We’ll take care of her Rares, she's already with Lyra. She likes her right? We’ll probably even be able to send her back to your parents when things calm down” Rina finished when Tifa finally spoke up.

“And what about us?” the casual Turk met her wary gaze with with a steady one of her own. It shifted to her now former coworker and finally to share a long stare with her partner. She finally just threw her arms up in a shrug, the bald operative raising a pair of fingers to his ear bud in response.

“This is Rude, still no sign of the targets… acknowledged, maintaining position for now. Out.”

“...Well go.” Rina finally said to the hesitating fugitives, gesturing to the other tunnel. Still watching the pair closely, the group skirted past and ran down the tunnel.

“PRISS!” the called echoed out behind them, the horned woman turning to see Rina looking over her shoulder at her seriously “We can’t do this again. Next time…”

Rarity nodded solemnly at the implied warning before turning back and continuing with the others, hoping this was still the right decision.

Faint beams of light filtered down through exposed and broken rafters as Tifa worked to remove a heavy, makeshift grating from a large manhole. Pinkie and the dragon they’d come to know simply as ‘Spike’ kept watch on the nave of the abandoned church while Rarity dug through a summoned foot locker. The fist fighter finally broke the obstruction free to expose a rough hewn, rocky tunnel; a covert entrance used by the Turks to get into the subterranean caves beneath the plates.

‘Guess I’m going to see the Undercity after all, huh?’

‘...’

“Ms. Lockhart” Tifa jumped as Spike’s soft call brought her back to the moment “I believe she’s here.”

Tifa turned to see the very welcome sight of a pink woman with bright green hair and a shotgun on her back stepping somewhat gingerly past the odd pair. As soon as her eyes found the martial artist her face lit up and she quickly ran straight to her, shifting the heavy bag draped across her chest before landing on the brunette with a hug.

“Hey Zest” Tifa returned the embrace with a tired but very genuine smile “Sorry to drag you out here.”

“Hey no worries,” Zest tried to wave off despite the distressed uncertainty behind her expression “Always good to remind myself I picked the right sector, Five being the shithole it is… But here, special delivery.”

Lemon unslung the very familiar looking duffle from her shoulder, grunting slightly as she handed it over to the now criminal. Tifa accepted the weight but immediately dropped it at the sight of a smaller travel bag that was hidden by the larger luggage.

“No!” Tifa shot a deadly seriously look at the music lover as she snatch the base of the bag’s strap.

“Lock’ I’m not just gonna-”

“NO!” Tifa repeated louder, her gaze growing almost angry as she cut the girl off.

“But Tif’ even without my parents I still have contacts and money! I can help!”

“I won’t allow you to just throw everything away for me! Especially when your parents have enough clout to keep you out of trouble!” Tifa finished, letting go of the strap and standing her ground against the girl’s protests. Rarity meanwhile, having dismissed the trunk back to the red materia on her wrist, shot a raised eyebrow at the girl who returned a shrug.

“Citris is my mom” Zest explained simply. It took a moment but a wave of comprehension washed across the former Turk’s face.

“Ah, yes. I suppose trying to prosecute the child of one of their own best lawyers would give even the board some pause. Particularly when you’ve done nothing wrong.”

“That they know about at least” Lemon added, gesturing around to the situation they were in. Her shoulders slumped and her gaze fell as she turned back to her friend “I just… I don’t think I could stand knowing all I did for you was drop off a bug out bag...”

“Zest all you’ve done for me these past six months is more than I could have ever hoped for. I…” Tifa struggled as the sentiment caught in her throat.

‘I don’t know how I could ever thank you enough.’ Just fucking say it and make a connection damnit!’

‘...’

“We should get going. Even with my former cohorts dragging their feet, the rest of the company will think of this way out eventually” Rarity interjected after the awkward moment stretched on a bit too long. Tifa gave a dejected nod, pretty much hating herself at that point. She lingered a few seconds longer as the others filed down the hole, giving her first and best friend in this world another quick hug.

“Thanks Zest. Don’t worry, just stay safe and I’ll do the same.” she let go and quickly rushed down after the others, dragging the grate back over to cover their escape.

The music lover meanwhile stood there staring at the hole for a good while longer, silent until a few drops of moisture streaked gently down her cheeks.

“...You better.”

Author's Note

So fun fact, this story was almost about a Yuffie displaced instead of a Tifa one. I rather like both characters (which is kind of funny because I used to Hate Yuffie) but after a decent bit of deliberation I came to the conclusion that Tifa just had more story and development potential than Yuffie.

That and I already had a displaced story with more lighthearted tone (comparatively). One that also starred a character that's a goofy and kind of obnoxious ninja just like Yuffie. Speaking of which I'm already a few pages into Equestria Gear's next chapter so for those of your that read that as well, know that you won't have to wait long :raritywink:

But for now, as always: Thanks for reading and Have a good one! :twilightsmile:

P.S.- Oh and for those confused by the chapter title, holding L1 and R1 is how you flee a battle in FF7. Figured it was appropriate :derpytongue2:

Chapter 6: Consolations

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Knuckle- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (currently), Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Carbon Bangle- Transform, Manipulate
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth (No Weapon Equipped) --- Mythril Armlet: Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

The lobby doors burst open covered in a golden aura, employees and guests alike scattering in the wake of the very pissed off CEO storming in. Raven and Twilight struggled to keep up with the President and Turk quintet’s brisk pace. It had been three days since the escape and to say Celestia wasn’t happy with the first report she was able to receive would be an understatement at best.

“I want Chrysalis put on immediate probation, with every last one of her projects placed on hold for review! She’s not to examine a single beaker without the direct and explicit consent of either myself or a pair of scientists I deem fit! For now they’ll be...” the alicorn woman fumed as she looked to the ranking personnel files on her tablet “Twilight and Miss Heartstrings.”

“Me ma’am?!” the treasurer blanched.

“She did say ‘for now’ Miss Sparkle. Though the professor won’t be too happy answering to anyone outside the main science department” Sweetie Drops calmly pointed out in a neutral tone, though her underlings caught the ghost of a smile on her lips.

“They’re still scientists” Celestia countered. They were also among the few she could count on for this; Twilight would understand the science probably better than any of them and Lyra was one of few left in the company that wasn’t afraid of the changeling.

“She should be happy to still work here at all frankly...” Raven grumbled as she marked down the president’s orders on their way the the elevators. Celestia’s anger ebbed a little at the comment however. She really didn’t approve of or even like the professor but she was the only one she knew both brilliant and unscrupulous enough to perform the science necessary for their success. It was when she went beyond what was necessary and began indulging herself that things got messy.

‘And it's my fault she ever achieved such a position of power to abuse in the first place’ she sighed heavily. She was saved from dwelling on the fact by the chime of the elevator ushering them in, the group easily fitting into the spacious lift despite their numbers. Celestia had to suppress another sigh as she noticed Twilight staying as close to the door as possible with her eyes glued to the floor, the best ‘view without a view’ as it were. She really hadn’t been the same since the incident, 'Yet another event that weighs on my conscience…’

“Where is the Proxy now?” she refocued, turning the topic away from Chrysalis Hojo. If there remained but one piece of good news in all this, it was the retrieval of the huge materia from the ruins.

“Reactor 3, within its reinforced storage and under heavy guard consisting of both infantry and mechanized units” the Turk director informed “Much to the delight of the latter’s department head.”

‘Ah yes, she has been clamoring for her mechanized troops to serve an even larger role for a while now hasn’t she?' the CEO remembered.

Celestia rather was ambivalent about the head of the company’s weapons development and robotics division, unsure if her motives were genuine. She was easily one of the most neutral members of the board and had so far managed to stay above the corruptions that plagued most of the others, both petty and otherwise. However, she also had the habit of becoming rather… zealous in her beliefs and how they applied to her work. Still, better an eccentric than a psychopath the alicorn supposed.

“Any word on the AWOL copter?”

“No ma’am, though I doubt they deviated willingly. I suspect the captive awoke prematurely and commandeered the craft. The transponder was disabled as well, so we haven’t been able to track them. I apologize that we were not able to pursue at the time but I believed our own cargo demanded priority and we were limited to the two copters.”

“You did not make the wrong decision Agent Drops. Securing the proxy and greater number of potentials was more important, even with how everything turned out.” the president confirmed “Now according to the report, the gunwoman was shouting about what seemed like a very personal beef with Shirna, yes?”

“Yes ma’am” Sugarcoat answered this time “She was screaming something along the lines of never going back, suggesting she has a history within the company. So I’ve been looking through the former employee records and similar avenues with the assistance of Ms. Sparkle. Thus far, nothing has come up.”

“Very good Agent Coat, and a nice show of initiative. I trust you’ll let me know as soon as you find anything.”

“Of course ma’am.”

The elevator pinged again as they reached their first stop. The doors began to part but then let out a number of loud clucks and squeals before stopping only halfway open.

“Oh right, sorry ma’am” Sweetie Drops offered as she and Rude moved to pry the doors apart fully “They’ve been getting stuck on this floor ever since the guards had to force their way through Rarity’s ice spell.”

Celestia simply gave an acknowledging hum in her passing and Twilight quickly stepped through after her, letting out the held breath as she landed on more secure footing again. The stand-in treasurer made a few notes on her tablet as the rest filed onto the recreation floor. Celestia gained a small grin as she peered over the unicorn woman’s shoulder to see her currently sifting through the maintenance budgets, checking on the repair schedule.

‘Always the reliable one, aren’t you Twilight?’ she thought before approaching the scene of the altercation. A few stubborn scorch marks remained but it seemed the area had been well cleaned since the fight. The only other signs left were a sizable crack in the hallway tile and, of course, the person sized dent next to the fire exit. It was actually a surprisingly small amount of damage for a fight that bested a SOLDIER, but it was not simply that nagging at the CEO.

It was almost like there a strange kind of imbalance lingering in the air, a nearly unconscious sensation of something unnatural.

“How is SOLDIER Crusher recovering?” she inquired of the Turk director after a moment, shaking off the feeling.

“Steadily ma’am” the stoic woman delivered.

“Though her pride may take a while to recover” Agent Flare added, earning a few smirks from her comrades.

“Do you have the feed ready then?” Celestia moved on, overlooking the quip.

“Yes ma’am, I just finished compiling and editing it prior to your arrival. As a precaution, I’ve limited the number of those that have seen it as much as possible.” her own team gave her some confused looks at that one “Trust me ma’am, you’ll understand when you see it.”

“Then I suppose we should get to it right away then” the alicorn woman said as they returned to the elevator, giving her another moment to inquire further “What would you say is the likelihood of reconciling with our wayward employees?”

Sweetie Drops hesitated as she considered the more subjective nature of the the issue.

“Difficult at best. Ms. Lockhart is an uncertainty but while she hadn’t shown any open hostility toward Shinra, she never seemed to let go of her initial suspicions. I very much doubt recent events have helped that case.”

“I can vouch for that” Sunny added “while she seemed open minded enough and not too begrudging about the whole forced cooperation thing, she was always pretty wary and I never got the feeling that she ever fully believed our intentions.”

“Now as for Agent Belle?” the director paused again and turned to Rina and Rude “You two were more personally acquainted with Rarity, what is your assessment?”

Rina scratched the back of her head, reminding herself to phrase the answer like she and Rude hadn’t personally let them escape.

“Ehhh, I won’t say it’s impossible but it’ll probably take a lot more than a sorry and a ‘it won’t happen again’ to bring her back” now, always the eloquent one, Rina continued unperturbed “I’d say her faith in the company was pretty well fucked with what was allowed to happen to her and honestly, I can’t say I blame her.”

“Rina!” Sweetie Drops started to scold the tactless Turk when Celestia gently stopped her.

“It’s alright Ms. Drops, there were more than enough oversights that led to this failure. Thank you for your honesty, Agent Zap.” she delivered stoically, but there was a somber note behind the words nevertheless. The doors chimed once more and the entourage made their way to one of the company’s private meeting rooms. As they filed in, the treasurer hesitated at the door.

“Should I be here? What with this being so top secret and all?” Twilight fidgeted as the director turned to regard her.

“It’s not entirely a secret Miss Sparkle, I merely wished the president to be the first to see the footage and be the one to decide how much to keep ‘top secret’ and what to reveal to the rest of the board and security.” Sweetie Drops expressed in another neutral tone “You’re scientific insight could prove useful though and the president trusts you. Besides, you still have your top level clearance.”

“I do?!” Twilight squeaked. As the treasurer, she had a fairly high clearance as it was but she had been sure it was downgraded after her reassignment. Yet the director merely nodded and turned back to the screen, grabbing the remote.

An image of Rarity, Tifa and the yellow thestral-like girl glowing within their isolation pods appeared at her first click. Celestia gave a curious hum at the images; they had been described in the initial report that expedited her trip home but the pictures had been absent for security sake.

“So the professor was able to determine Agent Rarity is attuned to the Generosity currents of the stream, yes? Have we any idea what your assailant was attuned to?” the alicorn asked, studying the yellow woman emitting a pink radiance in her pod.

“No ma’am. Without her here to test, I’m afraid not” the head Turk replied.

“Um, actually…” Twilight spoke up “I think it’s reasonable to assume she’s attuned to the ‘Kindness’ currents… er, ma’am.”

“Oh? Do explain Twilight” Celestia smiled, repressing a chuckle at the subdued air quotes used with the currents’ less scientific moniker.

“Well, it’s only a theory but the preliminary findings suggest that the recovered huge materia may serve as a potential suitable for the Element of Kindness, as it’s had the most positive reactions to those currents. Given what was most likely a long term exposure to the materia, the open mako flux flowing beneath it, and her showing little to no adverse effects, I believe it’s reasonable to assume she’s attuned to those currents as well.” Twilight hypothesized and the group could literally see as a few more of the figurative gears clicking into place as she spoke “In fact, given her near endless stamina during the encounter, she may have actually been strengthened by the close proximity to them.”

“We can't treat it as a solid conclusion but that is a reasonable assumption we can work with. Your passive strengthening theory is also warrants consideration. Raven, make a note of it.” Celestia agreed before turning her attention to the final image: the woman covered in glowing cracks all across her from “Now this most certainly isn’t harmony attunement. If anything it’d say it looks like a mana rupture, but there doesn’t seem to be any physical injuries… and you say they faded away without leaving any mana burn or lacerations?”

“Yeah” Rina piped in “Same as how Priss stopped glowing a little ways into the trip back to the city, the cracks just faded off Lock' without a trace; like they were never there to begin with.”

“Perhaps it’s time to start the footage” Sweetie Drops suggested and, with a nod from the CEO, clicked the remote. The angles were limited, though that was not surprising given that they rarely needed to watch their employees on break. The hallway and elevator cameras offered a decent enough view of the scene however.

They watched as the fugitive group rushed out the elevator, most giving rather befuddled looks at the tiny pink creature riding atop the dragon’s back. The image seemed to freeze until Tifa started moving again, the illusion caused by her frozen associates. The footage cut to a wider angle of the hall to show the 2nd class SOLDIER stepping into view and the incredibly one sided bout that followed.

“Are we certain it was Miss Lockhart who defeated Canyon?” the president asked quizzically.

“Yeah, seems like this ass kicking should be reversed with how Crusher ended up” Agent Zap snarked.

“You’ll see in a moment” was all the director said, ignoring her subordinate’s comment. The group remained silent until the shimmer washed over the brunette.

“What the fuck?” Rina muttered, a sentiment shared by most in the room.

Celestia however was far more concerned with what she saw afterwards, the impossible jump in skill the boxum martial artist seemed to pull from thin air. They watched as the elite was caught completely off guard and began to falter against the renewed assault. Then a gasp hissed through the room as the final hit connected.

“No way!” Sunny exclaimed.

“Was… was that a forced limit?” Sugarcoat’s passive facade gave way to confused skepticism.

“A forced partial limit to be exact” Sweetie Drops clarified.

“Even most of SOLDIER can’t pull that off!” Rina added “Lock is nowhere near that good! Hell, she could barely hold her own against me and Rude when we were holding back! Priss said she’s never managed to use her normal limit, how could she have pulled that off?!”

“Show it again” Celestia’s calm voice cut through the exchange, her eyes remained on the footage and watching intently “No, no the whole thing, after the shift…”

The group fell quiet again as the leader studied the fight.

“Again.”

The footage repeated as Celestia processed what she was seeing, going so far as swishing her fingers around to better followed the brunette’s movement.

“I knew there was something familiar about the way she fought,” she finally concluded, the polished execution making it more clear “That’s the Zangan style.”

“Zangan?” Rude repeated surprised, the reaction from the normally stoic man draw some curious, and concerned, gazes.

“Not merely that but this final attack, even if in this partial state,” the president gestured to the screen “is one of the pinnacle techniques of the style; something that only someone nearing a mastery of the art can accomplish.”

“But…” Rude countered, confusion clear in his eyes despite his shades “That’s not possible.”

“Okay now, what is it the rest of us are missing here?” Sunny cut in, earning a sigh from the bald Turk as he pushed his glasses back up.

“Zangan Style was a exceptionally versatile and flexible martial art, capable of combating most any threat; humanoid or monster, big or small, unarmed or armed. It was notably one of the first unarmed styles with somewhat effective methods to counter firearm wielding opponents. Like any style; it’s not without its flaws, but focusing on speed and power, it wasn’t an art to be taken lightly when used correctly.” the others gawked at their teammate saying more in one sitting than they’d usually hear in an entire day. Rude continued with a far more serious note underlying his words “And it’s gone. All that’s left of it is a smattering of what are, at best, intermediate maneuvers adopted by other styles.”

“Agent Rude is right” Celestia affirmed “Even a few techniques of the basic defense methods we teach to our troops were adapted from Zangan’s teachings. But the full style isn’t taught anymore.”

“Well evidently someone is teaching it, considering Miss Lockhart knows it” Raven concluded, earning a shake of the head from the president.

“It’s not simply that it isn’t taught, it's that it can't be. No one who knew it well enough to pass the art along has survived to the modern age. You see the last student of Zangan, the last person to reach anywhere close to this level…” Celestia gestured again to the paused image of the long-haired woman with her fist glowing

“Died over two hundred years ago...”

Tifa stared warily at the cooked crustaceans at the buffet of the “restaurant” they stopped at. It was really just a cooking station under an old wedding tent, but you couldn’t really expect much from a place called “The Undercity”. It didn’t take a genius to figure out they were the same kind of creature that attacked her on her first mission after they fell into Corneo’s trap.

Now, it was actually pretty common for the people of Equestria to eat monsters. They were plentiful and repopulated quickly enough to be mostly sustainable with little impact on the environment. Other than the whole dangerous to hunt and keep around thing, it was actually a pretty good solution to the monsters themselves limiting the continent's usable land for ranching and farming.

A lot of them tasted pretty good too. She personally liked this kind quite a bit in fact; they tasted like snow crab with a little kick of spice to them. So no, it wasn’t the fact they were monsters that was bothering Tifa.

“These came from the caves, right?” she asked the cook behind the table, wresting a laugh from the scruffy man.

“Ah, I see y’all are new down here. Hope yer just passing through or else yer palates are gonna need to become a lot more flexible!” he teased but then gave the brunette an friendly grin “But yeah, don’t worry yourself none there beautiful; these didn’t come from the sewers. Trust me, you’d smell it.”

Worries somewhat assuaged, the martial artist loaded some of the oversized legs onto her plate and moved back to the table with the others.

“So you really think AVALANCHE is our best bet?” Tifa asked “They didn’t seem like the most open people when they attacked the tower, considering they almost killed Twilight and I... twice”

“Even so, I don’t see that we have much of a choice. They’re pretty much the one viable option left to keep us off Shinra’s radar, what with the Wutai Resistance long gone.” the well coiffed woman replied, adjusting what Tifa was sure was just the first of many outfits to come “Shinra will sniff us out sooner or later if we stay anywhere too long without support, even here in the Undercity. Not that we’d want to stay down here anyway, what with the health risks alone.”

It was true; while they so far appeared unaffected by the lingering mako in the air themselves, they couldn’t miss that at least half the area’s population was ill. The extent of the mako poisoning ranged from some looking merely tired to others that didn’t look too far from death’s door. For as much or little good the president may have been trying to accomplish, Tifa was starting to learn just how much of it was out of her control, or at least her awareness.

“Are you certain this Applejack will listen?” Spike asked “As far as she’s concerned, you two are still with Shinra. She’ll undoubtedly suspect we’re spies or worse.”

“While I’ll admit our relationship never blossomed past friendly acquaintances, Applejack was alway a very open woman with an honest integrity. So I think she’ll at the very least not have us shot on sight. She’s also the only member I know, so it’s her or nothing. We have to at least try.” the former Turk reasoned “Though I suppose all that only matters if we can actually get to Ponyville...”

Ponyville was on the other side of the divide; the long, narrow and apparently rather deep sea separating the two primary halves of the Equestria continent.

“Well we can’t go to Junon” Tifa pointed out the obvious.

“What about Baltimare?” Pinkie offered “Or Fillydelphia should be able to get us on a boat too!”

“That would be a pretty long trip, having to go around the entire land mass like that.” Spike retorted. Rarity shook her head at the ideas as well.

“That and we’ll be on the wrong side of the marsh if we’re still planning on taking the tunnels all the way to the Mythril Mine. Without proper transport or at least a couple of chocobos, we’d never make it past the Zoloms.” she explained. She sighed heavily as she continued “I think Fort Condor may be our best bet… unfortunately.”

“Fort Condor is part of AVALANCHE?” the brunette cocked an eye brow.

“Not according to the latest intelligence, no. But they’ve no love for Shinra” she answered, a clear note of dread in her voice “They’re more of the… ‘righteous word of Minerva demands an end to the corporate corruption of freedom’ types.”

“Ah, so a basket case militia in some backwoods compound then” Tifa said dryly “Wonderful.”

“Yes, exception being that backwoods compound is an actual fort with a greater condor perched on top.” Rarity countered with Spike speaking up next.

“If they’re such a threat then why hasn’t Shinra dealt with them?” the dragon quired “Even with just the stuff I've seen from my cell, taking the fort doesn't sound that hard for them.”

“Oh I never said they were a threat Darling.” the former Turk quipped “As a matter of fact they’ve yet to take any violent action against the company directly. All they do it slowly stockpile dated equipment and spout propaganda over the radio. Until they become an actual risk, which is pretty unlikely, they’re simply not worth the resources to deal with. Shinra will do something eventually, but for the time being they’re perfectly happy to just let them stay out there playing with their toys.”

“Yeah, except now we have to go ask to borrow some of those toys” the martial artist pointed out “Assuming they have anything to get us across the divide in the first place.”

“Well they can’t be THAT bad, can they?” Pinkie asked,

Rarity merely looked away anxiously without a response...

After the meal, the party restocked their supplies as best they could from the limited options and continued on their journey, pushing further into the tunnels. Thankfully, the paths had been used enough by those hoping to sneak into the city to be marked and they weren’t far enough yet to have to worry about monsters or the like.

Unfortunately for Tifa, this quiet moment allowed the conversation to turn back to her as well.

“So truthfully now Tifa dear, where are you from?” the well coiffed unicorn asked “I think it’s safe to tell us now.”

“I did tell you. I’m from Nibelheim” she lied.

“Dear, I’ve been to Nibelheim; it’s a few days walk from Ponyville. You’re not from there.” Rarity called her bluff.

“So? You couldn’t have known everyone in town.” the brunette argued.

“I can because there isn’t an ‘everyone’ to know; the town’s nothing but an old ruin.”

‘FUCK!!’ immediately screamed through Tifa’s mind.

“It’s a glorified tourists trap.” the unicorn woman went on. Pinkie however seemed to give Tifa the benefit of the doubt.

“Tourists traps do still have people who live there to run them.” the tiny horse offered, to which Rarity smiled back.

“But of course! In this case, Cranky and Matilda Doodle. Lovely couple. They would come into town once or twice a week to shop and socialize” she explained before turning back to Tifa and very bluntly stating, “And neither of them are you.”

‘Think think think think think think, come ooooon...’

‘...’

“You wouldn’t believe me” the pugilist finally returned “You’ll think I’m insane.”

“You are talking to a sapient dragon and a miniture pink horse perched on his head” Spike smirked back “Try us.”

“I’d think we’d believe it more than you being from a dead town” Rarity added.

“FINE!” Tifa suddenly snapped, startling the trio “You wanna know?! I'm from another goddamn world! I was attending a convention with my best friend to advertise our workshop with some new costumes we’d made when we ran into this really creepy vendor that we told to fuck off! But then he popped back up later and bowled the two us over, somehow turning Liv into an actual zombie who then ripped my fucking throat out! Then time literally fucking stopped and the vendor strutted back, now bald and with a thick German accent. He started blathering about experiments and made Liv dissolve into what looked like the life stream and then started getting excited when the copious amount of blood gushing from my neck started glowing just before what I’m fairly positive was my actual Death!”

She took a deep breath-

“But then I wake up in the slums all alone with an entirely new body, a new name, and half my memories missing!” she vented “And now after finally getting used to my lot in this new life I get pulled into all this shit and am once again scared shitless and have no idea what I’m doing! That’s where I’m from!”

The woman’s venting ended, shoulders heaving slightly as she scowled at the ground. The others just stood silently, throwing one another uneasy glances. Tifa scowl failed to a wide eyed stare as she realized all she had revealed in her rant.

The silence lasted a few beats longer until a smile creeped onto Rarity’s lips.

“You make Costumes?” she asked almost excitedly. Tifa’s head snapped up to the unicorn, a look of of pure bewilderment painted across her face.

“THAT’S what you take away from all that?” she gawked as the woman and pony giggled, Spike’s smirk came back as well.

“Tifa dear you’re talking to a woman who’s personally summoned an Ifrit, a Sheva and even an Alexander” she elaborated “So okay, admittedly yours is quite the unique set of circumstances but we summon beings from other realms all the time. Why the summoner's of- well it’s right there in the title! It’s hardly as insane as it sounds darling.”

The brunette deflated a bit at the rationale.

“I… I never thought about it like that” she mumbled when the group’s dragon nodded his head.

“It is strange you were changed so completely and are not a temporary summon” he mused “But I don’t see how this changes that much.”

“Except you're not all alone this time! Even if you are just crazy, we’re all in this together!” Pinkie informed the still distressed Tifa. She blinked a few times, not failing to notice it when her main fell just a little bit straighter “Still though... dying must have been a pretty terrifying... You want a hug?”

‘Yes’

“No, that’s alright Pinkie. I’m fine.”

“You sure?”

‘No’

“Yeah, thanks though.”

“Well okay... if you ever change your mind though.” she offered.

Not without a bit awkwardness, the group regathered themselves and carried on. It wasn’t long though before Rarity leaned back in to try and distract the displaced woman’s attention with a bright smile.

“So... what kind of costumes do you make?”

Zest trudged through her apartment door, trying not to look at the one across the hall covered in police tape. When she had gotten back from dropping off Tifa’s bug out bag, she found a whole gaggle of Shinra troops swarming her friend’s home. Fortunately, her mother Citrus was also among them and waiting for her, quickly intercepting any unnecessary harassment or unlawful detainment.

She moved to click on her speakers so the music could flood the small space as it had countless times before. She sighed as it did little to improve her mood.

She had spent most the day at the tower, her mom with her every step of the way to make sure her colleagues didn’t entrap her in their legal double speak and get her to confess without even knowing it. Her mother really was great at her job and considering the lack of any evidence, they couldn’t just arrest her for association so long as she was around. Unfortunately it pushed said parent over the edge and she demanded Lemon move back out of the slums or they’d cut her off.

While Zest was confident that she could survive down here on her own, there now seemed like so little keeping her here. She frowned at the notion. She had only known Tifa about seven months by now and she of course had a life down here before the shapely girl had dropped into it.

‘Did I really though?’ she thought with uncertainty. She had a job with a couple friendly acquaintances sure, but was it a life that really meant anything to her? She’d mostly come down to experience something outside the deceitful veneer of ‘the higher class’. Not that she didn’t love her parents but that simply wasn’t the life for her.

She clicked the music off and sat in the silence, hunched over with her hands on the back of her neck. After some long and heavy considerations, she eventually came to the conclusion her parents were probably right. She needed a change and had a decent one in mind, but it probably wasn't the one her parents did.

‘Sorry Mom and Dad. I love ya, but I won’t be moving back home yet’ she internalized as she pulled out her phone ‘And hey, who knows? Maybe I’ll run into Tif out there.’

For most it may have been too late to call but unless her friend got an entirely new personality, Zest knew she’d still be awake. Sure enough it only rang a couple times before a familiar voice piped through the line.

“Hey Sour… Yeah it’s me… Oh I guess I’m alright, you?” the small talk quickly petered out and Zest was forced moved to the reason she called “So listen, I know the season’s already a couple weeks in but uh…”

The conversation awkwardly paused as the pink woman hesitated. She shook her head and with a deep breath stuck to her guns.

“That offer for a tryout still open?”

She flinched away as an excited and rather loud squee erupted from the device.

‘I guess that’s a yes then’ she figured. A small smile found her as the new direction she chose started to grow on her ‘Well, there are definitely far worse things to be than a Blitzball player.

Author's Note

Okay, with all the more obvious hints in this chapter on top of the earlier ones, I'll be very disappointed if no one has figured out what the neighboring continent is now :rainbowlaugh:
For those of you that do though, don't worry about too much interference: it's not gonna come into play until act two if we ever get that far (in other words, the sequel :raritywink: )

But another chapter's now down and there's still more on the way. Sorry to any disappointed with the lack of action but I kind of want this one to be a little less over the top than my other story. And hey, sometimes you just need exposition :derpytongue2:

As always, thanks for reading and have a good one :twilightsmile:

Chapter 7: How Things Are

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Knuckle- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (currently), Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Carbon Bangle- Transform, Manipulate
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth (No Weapon Equipped) --- Mythril Armlet: Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

Tifa watched the owlbear clear the hill and continue out of sight, the chimeric creature weaving about slightly in its stupor. With the increasingly familiar tingling of a new enemy skill still lingering in the back of her mind, she turned to the mog mounted pony with her materia aglow.

“You sure it won’t just turn around to find us when it breaks free?” the martial artist gave her a concerned frown, Pinkie smiled back brightly however.

“It may have taken a couple castings but that was a solid manipulate” Pinkie countered “He’ll still be wandering that way for a while and prolly not even know what direction we’re in when it wears off.”

“Yes, but now you know White Wind Darling! A very useful technique from what little I’ve seen of it” Rarity cut in prior to pursing her lips “Well, if you can drum up the mana to cover its cost that is… Still! More people able to heal the better, right?”

“Lucky we found one alone and on the way to the Fort. Hopefully we won’t need the skill once we’re there” Spike added. They had been closing in on their destination when the dragon caught the scent of the feathered beast and Pinkie excitedly declared they should track it to earn Tifa a new skill.

“Hopefully. Guess we’ll find out” Tifa shrugged and they started on their way again.

It had been about a week since they made it out of the caves, which took a few days to navigate on their own. After finding the sun again, they first headed toward a small town their party’s pony member pointed out on the map to rest and restock. They didn’t stay more than a night though and spent the rest of the trip off the roads to avoid making it any easier for Shinra to track them down.

Once they were past the Divide they could risk more comfortable accommodations, but with them still being so close to Canterlot it meant they were that much deeper in the search net. The brunette hoped the militia at the Fort wasn’t as abrasive as Rarity suggested; even if she was still stuck with her bedroll, it would be really nice to spend a night indoors again. She sighed however as she looked to the horizon and saw the sun beginning to set.

“We should probably start trying to find a spot for camp” Spike spoke up almost as soon as she had the thought, as if to confirm her dismay.

“You sure we can’t make it there tonight?” Tifa asked. They had been able to see the fort, if not its namesake bird, in the distance since the morning and they didn’t really seem that far if they kept moving. Rarity was the first to respond.

“We probably could actually, but it would be well after dark by the time we arrived and I doubt that would help our case very much” the former Turk clarified, making the brunette’s shoulders slump. She still wasn’t used to so many nights in a tent.

They soon found a decent spot among a small crop of trees, and started setting up under a fallen trunk leaning against one of the area’s more rocky outcroppings. It should hide them from sight for the most part.

“I wonder where the birdie’s been,” Pinkie pondered “With what I’ve heard, it should be so big we can't of missed it.”

“No, we certainly couldn’t have. It’s probably been out hunting” Rarity offered and started setting up the tent. With that settled, Spike took up watch while Tifa and Pinkie set off to gather wood; It had become her unspoken regular duty as her strength came the most in handy for breaking apart anything too big to use when there was nothing smaller. They quickly found a hollowed log that would last the night and headed back to find Rarity almost done with the tent already.

“Wowie, do you do that fast!” Pinkie marveled for not the first time. The unicorn had an exceptional efficiency at the task, as well as a knack for making sleeping on the ground a lot less… well, like sleeping on the ground.

“Where’d you learn how to do all this so fast? I wouldn’t think you camped that much as a Turk and you really don’t seem like the ‘rough’n it’ type” Tifa asked, then hastily added “No offense.”

Rarity let out a small chuckle.

“None taken dear. But no, and it’s for that very reason Why I learned all these little tricks; to insure that those times all that more bearable when it was required. And as for the speed? Well, fabrics’ fabric darlings, no matter how fashionable… or unfashionable.” she finished with a bright smile, before it was stifled by a wince. She instinctively reached up to her eye, bringing attention to a well hidden bruising that laid beneath the make-up.

“Sorry...” Tifa’s gaze fell.

“Darling Stop!” Rarity laughed in response “It’s really not that bad and is hardly the first black eye I’ve had; I was a Turk after all.”

After some considerable thought on her fight with Canyon Crusher, Tifa had decided she didn’t want to have to rely on another ‘episode’ to save her again. So shortly after the group left the Undercity she asked Rarity, being far more experienced, if she had any advice on how to shore up her abilities. She had surprised Tifa by offering to spar. Perhaps more unexpected was her asking Spike to help as well, so that Tifa could learn how to better fight non-humanoids.

So while the unicorn had more than once pointed out that real experience was better since it was, well Real, Tifa was at least feeling like she was learning. Particularly with how Rarity was far more range based and how fighting Spike was just plain different. And thanks to some clever use of her barrier, the former Turk allowed them a means to fight without much risk of seriously hurting each other.

Seriously being the main word.

They’ve still ended with some scuffs and some sunburn level skin at the end of their few sessions. And unfortunately during their last spar, Tifa caught the well coiffed unicorn off balance and lost track of her strength; punching right through the protective castings and flooring the woman. While the healing spells fixed the worst of it, she was still left with a pretty good shiner that even her expert make-up work couldn’t completely cover.

“Besides,” Rarity continued “We all had had to politely ignore the leftovers of your fight with Canyon, so now it’s simply my turn I suppose. Think of it as a reminder that you’re getting better.”

The martial artist gained at least half a smile with that. However, whatever response she had was suddenly cut off by a massive gust of wind whipping through the camp as a shadow briefly blocked out the sky. A deep, screeching cry echoed back at them with its passing. As the girls recovered, Spike merely looked skyward with a mildly amused look.

“I guess we found our fort’s Condor” he continued to search the expanse above them.

“Wow-wee! That must be one big bird!” Pinkie exclaimed as she pulled herself back onto her Mog’s back.

“Yes well, I suppose we’ll see that for ourselves tomorrow.” Rarity added “But I suggest we get some rest for now, it’s still a bit of a walk from here.”

The pony and dragon agreed and moved to finish their earlier the preparations while also fixing the mess the gust caused. Tifa however stayed silent, shooting a worried glance in the direction of the avian’s call.

‘I’ve got a bad feeling about this…’

‘...’

The next day came swiftly and the party found themselves at the base of the fort’s hill by midday. They stood starting up the incline at the fortified structure… or the half fortified structure rather.

The base of the fort seemed to be carved out of a natural stone spire covered in vegetation and leaning somewhat cockeyed out of the top of the hill. The other half however, cradling its side until the two halves split near the top into a Y, was completely man-made. Nestled right in the nook of the split was a massive egg and its yet more massive parent. The eponymous condor of the fort was currently eating something they couldn’t see off the top of natural half of the fort.

“Well you were right Pinkie” Tifa gulped “That is one damn big bird…”

“I don’t remember saying damn” the crowned pinkness rubbed a hoof on her chin. She then shrugged and continued “Soooo... do we just walk up and knock?”

“I’m… not sure” the most well coiffed among them hesitated “I would have thought we’d run into a sentry or something by now.”

“We could try calling out” Spike proposed. Rarity and Tifa glanced at each other but before either could act, the mog mounted pony was shouting through her megaphone.

“IS ANYPONY THERE!? WE NEED A WAY ACROSS THE DIVIDE!”

“FIRE!” was all Tifa heard shouted back before her vision was filled with orange.

‘Ugh, what happened?’

‘You got knocked out by a pumpkin.’

‘Well that’s embarrass-HEY!’

‘What?’

‘You’re back!’

‘Oh, um… yeah’

‘What the hell?! Where have you been?! Was that you against Crusher?! Why can I only tell us ap-?!’

‘Woah! Easy now. I know there’s some questions but there’s also some... obstacles’

‘Like what?!”

‘Well for one, it’s time to wake up Tiffy’

‘...Tiffy?’

‘I said-’

“Come on Tif-Tif, wake up!” the world blurred back slowly, a pair of blue blobs floating within a white expanse dominating her vision. A flash of pink kept repeating until the image focused into a set of concerned, bright blue eyes blinking at her sideways from a square shadow “There you are!”

Pinkie beamed as she became clearer, allowing the prone brunette to see the pony was currently locked in some kind of pet carrier. As she sat up, she could also see they were no longer outside. What looked like natural caves stretched to her left while structured wood and stone stood to her right, except everything had weird orange strings hanging every-

‘Oh, I’m covered in pumpkin guts’ she realized as she pulled a large clump from her hair, finding her hands were also bound in the process. At least she knew what that flash of orange was now.

‘Better than the real kind, right?’

Her thoughts seemed to be finishing themselves again too. Though she could barely hear them over the sound of an older man and woman yelling at each other among several people with guns. Glancing at the pair, then to her bound hands and then the rest of her restrained companions, she leaned over towards the dragon seated next to her.

“I’m guessing this isn’t good.”

“I say we send ‘em back tuh Shinra in body bags as a message!”

“Well AH say we feed ‘em to the bird and be done wit' it!”

“Her name’s Courtney!”

“Nope” Spike answered simply.

“We’re not with Shinra!” Tifa shouted, earning the butt of a rifle to the back of the head. Squinting as she tried to shake away the pain, she grumbled “...I’d really wish people would stop trying to knock me out.”

“Ah, so the big one’s awake” the stout male announced, ignoring the scowl of the woman he was fighting with “So what, you another Turk like this one?!”

Tifa looked over to a disgruntled Rarity currently leveling a flat look to their captor. She returned a small glance to the confused martial artist.

“Sorry Darling, seems they’re better informed than I expected” she said quietly. She redirected her attention back to the pair “I’m not a Turk anymore, I left Shinra’s service weeks ago.”

“Oh how con-vee-ne-ent” the buck toothed woman sauntered up, a mocking sarcasm dripping from her accented words “A couple weeks is jus’ enough time to prove tuh us you ain’t no spies ain’t it?!”

“We ain’t fall’n fer it missy” the male growled.

“We’re not spies!” Tifa cut in “They experimented on us! Why would we help a company that violated us!?”

“Why would they ‘speariment on ya?” the male sneered at them.

“Because they’re Shinra” Spike pointed out bluntly. Their captors narrowed their eyes at the dragon, then at the pink pony.

“They are kinda weird” the male leaned toward his counterpart and muttered not at all subtly “Never heard of a talk’n dragon, let alone any work’n fer Shinra.”

“And ah don’t even know what the little pink thing is…” the woman returned, earning a slight, disgruntled grimace from the pony “course they could have ‘em to throw us off their scheme...”

An exasperated sigh escaped the bound unicorn woman.

“We don't have a scheme. We're only trying to find a way across the Divide.”

“Yeah? What fer?”

“We’re looking to speak with AVALANCHE” the answer was immediately met with scoffs and raspberry blowing.

“Those amateurs?! Pah!” the male spat, nearly being cut off by the female next.

“Yeah, but even then we ain’t about to let ya cross now! They may be doin’ it for the wrong reasons but at least they’re against Shinra! Against you!”

Rarity looked like she was about to protest when the same screech from the previous night filled the fort.

“Oh well looky there, it wasn’t enough, if only someone had said so earlier” the male drolled out, his words once again saturated with sarcasm and earning a death glare from his counterpart “Go take care of the bird.”

“‘Her name’s Courtney!”

“An’ the more reliable of y’all,” he continued unfazed, looking to those clearly on his side of things “take ‘em to the cells.”

Tifa and Spike tensed, looking over the purple haired woman. She returned the slightest shake of her head before the militia forced them to their feet and marched them deeper into the constructed half of the fort. Tifa tried to keep in mind the turns and stairs but realized while very sturdy, it was all laid out pretty simply. When they wanted to escape, they just had to go down.

‘Where from there though…’ she thought to herself until a guard shoved her for lagging. It wasn't much longer until they were entering a thick bared cell with a single window to the outside, showing an exceptionally high and steep drop.

“Too bad none of us can fly” Spike commented.

“We may still be able to get through to them” Rarity countered, then lowered her voice to avoid the guard overhearing “And even if we can’t, starting a fight against an entire militia in their own fort isn’t one we can win.”

“Not with only the four of us at least. And I think they’d notice if I disappeared into the vents to find our gear here…” Pinkie finished as Tifa fiddled with the lock on the carrier “Can’t you just rip it off?”

“Oh… yeah.” The martial artist paused, wondering why she didn't just start with that. She clutched the grating and-

“HEY! Leave it!” one of the guards shouted, their rifles leveled at the brunette “That ain’t yours to break!”

“Sorry Pinks” Tifa offered as she slowly pulled her hand away before the door to the cell block opened, cutting off any further conversation. Tifa expected one of the leaders but instead found herself looking at another militia member, their loose fitting gear resting awkwardly on their slim, winged form. She snapped a salute off to the guards, hand knocking askew a thick pair of goggles over her balaclava.

“Reporting for guard duty! You can return to your posts!” an eager and rather young sounding voice emerged from beneath the mask.

“Our post is here, Muff” one countered with a flat look.

“You were told to bring them here, not stand guard” the woman cocked her head to the side “That’s my job!”

He looked like he was about to argue when another nudged him with an elbow.

“Just let her, it’s the only thing she’s good at” he whispered. The first let out an irritated grunt but waved the others out of the room all the same. He did pause and turn back however, with a finger pointing threateningly at Tifa “An’ don’t let ‘em break Carrot’s carrier!”

“Yes sir!” she chirped back, saluting again. She stood like that a moment longer after the door closed and then, after a quick glance to the prisoners, stealthily crept to the door. Still on her tippy toes, she pressed an ear to the door and waited with a finger raised toward them for silence. Confused looks passed between the group until the girl finally broke away.

“Okay! They’re gone” the woman announced in a hushed tone and scampered up to the bars… before tripping and landing flat on her face. She sprung back up no worse for wear though, giving a quick “IMOKAY! ...Sorry I couldn’t help earlier Agent Rarity, but it could’ve compromised my cover.”

The girl pulled off the goggles and cowl, showing a pair of bright golden eyes sparkling at the unicorn from under blonde locks. ...Or one of the pair was. The other was looking at the ceiling over Spike.

“OH!” Rarity exclaimed before covering her mouth and dropping her tone “I mean, not at all Darling. You were one of the initiates in Sunny and Sugarcoat’s group, yes? Miss… Hooves, was it?”

The brightness of girl’s smile could rival Pinkie’s, her headed nodding fervently with joy at the recognition.

“Initiate Derpy Hooves at your service ma’am!” she saluted again with proud determination “I may not have made the last cut but I assure you ma’am, I can still help you out of this jam. Through… why are you here in the first place ma’am? I wouldn’t think my recent reports would have caused someone to check the situation here at the fort, especially a Turk!”

“Oh, um no. I’m afraid we’re here… on a mission. We felt the fort may be our best means across the Divide” Rarity responded.

“Why not go to Junon? Or take a copter straight from the plates?” Derpy cocked an eyebrow, further exaggerating her quirk. Tifa learned to the two non-humanoids of the party,

“Is it just me or is she totally adorable?” she whispered.

“Like a kitten in a slipper” Spike quipped and earned a suppressed giggle from the plastic crate next to him.

“I’m afraid our mission is rather covert in its nature, dear. We have to appear as independent of the company as possible” Rarity twisted the facts with practiced ease.

“Is this about the AVALANCHE thing?” the former Turk grimaced at the girls question but continued.

“Uh, yes darling. It’s… complicated, and also quite classified I'm afraid” she quickly added.

“Not to worry ma’am, I’m well versed in keeping secrets. After all, I still haven’t been found out here” the pegasus gestured a zipper and lock motion over her lips “but if you do need a way across the Divide, I’m not sure the fort was the best choice. Big Dad McColt and his band may be darn good builders but they still haven’t gotten anything up and running that would make it across.”

“Nothing?” Rarity pushed.

“They have some motorboats and an old seaplane that doesn’t float” the wall-eyed woman frowned “But nothing I’d trust to make it across the Divide though.”

Four pairs of shoulders slumped at the news. Yet Rarity’s gaze darted about the floor, distant as her thoughts organized. She looked back up to the others and simply asked.

“I don’t suppose any of you know how to fly a plane?”

“Only if they’re made of paper” Pinkie chirped “Maybe we can convince the militia to lend us a pilot?”

“Yeeeeaahhh…” Derpy scratched the back of her head “I really don’t think they’re gonna listen. They tend to drag things out, even when they DO want to do something.”

“So we are going to have to escape” Tifa concluded. Derpy returned a lopsided smile and shrug.

“Yeah, but don’t worry; you won’t be the first I’ve helped with that. Though if you’re still planning on taking a vehicle… that’ll be harder.” the pegasus’s smile faltered a bit. Rarity brought a thoughtful hand up to her chin, eyes narrowing.

“Do you have a panic button Initiate Hooves?” the misaligned eyes shot wide.

“I, um yeah but-” the girl fumbled before the unicorn cut her off.

“Trigger it.”

“Agent Rarity I’m only supposed to do that if they’re planning an imminent attack or something! If I call one when it’s not needed-”

“I’m afraid our mission is of the utmost priority. Besides,” Rarity gave a consoling smile “You can finally be yourself again.”

“I guess. It’s just...” she hesitated “There’s not a lot a great condors left, and Courtney is actually pretty sweet. And honestly I think Big Dad and Ma Hoofield seem happy to stay here yelling for quite a while yet. Do we really need to call that down yet?”

“I’m afraid so Darling. If it makes it any easier, it's an order: Call in the troops. I’ll take full responsibility.” it was Derpy’s turn to have her shoulders sag. She let her held breath go and relented.

“Yes, Ma’am. I’ll go send the signal and try to secure your gear” she returned, failing to hide the apprehension in her voice. She turned and hurried out the door, leaving them alone. Tifa wondered if she was really gone until a distant crash sounded beyond the door “IMOKAY!”

“We sure we can count on her?” Spike asked skeptically.

“She may not have made it through the program her first time around but it wasn’t for lack of competence. She’s deceptively competent actually, just a little too… open with information. She also tended to be over eager and sympathetic and was, frankly, rather scatterbrained” Rarity explained “But yes dear, I believe we can rely on her.”

“At least until she finds out you really aren't a Turk anymore...” Spike said with a shrug. A concerned hum came from the pet carrier.

“You think the bird will be okay?” Pinkie asked solemnly “You've called down a heck of a party on its nest.”

“One of the reasons Shinra hasn’t dealt with the fort yet is precisely because of the condor Miss Sith. So hopefully they’ll do what they can to avoid hurting it or its nest” the well coiffed woman tried to assuage her. She saw the crated pony‘s frown deepen and didn’t fail to notice her brunette companion also looking particularly unhappy as well, if her scowling at the floor was any indication “Tifa?”

“I’m guessing from how everyone’s talking the ‘panic button’ isn’t simply some emergency extraction but a full fledged assault, yeah?” the pugilist looked to her, receiving an affirmative nod “So basically we’re screwing the people we came to ask for help? And maybe an endangered species? And using that naive girl on top of it? All so we can keep going? Less than warm welcome or not Rare, we’ve barely even talked with them.”

“Yes I know it’s not exactly the most respectable thing dear, but unless you trust these extremiststo come through for us...” the Turk left hanging, matching the martial artists gaze until the latter turned away “I’m sorry dear, sometimes this is just how things are.”

Tifa didn’t like it, but understood and let it go.

‘Still feels shitty’

‘Because it is…’

The dimming light filtering through to window shined off the 10 of Spades as it bounced off the pet carrier, narrowly missing the indent for the handle.

“Hey, that sounded close!” the crate’s captive cheered before snaking her, what the group recently discovered, prehensile hair through the gate and taking her turn. Tifa had thought the position would put her at a massive disadvantage despite being technically closer. The pile of hearts in the nook proved she had thought wrong.

“So you’ve never had a limit break?” Spike asked, flicking the 2 of clubs in one of his also surprisingly dexterous claws.

“Nope” Tifa answered, watching the queen of diamonds land short and wrest a frustrated snap from the horned woman next to her “Gotta remember, I haven’t been here that long. I haven’t had much time to have been pushed that far… damn.”

“Close” Spike shot her a grin “And if it makes you feel any better, I’ve only done it once myself.”

“Ooooooooh!” Pinkie cooed “What does a dragon’s limit look like!? I bet it’s really scary!”

“I got bigger” the dragon answered simply.

“That’s it?”

“Thaaaat’s it” Spike repeated back.

“Oh, well that’s still pretty neat!” the pony earned some chuckles. It died down when a low drone distracted them. A drone that steady grew to the beat of distant helicopters. The guard that had eventually came to replace the absent Derpy stood at the sound when the cell block’s door burst open and a bolt of lightning propelled him into the opposite wall, knocking him unconscious before the caster even entered the room.

“They’re here” the wall-eyed pegasus delivered sharply, dropping a bag in front of the cell and moving to the fallen guard. She fished a ring of keys from his pockets and started trying keys until she was rewarded with a solid click “We’ve got ten levels to get down, but hopefully my soon to be former friends will be too busy with our coworkers outside.”

An explosion from below sent a slight vibration through their feet and triggered a loud shriek from above. Tifa jumped as a squishy softness landed on her shoulder. She gave the pony a surprised look, double taking between her and the carrier.

“Oh I picked the lock hours ago” Pinkie waved off until another, stronger tremor shook some dust down upon them “But let’s not be late to the party!”

Quickly re-equipping, the group followed the winged woman through the halls. As the hopeful Turk initiate said, most of the rebels hadn't even realized they were among them until they were already past. At least they didn’t until they had to pass the main cannons.

“Muffins?” Ma Hooffield gasped with a start as the group ran right into her squad.

“Sorry Ma” Derpy apologized before her heel connected with the elder earth pony’s jaw. The others were quick to react to their leader’s fall, leveling their weapons. They hesitated however when the party’s unicorn woman snatched the matron Hooffield from the floor, gunbarrel under her chin.

“Muffins you betrayed us to these Shinra scum!?” the hostage spat as she was dragged by the group circling around to the opposite end of the room.

“Actually Ma,” Derpy corrected as group rushed through the door behind Rarity “I worked for them all along… sorry. I’d suggest you not fight back, for Courtney’s sake.”

“Don’t you bring her into this-AH!” Hooffield cried as she was shoved back into the room and a chill crawled up her spine as she hit the ground. Spinning around the matron discovered the door completely frozen over in ice “MUFFINS!”

“This way!” the outed spy continued on, ignoring the rage filled scream with little more than a wince. A few more levels and the group nearly bowled the pegasus over as she abruptly stoped at the entrance to a notably large open cavern “Here we are…”

The whole area was swarming with militia, prepping and climbing into vehicles to counter the assault. A roaring buzz filled the hall as a seaplane jury-rigged into a fighter streaked past their doorway.

“Guess we’re grabbing a boat” Tifa muttered.

“They’re on the other side, we should move along the back wall” the wall-eyed woman responded and lead the party sprinting from vehicle to vehicle. Most of the militia seemed too preoccupied with their own tasks to notice them and with the watercraft of little use in this situation, they were alone by the time they reached the lineup of boats. At least they were until another, deep call sounded over all the noise.

“MUFFINS!” the rumbling boom of Big Daddy McColt echoed throughout the hanger. The Patron stood with his swollen jawed counterpart at the other end of the cavern “Get ‘Er!”

The rebels opened fire all around them, heedless of own equipment becoming collateral. The rapid pings and pops of incoming fire were quickly replaced by the constant chimes of magic, a line of barriers appearing between the party and the barrage.

“Tifa!” Rarity shouted from in front of a large pick before returning fire, face strained as small cracks already began to form in the shields before jerking her head towards the closest truck “Hook something up!”

The brunette scrambled behind the closest boats looking for any without a new set of speed-holes. An explosion of green flame went off behind her, prompting her to snatch the trailer of the first smooth hull she spotted and drag it back over to the unicorn. One of the barriers shattered as she lined up the hitch, quickly replaced by a pillar of earth.

“Got it Tiffy!?” Pinkie called from her furry mount, more green fire and lighting flashing behind her.

“Just a sec!” She called back, pushing the connection down and securing it “Got it!”

“Then it’s time to go!” the unicorn shouted climbing into the driver’s seat as the others climbed into the bed “Pinkie give us a wall! Hooves, a Flash!”

The truck rumbled to life as several more pillars of earth shoot up behind it. Tifa couldn’t take in the sight for long when a ball of hollow plasma streaked above them, bursting into blinding light not a second later. By the time the spots faded, the brunette found herself looking into a night sky filled with circling helicopters. The condor’s screeches filled the air as it stooped over its nest, its wings draped protectively over the egg as it took quick snaps at any copter that strayed too close.

“Well…” She heard Derpy grumble while handing a panting Pinkie to the martial artist and drawing her sidearm “At least they’re keeping their aim low.”

The quartet in the trailer pitched back with the sudden screeching of tires. The small window slid open with the driver rounding at them, hand ablaze in sparking electricity.

“Sorry Darling” she gave solemnly before the shocked pegasus was ripped from the truck bed by the bolt. As soon as she hit the dirt the rest pitched foward as the former Turk put the pedal down again.

“Rares what the hell?!” Tifa shouted at the window.

“She’s a pegasus! They’re practically immune to lightning! She’ll be fine!”

“NOT MY POINT!”

“It was either now or later! This way she can’t tell them where we’ve gone!” she yelled back, attention forward as she weaved down the hill.

“SHIT!” metal dented as the brunettes fist pounded on the frame of the bed. Bursts of machine gun fire flared where they had left the Turk hopeful. Smaller pops of a pistol lead in the opposite direction, showing the pursuers were not only keeping her grounded but driving her into a corner. And with none of the copters even landed yet, she wouldn’t be getting support soon enough. The pugilist shared a glance with the drake and pony with her, their expressions mirroring her own loss for an answer.

‘SHIT!’ she repeated internally. Screwing over the rebels was one thing but that girl had only helped them. Even if she was with Shinra... ‘SHIT! SHIT-SHIT-SHIT-SHIT-SHIT, SHIT… shit… shit.’

‘There you go...’

“AGH!” the grey pegasus yelped as a round grazed her wing. She cursed herself internally for not tucking behind the cover of the boulder's outcropping properly. She returned a couple shots before retreating further, still reeling from her superior's sudden betrayal. Did she do something wrong? Sure Rarity said her mission was classified but she didn’t have to leave her HERE! And she really didn’t have to zap her!

The wall-eyed woman slid into a nook, already knowing she didn’t stand much chance of escaping if they wouldn’t let her fly. Chunks of her cover powdered the air, prompting her to return fire. The slide locked back with the last round and she fished for another mag, only to come up short.

“That’s not good…” she muttered, staring dejectedly at the empty weapon. With a hard swallow she charged her materia; her reserves didn’t have much left after that flash but she couldn’t close against these numbers. It was the only thing left. She closed her eyes and steadied herself, taking a deep breath…

And then immediately regretted it, gagging on an suddenly overwhelming stench on the wind.

“What?!” she exclaimed when a thunderous crash drew her attention to the fort and to the massive tidal wave of unspeakable ick slamming into its side “Oh.”

Then both eyes snapped into alignment, pupils shrinking to dots as the wave continued unimpeded.

“Oh poop…”

Tifa scowled in her sleep. She could feel a weight pressing down on her, accentuating a cold hardness on her back. She squirmed and cracked open an eye.

“Tiffy!” a loud pink blob floated in front of her again. After a few blinks the pony standing on her chest came into focus, framed by dark strands of hair and the back of the truck bed “You okay?”

“Did I get hit by another pumpkin?” the martial artist quipped, the scowl melting away. The pony giggled and hopped off, allowing the woman to sit up.

“No, you made your tsunami too big silly!”

“You passed out from the mana cost” Spike’s voice sounded from the bow of the boat before handing her a small bottle of green liquid “That’s actually kind of dangerous. So y’know, for future reference and all…”

Tifa nodded her understanding and took stock as she downed the ether, noting that it was still night but the moon was notably higher in the sky. Looking around she found them parked in another lightly wooded area, the fort nowhere in sight. For all she knew they were back where they were the night before.

“I see we got away.”

“Yes dear, your putrid wave proved quite the effective distraction for our pursuers” the party’s former Turk answered from the lit up cabin, eyes scanning a large map before her “Though I’m not sure if I approve of the risk, considering it could have just as easily been summoned in front of us.”

“Yeah well, I didn’t really do it for us” Tifa’s tone shifted drastically, a subtle glare shot back through the small window. The driver sighed, looking back through the rearview for her response.

“Like I said before; if we didn’t get rid of her when we did, she could have told Shrina which direction we were going. It's bad enough that she'll be telling them we're looking for AVALANCHE.”

“So we just leave her to die?”

“Despite the impression she makes, Miss Hooves is competent enough to be in the Turk’s reserve. She would have been able to hold out until her support arrived” Rarity reasoned, already returning her attention to the map.

“We barely even talked to the rebels! We may not of had to take that risk!” Tifa countered.

“While I may admit to not be as weathered as the others, my decent tenure with the Turks taught me how things are out here, to see how those pieces were dropping. They weren’t going to help us.” the unicorn stated resolutely and scowled at the map “I did what I thought was best. Even if I was wrong, we can’t change the past. Besides, it all worked out in the end didn’t it?”

‘Not for the rebels.’

‘Or the bird.’

“Guess we’ll see…” Tifa grumbled. Another exhausted breath escaped Rarity, the horned woman taking another glance through the mirror before clicking off the light and finally turned to face them.

“I know that wasn’t the smoothest operation dears, but we’re alive and we managed to get away with not one but two vehicles. We at least somewhat accomplished our goal” she left hanging for a moment, seeing the others relent. Even Tifa looked to came around to a degree “So let’s get some rest and hope things get better from here.”

“I suppose that’s all we can do” Spike agreed and volunteered for first watch, explaining that he wasn’t as spent since his natural fire magic didn’t take as much out of him as actual matria use. It reminded Tifa that the drake was still stuck using their left over equipment, leaving him more limited than the rest of them. She made a mental note to keep an eye out for opportunities to properly equip the dragon.

‘If we make it that far at this rate…’

‘Tsuru, Tsuru, Tsuru, Tsuru-’

“Yeah, yeah I get it. Dilly Dally, Shilly Shally...” she muttered quietly to herself, brushing the hair out of her face and helping the others figure out how if they could set up the tent around the truck.

Mist sprayed the martial artist and the pony in her arms as the boat bounced harshly off another wave. They were a decent ways out from the mainland now and trying their luck at skirting the southern islands. So far they hadn’t run into any serious problems but Tifa couldn’t help clutch the pony tighter at the bump.

“I’m not gonna fall off again Tif!” the small quadraped smiled up at her. With the first bump they hit, they learned the pony was a little too light to hold herself down on her own.

“It’s not you I’m worried about!” the brunette returned over the engine and rushing water.

“It’ll hold Tif! Don’t worry! That stuff can repair alotta damage!” Pinkie assured her. They had somehow managed to escape the fort without a single bullet in the speedboat’s hull only for some random asshole riding a dinosaur to ambush them and bash a hole in it with his hammer.

‘This world’s weird...’

‘Still, he won’t be doing that again.’

True to the pony’s words, the tape they found in the boat’s storage was indeed still holding up when the last island was just disappearing from view behind them. Noticing this herself, Rarity eased up on the throttle, eventually cutting the engine altogether and letting them drift to a relative stop before hanging her head.

“Well, it was worth a shot I guess” she stood with a hand shielding her eyes, looking to the horizons “We’re already almost halfway out of fuel. Even if we had started with a full tank, we wouldn’t make it a quarter the way there before we ran dry. And that’s assuming we’re not attacked by whatever nasties live in these waters. And now with no landmarks to mark our passage… Sorry Darlings, but this is as far as we go.”

Tifa and Pinkie drooped in the seat. They knew it’d be a long shot, especially given the boat’s engine didn’t run on mako. Seems the Fort Condor rebels really did believe their own hype about it hurting the planet. Both the truck and boat ran off liquid fuel, which was a lot rarer these days. Not that it made much difference, even with a mako engine one didn’t cross an ocean with a speedboat.

“Hang on a second…” Spike placed a claw on Rarity’s hand as she moved to restart the engine “I smell smoke. I thought it may have been the exhaust but... no, something was definitely burnt somewhere along our path.”

“What, like a fire?” Tifa asked, the dragon shaking his head as he propped himself on the boats lip, sniffing the air intently.

“No… it’s more acrid than that, like plastic or electronics...” he elaborated “and its tinged with processed mako. If I had to guess something broke down or crashed.”

“You can tell all that?” Tifa looked on impressed, if also a bit skeptical.

“Trust me, I’m a dragon. I know my smoke” he smirked “It could be something we can use… or it could be some islander's tractor caught on fire. Either way, couldn’t hurt to take a look now.”

“You sure it’s behind us?” Rarity asked, giving a worried glance to the fuel gauge. They had pretty much sailed right past the islands themselves earlier, given they had no intention of exploring them.

“I was able to catch of whiff of it despite the exhaust earlier, so I’m pretty sure.”

The former Turk gave a shrug and they started following the dragon’s nose. They found themselves on the beach one of the larger islands, a dense tree line standing not far in.

“Okay, now I can smell it” Tifa said as they entered the islands small forest. Those were definitely the fumes of melted plastic. Though while they could smell the smoke they had yet to see any, giving the impression that while something had definitely been burnt, if there was an actual fire it was probably out by now.

“There’s a clearing up ahead” Spike called over his shoulder from the front. Sure enough they found a thinning of the trees and a decent size patch open to the sky.

An air of tension descended on the group, as there in the middle stood a Shinra helicopter.

Rarity gave a few silent hand signals. A trio of nods were returned and the group spread out, cautiously circling the lone craft. Tifa noticed that one of the copter’s landing rails was bent, giving the decent sized craft a slight tilt. The rest of the craft however seemed to be fairly intact, if a bit roughed up. Both of the craft's side doors were open too, revealing an empty cabin.

“Come on Moggy; Hup-hup!” the groups smaller quadruped shot into the air, tossed high above by her robotic mount. Head darting around when hitting the apex, the pony fell back to Gaia and into the mogs waiting mitts “I don’t see anypony!”

“Yes, it would seem we’re alone for the moment” Rarity concurred, holstering her weapon and moving in on the craft “Well, let us see what we’re dealing with shall we?”

The group moved closer, the former Turk climbing into the cabin with Pinkie while Tifa and Spike lingered outside. The dragon began circling to the otherside as Tifa took in the supplies scattered about the ground, her brow furrowing. Some of it was strewn about randomly, like it was thrown out haphazardly. Yet the rest seemed more organized, stacked and gathered together. A quick glance inside showed the same thing.

“The transponder has been ripped out” Rarity’s voice called from inside “That would explain why it’s still here.”

“A lot of the electronics are burnt out, but it looks like somepony’s been trying to make repairs.” Pinkie added, crawling about atop the controls.

As the pair continued their inspection, something peculiar caught Tifa’s eye. She stepped away from the craft and towards the rear propeller.

“This thing’s pretty big though” Pinkie continued “You’d think it’d have at least enough crew to not have to leave it alone like this.”

Spike’s front claws landed in the cabin, the dragon propping himself up.

“I smell blood.” he delivered sharply “Blood and gunpowder.”

Tifa glanced back, worry twisting her expression before turning back to her discovery. It was some kind of storage container. Except it was shaped like a giant capsule, big enough that it would’ve taken up most of the cabin. The top lid had been ripped part way off its hinges.

“You think they were driven off?” Rarity queried.

“Or hijacked” Pinkie offered, hoof running against a series of holes along the cabin wall. Tifa meanwhile bent down and pushed aside the broken lid. She found nothing inside but immediately noticed the padded bottom.

And spatters of dried blood.

“Hijacked? As in while in the air? By who?”

*kr-CHK*

‘Aw shit’

Tifa slowly raised her head to find the barrel of a Shinra assault rifle an inch from her face, held like it was no heavier than a pistol.

“I think I found them” she brought her hands up carefully as she stood, looking beyond the gun and past the figure's billowing red cape and matted pink hair...

And straight into the crimson eyes of a very pissed off pegasus.

Author's Note

I am trying to do better readers, and I am very sorry for the long waits. I'm gonna do my best to keep with it this time. I just hope you're willing to bear :twilightblush:

Thanks to everyone that done that so far :pinkiesad2:

But now, to stop being depressing, as always: Thanks for reading and have a good one :twilightsmile:

Chapter 8: Break

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Knuckle- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (currently), Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Carbon Bangle- Transform, Manipulate
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth (No Weapon Equipped) --- Mythril Armlet: Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

The rest of the party burst from opposite sides of the downed copter, weapons and magics at the ready. The woman’s anger flared, eyes flying wide as her pupils shrunk to dots at the move.

The gun steadied and her finger stiffened on the trigger.

“We’re not taking you back!”

The others froze and hesitation struck the thestral-like woman with Tifa’s shout. Her eyes locked back onto the brunette’s, a sneer forming on her lips.

“You’re with Shinra” she growled.

“No-”

“I SAW YOU!” the shout echoed through the clearing as the barrel thrust closer “YOU WERE WITH THEM AT THE TEMPLE!”

“We were with Shinra! But we left!”

“YOU’RE LYING!” she screamed, fury raising further.

“THEY EXPERIMENTED ON US!” the pegasus paused as Tifa shouted back. Her head turned as she studied the brunette's face for deception with narrowed eyes.

“Why?” she growled again before her eyes snapped at the movement over Tifa’s shoulder “I’LL KILL HER!”

“GUYS!” Tifa shouted, shooting her own glare back as she growled through a clenched grimace of a smile “Not.Helping.”

The others exchanged looks and backed their way to the copter again. Tifa released the held breath and turned back to the enraged gunwoman. She would definitely get her shots off before any of them could stop it and even with her bangle’s defensive charm and resilient new body, the martial artist very much doubted that she could tank a machine gun point blank to the face.

“How’d you find me?” the thestral like woman snarled.

“We were trying to skirt the lower islands when Spike noticed the smoke.” Tifa answered as evenly as she could manage. Red eyes snapped to search above the copter, confusion mixing with the anger.

“I smelled it” the dragon headed off the next issue, sitting patiently if ready. Then Tifa witnessed the first glimpse of something other than anger and suspicion on the woman’s face after the fiery reptile spoke; Surprise. Surprise and just the smallest hint of wonder. As quickly as it appeared though, it was shaken away and the girl was glaring at her again.

“We didn’t even know you were here” Tifa continued and sighed “Look we have no intention of letting Shinra find Us, let alone you. You think we can put the gun down and talk? …maybe we can help each other.”

The cloaked woman set her jaw, glancing at the others. The fingers on the rifle’s grip drummed as she visibly processed. A huff ruffled the cloak when its wearer stepped back, the gun’s barrel finally falling toward the ground. The brunette couldn’t help notice her finger remained resting on the trigger though.

“What do you want?” she snapped. Tifa looked back to Rarity, who cocked an eyebrow back.

“This is your show Darling” she gestured for her to take the lead. The brunette rolled her eyes and turned back.

“We need a way across the Divide” the martial artist began “We saw that you been repairing the copter-”

“It’s broken, won’t fly” she cut her off “Parts can’t be bypassed… not by me at least…”

The group slumped at the news. The pegasus shuffled in place, face buried in her cloak and hidden behind her hair. She clearly didn’t enjoy the attention, the angry rambling under her breath only compounding the observation. The lone pony not caught in the funk gave a thoughtful hum as she rubbed a hoof on her chin.

“What if we could get replacements parts?” Pinkie proposed. Spike was the first to respond.

“Where would we get them?” he looked skeptical and turned to the pegasus “Can it even be repaired if we do?”

The girl jumped slightly as the question brought her out of her grumbling trance, her one still visible eye snapping to the drake.

“Oh , um…” the eyes darted about unfocused until the gun clattered against her side as she shifted her weight and shrugged “With the right parts, I could… probably get it working… long enough.”

“Still leaves the problem of where we can find them” Tifa repeated.

“Well…” Pinkie looked away to look sideways with a shrug and a lopsided smile “There’s probably alotta spare parts at Junon.”

The suggestion set the cloaked woman pacing with more fevered muttering, very clearly with no intent on getting anywhere near a Shinra port. The other three simply returned flat looks.

“Junon?” Rarity droned to the small quadruped, less than amused. Her jaw then however sagged when the pony returned a sheepish grin “Oh goodness, you’re actually serious. Miss Sith, the whole reason we came this way was to avoid Junon.”

“Yeah but unless we plan on heading back to the plates, it’s kinda our only option isn’t it?” Pinkie countered and pressed her lips together. The former Turk sighed and looked to the other two. Tifa had her head in her hand and Spike shook his head.

“Don’t look at me. I didn’t even know Junon was a thing before I was caught, let alone where else to find helicopter parts.”

“We’re wantedby the authorities,” Tifa reminded them solemnly “And unlike a lot of AVALANCHE, they know what we look like. We wouldn’t make two steps before someone recognized us.”

A loud thud startled the group as a something heavy dropped in their midst. A pair of dead Shinra troopers now lay at their feet, several holes surrounded by dried blood adorning their uniforms.

“What is this?” Rarity gasped and looked wearily to the pegasus on the opposite side of the corpses, hand hovering over her holster.

“Your disguises” the gunwoman answered simply “There’s a few more if these don’t fit. There was also a unicorn, so you won’t have to shave that horn to wear the helmet.”

“You killed them” the unicorn delivered in a low, serious tone.

“Seriously? You broke into my home, attacked me, abducted me and then tried to drag me back to THE LAST PLACE I EVER WANTED TO SEE! APPARENTLY TO BE EXPERIMENTED ON AGAIN! SO YES! I KILLED THEM!!” she screamed before dropping back to low growl “And they were Shinra… That’s all the reason I need.”

She turned away and moved to the tree line, leaving the uneasy group behind. She returned a moment later with another pair of bodies and dropped them with the others. A small voice emerged from the silent party, prompting the imposing pegasus to turn to the pony with deflated hair.

“...There are still good people in Shinra.”

“Who stand by and do nothing. They’re all guilty” she declared and left to retrieve another corpse. She returned with a former medic draped on her shoulder “also...”

The girl fixed them with a furious Stare, sending a deathly chill down four spines at once.

“If you’re lying… if you bring them back here...”

She threw the corpse down on top of the rest, eyes never wavering from her frozen new ‘allies’. Tifa gave a hard swallow.

“Got it…”

“You really think it was safe to leave Spike with her?” Tifa asked the woman fixing the uniform next her, who gave an irritated grunt as the truck hit a bump.

“He seemed to be the one she had the least disgust for, and she doesn’t have a reason to kill him. He may very well be safer than we’re going to be” she offered, snipping her thread and moving to the next hole “Despite evidence to the contrary... Plus a dragon isn’t the most inconspicuous of companions.”

“How’d you get all the blood and smell out?” the pony asked as she bounced in the vibrating back seat.

“That was the easy part, all it needed was a quick prestidigitation. The tricky part is that some of those trooper sergeants are very attentive to details, so I have to patch the holes and make the…” she glanced at the driver, or more accurately a bit below her collar bone “Fitting adjustments without leaving a trace.”

“Really?” the buxom fighter shot her a flat look. The former Turk simply smiled back innocently as a poorly stifled snort escaped the back seat.

“This is a lot more troops, a lot sooner than I was expecting” the now disguised Tifa commented anxiously as she followed the former Turk through the small fishing town. With the truck it had taken them just a couple days to reach their destination, only to find it overrun with Shinra forces. There was at least a platoon’s worth of soldiers and mechanics transporting crates and guiding a notably high number of mechanical troops through the little hamlet nestled beneath the city “They expecting some kind of attack?”

“Maybe they’re having a parade” a muffled voice come from the large duffel hanging from the brunette’s shoulder.

“Don’t remember anything being planned…” Rarity commented “Then again, I suppose it has been nearly a month since we left.”

They weaved their way through the unexpected crowd toward the large freight lift looming over the area. Tifa readjusted the helmet, thankful that it hid her face but it also worried her with its slightly altered perspective. Still, it was surprisingly advanced for a mass produced, standard issue piece of equipment. The HUD identified they were surrounded by friendlies, including the woman walking next to her.

‘At least that won’t give us away’

If anything the multitude of soldiers provided excellent cover; the guards manning the gate of the lift didn’t even flinch at them waltzing right on. They took up a spot toward the back and waited for the troops to finish the last load. The pair let out relieved sighs as gates closed and a loud humming filled the enclosed space, relaxed until another pair of troopers took notice of them and marched over.

“You’re not part of the unit” the first said as he approached. Tifa froze until a very strange sounding yet familiar voice answered back.

“Nah, just got in.” Rarity spoke without her typical accent, instead sounding like some kind of Chicago mixed with Canadian “Came in from Condor.”

‘This is weird.’

'I don’t like it.’

“That shitshow?” the other trooper quipped, earning a snicker from the first “That must’ve been fun.”

“You part of the show then or you actually lucky enough to be on leave for the game?” the first asked

“Security” the unicorn returned simply.

“Seriously? You help with the whole excuse for this shindig and you don’t even get to walk?” he asked and the disguised women shrugged in return “Bummer” he gave before the lift jolted to a stop, the gates opening up to a large hanger “Well, good luck with that. Hopefully you get assigned a milk run.”

“Thanks, you take care there now” Rarity drawled out and quickly hurries along with Tifa. They quickly made their way to a side passage.

“What was that!?” Tifa and the pony popping her her out of her bag asked simultaneously as soon as they were alone, both caught somewhere between confusion and amusement.

“It‘s how my parents talk” the unicorn answered in her normal posh “Something my sister and I didn’t pick up naturally somehow but are pretty adept at mimicking. Enough of that though, we need to keep moving.”

The pony retreated back into the bag and the pair exited to a city of dancing lights and banners. Lose confetti littered the ground about the floats, warmachines and troops in dress uniform surrounding them. Even the city’s landmark, the gigantic cannon, had countless lights spiraled around it. Tifa continued following the former Turk past the waiting forces, quiet until they reached an alley.

“Well, you called it Pinkie” the brunette gave before regarding the disguised unicorn “So does this help or hurt?”

“Both…” Rarity brought a contemplative hand to her chin “It’s excellent cover considering how complicated organizing these big events can get. I doubt our presence will be at all questioned. However security will be heightened and it’ll be harder getting into the restricted areas. Either way we should try to get past all this before they begin blocking the streets.”

Tifa nodded as they continued through to the other end of the alley, emerging to a far less crowded venue. She took the moment to finally examine the signs and banners hung amongst the decorations, seeing the parade was indeed to celebrate the recent taking of the “hostile” fort. It also seemed to coincide with a big exhibition game between the Shinra “Mako Sharks” and the recent champions of the Spira league. She vaguely remembered Zest saying something now that she thought about it.

They passed through a tunnel and came out to a section of the layered city open to the sea, giving a great view of the water and the numerous ships and airships docked at the various levels. One stood out in contrast to the others, its radically different design marking it as the Spira team’s. Another with the Mako Sharks emblem emblazoned on its side rumbled overhead, passing over the massive cannon and settling above the buildings a level up.

“I don’t see the president’s airship...” Rarity brought Tifa’s attention back to the matter at hand “At least we don’t have to deal with that extra layer of security. It also means whoever they have overseeing all this probably took copters so there should be enough maintenance orders to-”

The horned woman gasped as she was wrenched forward against the rail and held facing toward the water. Her confused if hidden gaze moved from the arm holding her in place to the set jaw of the brunette, question bubbling up to her lips until a familiar voice from behind her killed it in her throat.

“So what do you think of the newbie?” Rina’s voice asked behind her. The bald man walking past next to her simply grunted “Yeah, not sure if she’ll cut it. Gonna make intimidating anyone a bitch, I mean she’s like a puppy... even without her… y’know, condition.”

“She can fight” the suited male mumbled.

“Yeah I guess…” the unkempt Turk’s voice trailed off and Tifa finally released the unicorn’s arm, as well as the breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding. Rarity sighed herself and stepped back, rubbing at the appendage with a wince.

“Oh, sorry” the martial artist frowned “I know we’re in disguise but when I saw them-”

“No no, I understand Darling” she returned and glanced after her former co-workers “They may still have recognized me even under the helmet. We did work together for what's years by now after all. Let us move over a street to be safe.”

“Hold up, let’s head in there” the brunette pointed toward a neon sign above a stairwell.

“Tifa dear we already have equipment” Rarity pointed out.

“Yeah we do, but Spike’s still using our left overs…” Tifa countered “And if Shinra took our pegasus friend’s gun then they probably took the rest of her gear too. If she had any that is.”

“That’s not our problem dear” the former Turk frowned “A fair point about Spike though, they may also have upgrades for us.”

“I wonder how he’s doing with our would-be pilot...”

“So, um…” the dragon jumped at the unexpected voice. For two whole days and a dozen attempts at conversation, Spike hadn’t gotten a word out of the girl and now she was talking to him? He turned to see the woman glancing back over her shoulder at him “Are… are you like, an actual dragon?”

“Uh, yes?”

“Not sapient because of... some experiment?” he tilted his head at the question. He couldn’t tell behind the cloak and hair but the tone did not match the avatar of fury they’d been dealing with. She almost seemed embarrassed or even scared to ask.

“Nope. Well, I mean there were experiments but I was like this before them” he answered truthfully “I’m the real deal.”

“Hm” the girl hummed gently and simply turned back to her preparations. Spike waited tentatively but it seemed like that was all he was going to get.

“Good talk…”

The pair made their way down into the multi-leveled shop, hitting the item store for more supplies and an upgraded bangle of Spike. Then after a bit of cajoling from Tifa and Pinkie, another for their trigger happy ally. A floor below they found what was unmistakably the weapon shop. Rarity’s weapon was already custom made so it’d be hard to find anything better but Tifa did find a sturdier glove for under the armored knuckles she got from Shinra. What else to get left the pair at a loss however.

“So uh… this might sound weird but you guys got anything for a quadruped? Like that doesn’t need hands?” the martial artist asked awkwardly.

“You mean like a guard hound?” the shopkeeper queried, earning rapid nods back “We got some materia collars… Not really a weapon and none of ours are enchanted. Having said that, you could always slot a strength or attack up materia or something to give them a little more punch. Think they have them down stairs.”

“That’s better than nothing” they shrugged and headed downstairs after the purchase. The unicorn behind the counter shot them a smile before returning to her current customer at the other end of the store. Rarity browsed as they waited and Tifa glanced to a TV mounted in the corner above her, seeing footage of the one blitzball teams doing interviews. She shrugged it off until a familiar green mane made her give a double take.

“Oh no way!” she exclaimed, a goofy smile forming under her helm “That’s Zest!”

“Oh so it is, and after the season already started too” Rarity mused “I guess Rina was right about her being good enough to get on a team.”

“Can’t say, never actually seen her play” Tifa tilted her head, brow slightly furrowed “I guess with everything that happened she finally decided to get out of the slums.”

“Or maybe she felt something was suddenly missing and needed the the distraction” even under the helmet the unicorn’s coy smile left little doubt in the displaced woman’s mind that the rest of her face matched.

“It wasn’t like that. We’re just friends.”

“Sure Darling, whatever you say” Rarity teased and a giggle escaped the duffel, followed by a quick ‘eep’ as the brunette bounced it higher up her shoulder.

“TROOPERS!” both jumped at the shout behind them, stiffening as they rounded to a fiery haired woman with notably large wings stalking toward them from the door. She wore a pristine dress uniform and large aviators that failed to hide the stern scowl she leveled at them “This is not standard issue equipment.”

“Ma’am!” Rarity spoke up, back straight and eyes straight ahead “We’re using our own funds Ma’am, not-”

“I’m not talking about the materia Corporal!” she snapped and leaned forward, somehow looming over Tifa despite little height difference “Your uniforms have been altered. By who?!”

“Uhh…” Tifa fumbled and triggered the woman’s wings to ruffle up slightly, making her look bigger than she was. The glimmer of her insignia pin caught the brunette’s attention, shock rearing as she recognized it from the numerous reports and shows.

‘Holy shit this chick’s a Wonderbolt!’

“SPEAK UP PRIVATE!”

“UH- A tailor from Canterlot! Uh, Ma’am!”

“DETAILS PRIVATE! NAME, NUMBER, LOCATION!”

“I- Uh-um, I don’t have it on me Ma’am” she stuttered again, the officer’s eyes narrowing dangerously in response. She opened her mouth again when muffled music blaring outside reached them, forcing the officer to straighten suddenly… straining her blouse enough to pop open a button. She glanced down to the small opening in front of her now obviously ample assets before glaring dangerously at the pair, as if daring either to speak “I… could send you the info when I get home?”

She studied the disguised human for a moment, a very slight blush on her cheeks. She quickly pulled a notebook from her pocket, scrawling something rapidly and sharply tearing the paper free.

“You do that private” she growled, snapping her head to the side in an instant “WHAT ARE YOU STARING AT CORPORAL!?”

“Nothing Ma’am!”

“Then get back to you posts!”

“Yes Ma’am!” the both snapped off as she abruptly about faced, wings ruffling and hands moving to fix her top as she strode from the room. They were still standing straight for a moment after she left, the store's only other customer rushed out while avoiding eye contact. Finally relaxing, the buxom ‘trooper’ turned and offered the slip to Rarity “Well, you got your first customer for if you ever reopen your shop.”

“Ha ha Darling” she gave flatly, snatching the paper… and tucked it away when the martial artist turned. The pair quickly purchased their materia and made their way back to the street to see the barricades had begun going up. “We should hurry up dear, we’ve only got the preamble music here and probably a speech now.”

The pair made their way through the growing crowds as best they could. While they received some curious or irritated looks from some of the Shinra personnel along the way, they were either too busy or didn’t care enough to ask questions. Rarity informed the pair they were almost halfway to the warehouse when the music quieted and a voice boomed over the speakers. They looked up to one of the many screens dotted throughout the city as they walked to see a heliotrope unicorn woman dominating the screen, standing behind a podium atop a raised stage with several other Shinra representatives and aids behind her.

“Ah, the head of RnD, that would explain all the robotic troops.” the former Turk muttered then looked over her shoulder “Well that seals it. If the president was here, she’d be making the speech and security would be even tighter.”

Tifa noted the information and kept following, left with little option other than to listen as they continued on.

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Both local and visiting, I am very proud to be the one addressing you today! As many of you have undoubtedly heard, our celebrations today are no longer simply the wondrous show of goodwill with our neighbors with what will undoubtedly be a thrilling game, but also now the successful reclamation of the rebel Fort Condor!” she beamed as delivered the news, though Tifa couldn’t help feel that there was something… off about the smile “Yes thanks to our brave men and women of the Shinra forces, the dissidents of the Hooffield and Mccolt families will plague these plains no more! And on top of all that, it also proved the first successful field test of Shinra’s newest development in securing the safety of its citizens.”

Rarity’s pace slowed a moment as she turned toward the screens, slight concern creasing her expression. The camera panned out to reveal a pair SOLDIER walking to stand in front of the raised podium, something strange about their movements. It took the pair another moment to realize it was too precise, and that under the signature helmet there was only more metal.

“But, their AI wasn’t close to being ready. They can’t differentiate between lethal and non-lethal force reliably yet...” the unicorn muttered before the one on screen continued.

“It is my pleasure to reveal, Synthetic SOLDIER!” the twin robots responded to the declaration by simultaneously drawing their swords with a flourish ahead of holding them point first to the ground, giving the impression of the knights of old “While still in the early stages, they are an amazing step forward in the mission for peace. With the support of mechanical fighters like these and many already aiding our Troopers, and your friends and loved ones among them, they will be at less risk and better supported…”

She paused and looked over the crowd, the fire of a zealous belief in her eyes.

“There was a time in this world where the only thing that mattered was strength… an imbalance caused by all the intrinsic gifts of the different people of this land, but no longer!” those behind her on the stage began to exchange confused looks, alternating between glances to the department head and looking around unsure “The old woman no longer needs to fear the large hoodlums on her way home, not with the surprise waiting in her purse. The rest of the species no longer have to worry that a minority controls all the magic, not with materia! The infantryman no longer has to risk certain death being the first to charge in, not when there are tools like the SS’s standing in front us to do it instead!”

“She always goes off script with these things” the disguised unicorn informed bluntly “They really should know better by now…”

“Firearms! Materia! Machines!” the horned woman shouted “These are the great Equalizers of our time! All brought to you by Shrina! And on that note, without further ado…

“Let the celebrations begin!”

The music blared back to life as the crowds cheered and closed on the barricades, awaiting the arrival of the first floats. There was little point in trying to converse, even right next to each other their shouts were drowned out by the noise. After a now much slower slog through the crowds, Rarity eventually led the uniformed martial artist into nook nestled by the mouth of the next tunnel. A heavy metal door stood ahead of them, the former Turk looking around before her horn began to glow. After a moment of concentration and a few failed attempts, the handle turned and allowed them to rush inside. A loud clang echoed with the door slamming shut behind them, muffling the overbearing din to a more tolerable level.

“FINALLY!” a poof of pink hair erupted from the duffel, its owner taking a deep breath “I’m all for cozy spaces, but that was a doozy!”

“Sorry Darling, as we agreed though, you’re not exactly hard to miss” Rarity offered, the cat-sized pony just giggling back before fishing out a small grip of papers “You sure these’ll work?”

“Assuming they use the same requisition forms they use at the tower, which I’m pretty sure they do. All I had to do was change the name of the city…” Sith hesitated as a uncertain look crossed her face “The only snag might be if they look too closely for the actual name of the warehouse. I didn’t know that.”

Rarity took the papers and shrugged, leading the way up the stairway. The music met them again once they reached the next level of the city, only slightly more muffled compared to earlier. Thankfully much later in the parade route, they could still use the streets here and quickly reached their destination. Walking through the door and into a small entry room, a single guard sat in the small booth with his back to the entrance while watching the parade on a small screen.

“Ahem” Rarity lightly cleared her throat, the guard startled at the sound. He rounded on them surprised and then confused as he rose from the chair.

“Oh, um… How can I help you Corporal?” he stuttered.

“Simple part pick up, they’re a little busy on the docks so the lieutenant sent us” the disguised unicorn handed over the forged paperwork. The troop scratched his head looking at the sheets.

“Uh sure I guess, though you’ll have to find them yourselves. I’m the only one here and y’know, can’t leave my post and all.”

“We’ll be fine” she smiled at the guard lazily tossing the forms in a small ‘In’ pile. He buzzed them through and went back to his tv without a second thought.

“Well this is a lot easier than I thought it’d be” Tifa quipped.

“Yes, I was predicting a lot more resistance” Rarity returned pensive “I suppose they’re more stressed for manpower here than I thought. Either way, quite the boon for us yes?”

“Yeppers! And you did say this was one of the smaller storages” The pony popped out of the bag again, the threstral-like woman’s list of the broken components’ part numbers in her hoof. Tifa was pretty sure the angry woman only knew them from the labels on what she ripped out of the copter, which didn’t exactly inspire a lot of faith in the pegasus’s ability to repair it. That being said, they didn’t really have a whole lot of options so she'd give her the benefit of the doubt.

It took awhile but following the numbers and letters on the aisles they eventually found all the parts they needed, storing them in Pinkie’s mog. Apparently as long as they weren’t materia or mako, they could be stored in her summoning materia all the same. The one thing they had to carry the old fashion way was the last thing they needed; the fuel. Coming to the the back wall they found shelves upon shelves of the smooth translucent orbs of wildly varying sizes. Pinkie pointed out one of the larger spheres, the martial artist grunting slightly as she picked it up.

“Here,” Rarity reached out a hand “I’ll take Pinkie’s duffel.”

“Oh sure, leave me the heavy stuff” she shot back with a small smirk.

“I’m not the one that can lift a behemoth Darling” she pointed out prior to Pinkie dismissing her mog and jumping back into the duffel “My, you’re surprisingly light!”

“Thanks!” she beamed with the simple reply. Feeling light and relaxed with how smoothly this was all going, they made their way back to the entrance. Waving to the guard as they left they emerged back into a crowd far denser now that the parade had made its way to their level.

The roar of an airship from above drew the crowd's attention skyward, the Mako Shark’s transport blowing a horn and prompting the masses to throw their hands up in response. More than a few people caught errant arms in the face and Tifa was no exception. Moving to fix her askew helmet she heard another roar from the closest float, an actual Ronzo countering the ship’s rumble with his own. The mob responded again, rushing forward to strain against the barriers and knocking the off balance brunette to the ground.

Tifa landed with her upper half hanging over the curb, her helmet flying off and bouncing into the middle of the street. She watched as the next float passed over the protective headgear before glancing up to its passengers...

And going pale as she locked eyes with a messy haired Turk, time seeming to slow as she mirrored her shocked expression.

‘There is no way I’m that unlucky’

‘And things were going so smoothly’

*BANG**BANG**BANG**BANG*

Rina flew backwards as the shots boomed over the music, sending the crowds into a panic as they ran and flooded over the blockades. Tifa felt a hand help her up, her still disguised ally shouting over the screams as she led them into the fleeing masses.

“We have to lose them in the confusion, they won’t fire into the crowd!”

“But we will apparently!” Tifa called back indignantly while fighting the chaotic, conflicting tides of bodies.

“It was above their heads and besides, they all hit Rina!” Rarity woman countered.

“And so we incenite a panic to get away?!”

“If we have to! We have to protect ourselves firs-”

*CRACK*

A lightning coated fist crashed against the disguised unicorn’s helmet, sending her flying back and parting the crowds. Before Tifa could react another fist was closing on her, forcing her to leap back to her downed comrade.

“Sorry Darling!” a mocking tone rang out in a voice it didn’t quite fit. A furious, wall-eyed glare above a crisp new suit met the rising Rarity.

“I see someone got a promotion” the well coiffed woman grumbled and regained her footing, tossing away the compromised helm. The new Turk sneered back.

“Yeah, there was an opening cause it turns out they had a traitor-GAH!” a blinding flash erupted between the fugitives and their hunters. Tifa stumbled back currently bereft of her usual protection, that protection's former owner didn’t have that problem however. He rushed at the helpless martial artist, fists raised.

“SURPRIZE!” a jubilant shout echoed as a pink mare shot out of the duffel, landing on the brunette’s shoulder with matria aglow. Rude blinked behind his glasses, all the hesitation needed before a pillar of earth shot up from beneath him. Another flash of light that preceded a wave of freezing air came from their side and a hand grabbed the martial artist’s arm again.

“KEEP MOVING!” Rarity shouted, urging them forward again. They passed the pegasus trying to free her foot from a mass of ice but unfortunately then ran right into a line of troopers spanning their only opening in the thinning crowds. Their rifles snapped up, all aimed unflinchingly at the trio.

“WE NEED THEM ALIVE!” Derpy called out, giving the troopers pause. They instead charged and dogpiled on the fleeing trio, only to find themselves launched into the air and back toward their comrades. Those that managed to avoid the falling troops quickly found themselves tossed aside by a barrier shoved ahead of an unstoppable, buxom force.

“Human cow catcher!” Pinkie laughed will glee as they forced their way past, sprinting down the street until they came to a stretch of spectator scaffolding before another tunnel. No sooner had they passed the first section when something leapt from the abandoned stands and crashed into the ground in front of them. The keen of metal sliced through the air, the barrier splitting cleanly into two as dust plumed skyward. “Uh-oh.”

A metallic figure rose from its kneeling strike within the cloud, an oversized SOLDIER blade quickly readied against them. The trio cautiously inched back until Rina’s voice reached them.

“Those were some pretty cheap shots there Priss…” the ruffled turk called as she approached with Rude, Derpy and the second mechanical SOLDIER in tow. The three ragged holes in her suit and the small gash across her temple didn't seem to have left her any worse for wear as she strutted toward them. More troopers caught up and waited as the Woman stopped, tapping her baton on her shoulder “...Stay back. You’ll only get in the way.”

Without another word the Turks and robotic SOLDIER rushed at the pincered party. The closet automaton lunged at the pugilist before a boulder of white fur slammed into it.

“GET ‘EM MOGGY! SHOW ‘EM WHO’S THE BETTER PARTY MACHINE!” the excitable pony cheered from atop her fluffy mount. Tifa spun, her suspicion of the fleeting reprieve proven by Rude’s punch colliding with her crossed gauntlets. She kicked away yet the bald agent denied the bid for space as he leapt after her, a follow up attack already in motion. Even with her recent training she just couldn’t keep up, for every blow she managed to land she received three in return. This was different than when they fought in her apartment so many months ago. He wasn’t holding back anymore.

Rarity grunted as twin bolts rebounded off her Shell spell, followed by a gasp as the two suited casters rushed forward. They were too fast for her to shift the spell, passing through the magic only defense with synchronized attacks. She managed to divert the sparking end of Rina’s stun rod yet took Derpy’s straight right to the jaw. A wall of ice solidified between them, allowing a single breath before a blur of armor streaked past.

“TIFA LOOK OUT!” The martial artist stumbled back from an elbow in her face as the warning reached her too late, the artificial warrior's sword already past her defenses. Rarity watched the brunette’s protective enchants shimmer and fail. A splash of red misted the air when a gash appeared across her collarbone and a scream echoed off the buildings.

“Priorities Priss!” the distracted former Turk heard before catching Rina’s baton to her temple. A reflexive arc of lightning flew from her horn to drive the agent back before she hit the pavement and had to quickly roll away from the grey pegasus’s heel drop. She refocused with a grimace, resigning herself to simply hope the human would be okay. She couldn’t help her right now.

As soon of the Tifa’s blood hit the ground a blur of Pink launched past her, latching onto the Synthetic SOLDIER’s face. She managed to redirect Rude’s latest punch and catch him with a knee to the gut. Grunting with his suit’s reinforcement doing little against his opponent’s strength, he shifted back and gathered a ball of flame in his grip. A surprised cry escaped his target as the spell exploded against her, sending her flying into the lowest level of the scaffolding.

Tifa groaned as she shoved the debris away and sat up, rubbing at her head until what sounded like whirling boomerang closed on her. She watched helplessly as a glowing crescent spun in a curving arc in the stands and right through the main supports. Her heart skipped a beat as several rickety creaks followed, then a brief silence.

“Aw shit.”

“TIFFY!” Sith cried at the sight of three stories of scaffolding and seating falling on the human. Ripped her off the imitation SOLDIER’s blank visage not a moment later, she bounced along the ground until she came to a stop against a prone mechanical mog. Fur and circuits hung lose off its unmoving form and one of its arms lay a few feet away. She rolled to her hooves but too fast for her to react, there was a shadow looming over her. A glint of steel shined as it raced toward downward.

The blade suddenly veered however, cutting into the asphalt when a shower of sparks erupted against the machine’s head.

“Stupid toaster!” Agent Zap shouted, her baton now pointing at the collapsed stands “What part of ‘we need them alive’ don’t you understand?!”

The pony looked past the altercation to see Rarity also flat against the black top, struggling against the suited pegasus pinning her down. She gave frightened glance up to the red-headed Turk pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Get me some cuffs” Rina called to the troops were hanging back and then to her partner “Rude go check on Lock, see if she’s still alive.”

She looked down to the pony who simply slumped. They lost, there was no point in fighting anymore.

...

‘I didn’t ask for this’

‘...You didn’t’

‘I didn’t want any of this’

‘Nope’

‘All wanted was to go to a damn con with my best friend!’

‘That seems like fun’

‘But then she gets turned into a zombie and rips my fucking throat out!’

‘And then you get sent here’

‘And even THEN I wasn’t allowed to just live my life!’

‘With a new best friend that you can’t see anymore either’

‘NO! I get forced into a grand fucking adventure because reasons!’

‘To ‘save the world!’’

‘BULLSHIT! I’m tired of having this shit FORCED on me!’

‘and?’

‘AND I’M TIRED OF FUCKING RUNNING!”

‘Aaand?’

‘AND I AM REALLY FUCKING TIRED OF GETTING MY ASS KICKED!!!’

*CRACK*

The gathered forces all paused at what sounded like a dozen bamboo poles being snapped all at once. A low rumble brought their attention to the pile of twisted metal and chairs, Rude stopping his advance as he tentatively watched the mound begin to tremble. The next thing any of them knew the debris erupted into the sky, revealing an extremely pissed off Tifa covered in translucent blue flames standing among the raining scrap.

“WE GOT A LIMIT!” Rina called out and braced before an unearthly, flanged screamed escaped the displaced woman and countless blazing cracks erupted all across her form “I... I think?”

Faster than any could blink Tifa exploded toward the closest target, Rude’s eyes bulging behind his glasses as she was on him in an instant. The pummeling rush pounded through his defenses, even what he managed to block still hitting him like a freight train. He raised his arms in a cross against the final strike, another loud snap ringing out and he was launched straight past the others and over the street’s edge to the level below.

Incapable of concern, one of the synthetic SOLDIER charged the fractured brunette as soon as the Turk was out of the way. It didn’t even get the chance to raise its sword before her feet where planted on its chest. The others flinched as the top half of the reinforced warrior SHATTERED under the force of the subsequent somersault.

“SHE’S A COMBOER!” Rina called out again and gasped when Tifa was just suddenly there with her foot already flying at the Turk’s face. The kick contacted with the agent’s hastily raised baton, bearly stopping the momentum while the metal rod nearly snapped.

‘This is reinforced mythril!’ Rina’s mind screamed before the sharp sting of freezing water bit into her arms “What the-!?”

A geyser force torrent of cold slammed into her and drove her right into a streetlight. She grumbled a series of curses, trying to step away only to find herself stuck. She looked down to find nearly her whole body encased in ice, pinning her to the pole.

“HYA!” a young voice cried out, drawing the Turk’s attention the rookie’s attempt to counter. The flying kick struck across the buxom woman’s face earning a victorious cheer from the novice Turk. An exclamation that abruptly turned into a startled yelp as a death grip looped around her middle like a vice. She felt herself whipped in the opposite direction as her captor bent backward “NONONONONONONO-”

The protests were cut off as she met not only the asphalt but the foundation beneath it. With the bottom half of the pegasus sticking out the ground like a daisy, a shaky hand flailed up slightly.

“Iahm okayeeee…” echoed up muffled before the limbs fell slack and the enraged fighter rounded on her next target. The mechanical SOLDIER’s blade swung in a perfect arc before shattering against the the back of its target’s metal knuckles. It’s programming stuttered with the unpredicted outcome, further stressed by an uppercut sending it into the air.

“YOUR METAL DICK IS MINE MOTHER FUCKER!”

A huge splash of water surged from beneath the android, a large finned body riding it up to its prey. Rows of razor sharp teeth snapped closed as they met.

‘Wait.’

‘What.’

The blood thirsty fish landed back in the wet crater, viciously thrashing the bot back and forth before finally dragging it to whatever depths the apex predator was summoned from. Tifa stood rooted at the spot with an arm still raised, staring transfixed at the now empty space as some of the scattered oil dripped down her face.

“Thaaaaaat… wasn’t a dolphin” was all she could process as the glowing cracks faded from her body.

‘No, that was not a dolphin…’

“Don’t just stand there!” one of the ranking troopers shouted “It’s over! Get her!”

Tifa wavered when she turned to retreat, stumbling and growing dizzy as the pain of her injuries came roaring back. A deafening report of machine gun fire blared behind her followed by the rapid ping of a barrier. The freed unicorn woman rushed to the martial artist’s side, draping Tifa's arm over her shoulders to help the human along. Fractures spread across the protection until more pillars of earth rose to shield them. Pinkie dashed up and leapt atop the pair, snagging a certain material along the way.

“Switch to piggyback Rares!” the pony instructed and channeled mana to the small orb. With the now considerably lighter Tifa draped across her back and all but the troops pegasi and griffons cut off, Rarity sprinted into the tunnel with all she had “Hang in there guys! If can we can lose them and make it back to the FOREST, they’ll never find us!”

‘Forest? What?’ Tifa’s tired mind floundered at the mare practically screaming the statement, but couldn’t voice the concern.

With the occasional pot shot at the flyers behind her, mixed with Pinkie’s rapidly diminishing spells, Rarity managed to outpace the aerial troopers in the enclosed space and close on the end of the tunnel. She had no idea how they were going to get back down to the village but knew that if they managed to stay out of sight long enough, they could get lost in the mass of troops again.

With great effort Tifa raised her head as Rarity gave a relieved laugh, seeing them almost at the end of the tunnel and the redirected crowds ahead. Only a few more moments from reaching the opening, a distinct *THUMP* reached them followed by a very familiar ringing as a trooper fell out from the edge of the tunnel with a yell. Rarity skidded to a stop before a whole squad rushed out after the fallen ambusher.

“LEFT!” she heard Pinkie call and point out a door, following as she barely registered the brief flash of magic from above her. Barreling through, Rarity bolted down the corridors and numerous turns as an exhausted Pinkie called them out.

Tifa however, while hoping they could stop to heal her soon, was left wondering why that trooper fell and why that sound was so familiar. The sudden flash of a memory hit her, of when she was in gym class back in high school. More particularly, when she was hit square in the face by a speeding soccer ball.

‘Huh…’

Meanwhile the leader of the pursuing squad ran up and kicked at the tunnel’s maintenance door, failing to receive even a shudder. They kicked again and again, finally getting a small amount of give only to see a light trickle of dirt fall from the edges.

“What’s going on?!” the troops straightened as Rina caught up “Where are they?”

“They escaped into the maintenance tunnels ma’am” the squad leader reported, before shifting uneasily “We tried to pursue but they seem to have, uh… well, buried the entrance ma’am.”

“Buried?” she parroted before rolling her eyes “Get back.”

The forces retreated and Rina rose a hand to the door, a blast of red and black flame rocketing into the thin metal. As the smoke cleared she stared at the jagged, melted hole to see nothing but a stream of dirt pouring through. The Turk ran a hand down her face with an aggravated sigh.

“Fucking earth materia… Well what are you waiting for?! Get to the other entrances! Get a sweep going! MOVE!”

“Yes ma’am” Rina watched the infantry scatter and radio in support. She looked to the dirt filled hole again, shoulders slumping. The maintenance tunnels made using the radio a bitch, meaning even if they did find them they may not be able to call it in before they were taken down.

‘Not that we’ll fucking find them’ she thought bitterly. The city’s tunnels were a virtual maze, almost as bad as the plates’. They were gone.

“Shit.” she spat before pulling out a cigarette, lighting it with a small flame on her finger tips. She should go check on the rookie and Rude, they’d be fine but she should still check. She gave another sigh but couldn’t help the smallest of smiles as she looked back to the door “Catch ya’ next time Priss.”

The green haired woman in a vibrant wet-suit braced against the airship's railing, her binoculars locked on the commotion below. With a beaming smile on her face, she watched her old friend finish and flick away the butt. It may have been awhile since they hung out but she did remember that ‘Indigo’ only smoked when she lost at something. She finally pulled the vision enhancers away and drummed her hands excitedly on the rail.

“YEAH!” she threw her hands up, victorious and ecstatic in equal measure.

“That was a hell of a throw” Zest’s cheered turned ‘eep’ at the voice, spinning to see her old classmate and new teammate standing there with a smirk. She strutted up to the rail next to the anxious girl to peer over and admire the scene.

“W-what do mean? It… fell off the rack?” a forced, nervous smile spread across the pink woman’s face. Sour simply stayed silent, returning the uneasy girl a blunt look. Her smirk returned after a moment though.

“Yeah totally, they really need to replace those latches” the freckled female played along, turning to lean back against the railing “So that was the fabled Tifa huh? Fucking scary ass limit she’s got there.”

“Yeah...” Zest’s face grew concerned in an entirely different way, a hand rubbing absently on her bicep “Actually never seen anything like that from her before.”

Sour inhaled to respond but was cut off by the ship's horn. A slight tilt of the deck and sudden breeze signalling their return to the ground.

“Well that’s that, gotta shift that mind into game mode” the freckled woman smiled and pressed a finger to the pink girl's forehead “Can’t have you so distracted you flub up your first game.”

“Oh, uh yeah” Zest didn’t look any less worried.

“Hey she’ll be fine, you just helped see to that. She wouldn’t want you freaking out right?”

“Right…” the green haired girl relented and turned to make her way to the hatch. She paused after a couple steps to look back to her stationary teammate “You coming?”

“I’ll be right there, gotta return a couple texts first” Sour held up her phone “But after the game though... we should talk.”

Lemon frowned at the odd delivery but nodded and continued with Sour sweetly smiling at her back. As soon as her friend was through the door her expression lost some of it’s humor. Selecting the contact, she lost no time getting typing.

-Tell Orchard to keep an eye on the news. That Turk she was looking into just made a biiiig mess in Junon....-

No sooner had she stowed the phone when something crashed into the deck only a couple yards away, making her nearly jump out of her skin. After her heart rate returned to normal, she carefully approached the new crater in the walkway. She blinked in surprise, looking to the sky and then down to the street before finally rounding back on the hunk of crumpled metal that was once the head of a synthetic SOLDIER.

“Holy shit…”

Tifa laid sleeping in the backseat of the truck that was somehow still where they left it. A small bump made her grumble and stir. A much bigger one bounced her up and smacked her head on the side panel. She groaned and rose to a sit, making sure to hold onto the fuzzy mare passed out on her chest so she didn’t tumble. The poor pony been out since they left the maintenance tunnels.

“Sorry Darling, spotted a checkpoint and had to go off the road” the unicorn driver said to the rearview.

“It’s okay” Tifa mumbled back while rubbing her head. She saw them moving down a slight incline before noticing the sun beginning to rise “You want me to drive again?”

“No, I’ll be okay for a while yet” she answered. A soft grumbling came between them, followed by a tired sigh “There she is.”

“You alright there Pinkie?” Tifa looked down to the pony slowly opening her eyes to a squint.

“Yeah… that was just… Alotta spells at the end there… Just need some time to... recharge” she delivered between breaths “…Do we have an ether?”

“A few broke during the fight but most of them made it” Tifa answered, digging through the duffel for one of the small bottles. Pulling out a handful, she seperated one of the green from the blue and handed it to the pony. Despite the small amount, she gradually tilted it in her hooves to take her time drinking it.

Back home, when she was still Tiffany, the displaced woman would sometimes wonder about the logistics of drinking a whole potion in the middle of a fight. She quickly learned after arriving though that they were barely more than the average shot, taking all of a second to down at best.

“Sorry about your mog” the brunette offered.

“Oh don’t worry” he mare returned after she finished the bottle, looking much better “I may not be much help with the helicopter but I’ll be able to fix Moggy up good as new.”

“You think any the parts were damaged?” the driver inquired.

“They should be okay. A little scuffed maybe but Moggy’s storage compartments are pretty tough.”

“Well at least that's something” Tifa gave somberly “Too bad we can’t say the same about the fuel…”

“It’s cracked” the sudo-thestral gave in a low tone.

“Yeah, a building fell on me” Tifa returned slightly disgruntled. She shook it off though with a apologetic shrug “It’ll still work right? It’ll run out faster but it should be enough to get us across yeah?”

“If it doesn’t explode…” the altered pegasus examined the damage. The surface was relatively unmared, the crack instead spreading inward toward the core. It’d have been pretty if it didn’t risk the whole endeavor. “Whatever… not like I’ve got anything to lose anymore...”

Tifa frowned as she couldn’t quite catch the last bit but knew better than to push it as the flyer walked back to the pile of parts, grumbling the whole time. The pugilist sighed and made her way to the others gathered around Pinkie fixing her furry mount.

“She's been doing that a lot I presume?” she asked the dragon.

“Actually she’s barely made a peep since you three left. If it weren’t for the occasional sound of her tools, I’d of thought she bailed” Spike corrected before a playful smile crossed his lips “So yeah, I’d really appreciate if we got me a phone or something if I’m left behind again. Even my cage at Shinra wasn’t that dull… though that may have just been because of Pinkie.”

“Well speaking of buying things dear...” Rarity fished for the bundle in her bag while the pony responded to the compliment with a smile “We can’t have our fine gentledrake always stuck with our leftovers now can we?”

“Oh cool, Thanks!” Spike gave as the well-coifed unicorn showed him the gear.

“Not at all dear” she bent down to help him equip it all. Spike’s foreclaws where actually pretty dexterous but he appreciated the help with more delicate things, like buckles. They hit a snag when it came to the collar and his spines (not to mention his aversion to being collared after his time at Shinra), but they eventually settled on just wrapping it around his arm. Meanwhile, Tifa had made her way back to their soon to be pilot.

“Here” the brunette held out another wrapped bundle “We got you a few things too.”

“...Why?” the pegasus eyed her suspiciously, to which Tifa just shrugged.

“Well we noticed they took that scary gun of yours and figured they took the rest. And since most of a trooper's stuff is built into their gear and uniform, I also figured you hadn’t managed to salvage much.” Tifa explained “It’s just some basics but Rarity said Pegasi are good with weather elements, so we tried to grab stuff like that.”

“I don’t need your charity” she snapped back.

“Well then consider it an investment in you not shooting us in the back later” the martial artist offered again with a glint of humor, to which the pegasus just rolled her eyes and returned to her repairs. Tifa sighed and set the bundle in the cabin before walking back to the others.

“Well, you tried Darling” Rarity consoled her “Sometimes generosity just doesn’t pay off though… learned that the hard way… more than once...”

Tifa frowned but again, didn’t push. She knew Rarity had some kind of design business prior to ending up at Shinra but then something happened. She'd been saving up to maybe reopen in Canterlot someday but the former Turk still didn’t like talking about it. It definitely seemed to Tifa that there had to have been a lot more than simply going out of business though.

The repairs went by slowly, and the fact it that they arrived just before dark it didn’t help much either. Other than trying to help Pinkie with her mog or watching Spike testing his new gear and materia, there wasn’t much to pass the time. There was however one thing that raised Tifa’s spirit when they finished preparing breakfast: the wrapping for the gear she had left had been sitting empty when she brought the pegasus some food.

‘Small victories I guess…’

‘Hey, those still count.’

Eventually however, after the sun had already crossed its apex, the still nameless pegasus appeared next to them.

“It’s ready. Go do whatever you need to. We’ll be in the air for a while.” she gave simply and returned to the aircraft. With the essentials taken care of, they warily buckled themselves into the seats of the jury-rigged flying machine slowly whirring to life. After a bit of a shaky lift-off, they soon found themselves above the trees and heading out over the water. All but the pilot were bereft of the headsets Tifa and Rarity had on their more recent ride together, meaning conversation was all but impossible over the noise of the craft. Supposedly Shinra had a model that was quiet enough to actually hear someone shouting from the ground, let alone other passengers.

This was not one of those models.

To say it was an uncomfortable ride would be like saying Tifa was an a-cup. On top of the noise, there was the constant vibrations and frequent turbulence further highlighting the general rattling all around them. Several worried looks were shared whenever something clanged or popped loud enough to be heard. And true to the the yellow woman’s word, the sun was already setting by the time they saw the shore line.

A collectively held breath was finally released when the pegasus called back that they had started their decent. The exchanged smiles were quickly extinguished when a huge jolt rocked the copter and a gout of flame flashed along the side.

“Well, that’d be the fuel” the sudo-threstral said with disturbing calm despite her obvious struggle with the controls. Another jolt rocked them in their harnesses and the craft fell into a spin.

The last thing any of them saw was the crash of water and a wall of sand before everything went dark...

Author's Note

If this had been my other displaced story, -THIS- is the song that would have played during Tifa's limit break. Not only did it partially inspire the scene, but it also serves as a pretty good reflection of her mental state during. Particularly the chorus.

But wow, long chapter is long! (And old meme is Old! :rainbowlaugh: ) This is actually the longest chapter I've written for FIMfiction. Yeah maybe by only a hundred or so words but still. But hey, content right? Figured I'd make it a little longer seeing as it took a little longer to finish then I planned, hopefully it didn't drag too much for you guys :twilightsheepish:

As always: Thanks for reading and have a good one :twilightsmile:

Chapter 9: Hunted

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Grand Glove- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (--New--), Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Carbon Bangle- Transform, Manipulate
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth, Materia Band- Water, ATK up --- Carbon Bangle: Sense, Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

Fluttershy: Altered Pegasus
Trooper Machine Gun- Deathblow --- Carbon Bangle- Aero, Poison
Other: Enhanced physique, Improved healing, “Unnatural Abilities”

“And here I thought not being there for the Game was going to look bad.”

The alicorn sighed from behind her desk, head propped up in her hand. She watched the feed of her former employee opening fire over the heads of her citizens. She watched as the perspectives shifted to follow the chase and split to cover several angles of the ensuing fight and then finally shudder at the moment of Miss Lockhart’s break.

“There are those cracks again…” she muttered absently. The fight had seemed all but won when the woman triggered what was apparently her first ever limit break. All the detail of the report made it seem like it was quite the show but in reality it had only lasted a few moments and then some of her best agents were down. They also hadn’t be able to find the head of the first Synthetic SOLDIER yet, and the latter was still missing entirely.

“Collateral?” she asked the Turk director standing to her side.

“There are countless minor injuries and some notable property damage caused by the panicked crowds. Some were unfortunately left in more severe condition from being trampled as well. Though nothing worse yet thankfully” Sweetie Drops reported.

“And our forces?” she turned to the goggled woman on the other screen.

“None of the troopers were seriously hurt. Rude should be out of his sling pretty quick and while Derp’ll probably be… dazed for a few more days, she’ll make it through” Rina delivered "She actually did pretty good. She was the only one that managed to land a hit on Lock after she started her limit. Guess it wasn't such a bad call after all boss.”

The Turk director rolled her eyes as the messily dressed woman smirked. Celestia however, was thankful for the brief moment of levity and gave a very slight chuckle.

“Though Lyra was right,” Rina added with a scowl “Those stupid toasters aren’t ready for the field. They nearly killed Lock and that little pink thing they got with them.”

“Pony” Celestia corrected, earning confused looks from the two agents “Not a pony like me, but as in a small horse.”

“I uh… still don’t know what that is Ma’am” Rina gave with a frown.

“Sorry, it’s not important” the president rubbed her forehead under her horn and let out another sigh before regarding the dark haired woman on her other side. “Recall any other synthetic SOLDIER we have in the field. Have R&D make it priority to fix their programming before they’re sent back out.”

“Ms. Glimmer’s not going to be happy about that” Raven pointed out as she jotted down the orders on her pad.

“She’ll cope” she gave bluntly and returned her focus to the more pressing matter “Is there any footage of them leaked we’ll have to get on top of?”

“Not anything of substance ma’am” the assistant answered “The troops did a good job keeping the citizenry away from the actual altercation. There is some circulating the news of the initial panic and the fleeing pair, though it may actually work in our favor; the more people that see them, the more likely someone will recognize them going forward.”

A frown creased the president’s features at the conclusion. She was right of course, but it felt wrong. They shouldn’t be labeling their own people as criminals, especially when they were the ones that drove them to it. Unfortunately they didn’t have a choice after something like this. She almost wished they had just gotten away with whatever they were planning.

“Do we have any idea why they were there in the first place yet?” Celestia pushed on, with Agent Drops speaking up again.

"At first we thought they were trying to stow away on a ship, based on what Agent Hooves learned at the fort. However it seems they were actually after something from one of our warehouses” the director next to her answered, the other Turk on the screen elaborating after.

“The forged paperwork was full of bull and while they haven’t finished the inventory, they did notice a Size 35 concentrated fuel core missing” Celestia’s head tilted at the news, eyes widening with surprise.

“Size 35? That’s pretty heavy. And concentrated..." Her brow furrowed as she looked to her assistant "That’s for aircraft yes?”

“It’s also used in some of our larger vehicles and certain mechanical troops but yes, it’s most often used in smaller aircraft” she built up “Those sizes in particular are used in most of our helicopters.”

“So we’re thinking they found a helicopter?”

“That or a big boat” Rina quipped before looking off screen and shouting “Hey! You find anything else missing?!”

“A few things Ma’am” a voice confirmed, handing her a sheet of paper.

“What the fuck am I looking at? I don’t know what any of this shit is” she scolded the unseen clerk. An exacerbated huff escaped Sweetie Drops as she bowed her head and pinched the bridge of her nose.

“I’m sorry Ma’am” she breathed out. The president merely returned an amused smile.

“I care far more about her competence than her demeanor Agent Drops” she assuaged the director “And if she wasn’t competent you wouldn’t have made her your second in command. ”

“So they’re helicopter parts, why didn’t you just fucking say that?” the red head finished, dismissing the clerk before turning back to the feed “Yeah, they probably got a copter.”

“But where could they have found it?” the president mused “And who would fly it? I don’t believe Agent Belle was trained as a pilot.”

“Nah, Priss doesn’t know how to fly a copter. Decent driver but nothing in the air.” Rina confirmed “Really doubt Lock can fly one either.”

“Nevertheless we can't discount the possibility" the alicorn concluded "Tell the forces there to monitor the skies and send a message to have any of our posts along the west coast to do the same.”

“That’s alotta sky to cover ma’am” Rina pointed out.

“Yes I know, but we still have to try” she conceded “Maybe we’ll get lucky.”

“Roger that” the googled Turk shrugged “I’ll keep you posted. Have a good night ma’am, boss.”

“Agent Zap” Celestia nodded before the feed cut off. The Turk director shifted in place next to her, a pensive frown crossing her features.

“Things are not moving as smoothly as we hoped ma’am. We still don’t know how much time we have left either. We need more bodies working on this.”

“Yes I know” Celestia answered solemnly. She turned to her assistant, seeing the girl confused and not a little a little worried. She wasn’t privy to the full truth of the mission but had quickly picked up on the fact it was far more serious than they let others know. Still, she remained by the president’s side without so much as a complaint, for which Celestia was very grateful “Raven set up a call with General Sombra…”

“We’re going to have to start getting SOLDIER more directly involved.”

A weak but shrill beeping slowly dragged Tifa back to the waking world, drilling into her skull worse than the acrid smell of burnt circuitry. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, showing herself to be hanging almost completely upside down within her harness. She looked around to the hanging wires and loose debris to see a wall of sand that had poured in to craft through the broken windows. Thankfully, it wasn’t enough to fill it. She also saw no one else in the copter had recovered yet.

‘Hey, I’m actually the one that’s conscious for once’

‘Less celebrating, more friend saving’

Right. She fumbled with the buckle of her restraints, falling hard into the ceiling of the craft as it released. With a groan she pushed herself up and climbed over to the others. Draping Rarity over her shoulder and hoisting Pinkie under an arm, she kicked at the hatch. After a few blows the sliding door broke free and a cold ocean breeze flooded into the crumpled space. She dropped the pair a few paces from the craft and stumbled back to grab the dragon. She came upon the drake tangled in the straps. After of moment of wrestling with the bands she quickly settled on just tearing them from the wall.

With Spike free she looked to the cockpit next but found a pair of the rotor blades thrust through the hull, separating the front from the cabin. Dropping the reptile off next to the others she ran to the front, finding it mostly buried in sand. She gripped the edge of the one still exposed door and began peeling it away. The jagged metal bit into her hands and more loose sand poured into the copter, but the hinges finally snapped free and gave her access to the unconscious woman. A trickle of red flowed from a notable gash across her head, which Tifa found matched a flow down, or right now up her leg.

With the party free of the wrecked craft, Tifa fell to her knees in front of their prone forms under the not quite full moon.

‘So phoenix downs? Do we have enough? Is this bad enough for phoenix downs? Will potions work? How do you get someone to drink a potion while unconscious?’ her mind started racing until a gust of wind blew a mist of salt water and sand over her “...oh yeah.”

The brunette closed her eyes and searched for that familiar but foreign knowledge in the back of her mind. Another breeze picked up around them, only now with wisps of misty white ribbons texturing the air. No sand or moisture was disturbed as the gale swirled about her and her allies, their cuts and bruises beginning to wash away. A gasp rang out as the martial artist fell forward, the wind immediately dissipated and a heavy sweat drenched her brow.

“Holy crap does that cost a lot. Why do I keep picking up such high mana spells?” she panted. She worried the incomplete spell didn’t work; she herself felt better but not as much as she should, even accounting for the mana drain. Her fears fell away however, as the quartet began to stir. She crawled over to see that true enough while the spell hadn’t quite healed everything, they started to come around all the same.

“Wowie Zowie...” the pony slowly pushed herself up and shook the sand out of her coat “That was a heck of a powie!”

“Yes, I quite agree… I think” the not as well coiffed as usual woman added with a hand on her head. She smiled at the brunette “Thank you darling, I dare say you may have saved the day.”

“Eh, you guys weren’t that bad off” Tifa shrugged bashfully “I was just the first one that woke up is all. I mean it’s not like the copter is on fire or anything. Hell, our gear is probably just fin-”

“Ah-ah-ah dear, none of that!” Rarity wagged a finger with a smile “One of us may have got us all to safety true, but you did.”

“Yeah, thanks for that” Spike added, pulling off the last tangled strap “I’ll go see about that gear. I think we could still use a couple potions.”

Tifa just shrugged, avoiding eye contact. Looking away let her notice the yellow pegasus sitting up, scowling at the sand until she noticed her gaze and locked eyes. A brief moment of uncertainty crossed her face until the scowl deepened an she broke the contact herself.

“OO! OO OO OO!” the pony exclaimed excitedly and sped toward the water without explanation. Rarity stood and helped Tifa to her feet in the meanwhile.

“Thanks, just learned that white wind takes more mana then I’ve got.”

“Then we’ll be sure to get you an ether. And not to worry dear, you were probably just drained from the crash” Rarity offered, earning a half smile from Tifa. “Though for future reference you could have just borrowed one of our cure materia.”

“Oh…” Tifa blinked “Hehe… right.”

A titter escaped the unicorn as the martial artist looked away with a blush. Before her embarrassment could grow further however, the pink pony had zipped back in front of her.

“HERE!” Pinkie shoved a salty, spiral shell the size of a basketball into the brunette’s hands. Curious tentacles emerged, followed by the rest of a small sudo-squid that was admittedly rather cute. Tifa cocked an eyebrow at the the pony before her mog appeared in a flash.

“BOOGA BOOGA BOOGA!” the mare yelled as the machine closed menacingly on the squid-snail.

Tifa winced with sympathy as the creature let out a heartbreaking squeal and retreated into its protective home. Before the martial artist could ask why, the shell shimmered and a triple layer of magical defenses covered the scared cephalopod and, by extension, the human holding it. Once more the tell-tale tingling signaled the gain of a new enemy skill.

“Was that really necessary?!” an angry voice snarled, drawing attention to the pegasus glaring daggers at the pony “It’s just a baby!”

“Oh um, well… I mean if I grabbed one of the big ones it’d probably try to eat us” Pinkie fumbled, fidgeting under the angry gaze. She continued though, tapping her hooves together timidly “Tif’s got enemy skill and see, um well, Big Guard’s one of the best and this just seemed... more... efficient.”

“It’s not like she actually hurt it” Rarity cut in, earning a scowl leveled her way as well. Unlike the pony however, the unicorn stood her ground. Tifa meanwhile had stepped away from the staring contest toward the lapping tides.

“Sorry little guy” she apologized, the shelled infant bolting into the water as soon as she set it down. The stalemate behind between the two women broke as the sudo-threstral watched the release. She glanced back and forth between the human and former Turk a few more times before eventually giving a huff.

“Whatever” she muttered and began limping away, one of her wings hanging a bit listless.

“Where are you going?” the pony regained her composure.

“Away.”

“What do you mean?” the quadruped pressed, the cloak wearer not even looking back as she answered.

“The deal was you get the parts and I get us across. I did that, now I’m leaving.”

“You can’t!”

“Watch me.”

“It’s not worth it Darling, just let her go”

“Shinra’s going to be hunting you!” Pinkie pressed on undeterred “YOU’RE AN ELEMENT BEARER!”

A wave a realization passed over the group with Pinkie’s shout. Rarity in particular had the strongest reaction; rubbing her forehead and letting out a long, frustrated sigh before cursing under her breath. The pegasus did finally pause and turn back though, expression perplexed.

“A what?”

“As in the Elements of Harmony” Rarity explained with clear exasperation in her tone “Shinra’s looking for materia attuned to their currents and people that can use it.”

“As in that old fairy tale? You really think I’m going to fall for something like that?” the pegasus returned flatly.

“It’s true” the unicorn insisted “I was confirmed as one after what happened at the temple. And since you had the same reaction to the Harmony Stream as I did, there’s rather little doubt you’re one as well.”

“And even if it’s not true” Spike offered a more logical approach “It doesn’t change the fact that Shinra believes it, and has dropped you on the top of the most wanted list because of it.”

“All the more reason I’d be better off on my own” she sneered an continued her slow hobble away from them.

“We’ll be safer together! All of us!” Tifa tried herself. They were outnumbered and outmatched in the last fight and she knew they had gotten lucky with more than just her limit. Unpleasant company or not, the woman could help them. Nevertheless, she continued to limp along ignoring them.

“Is tolerating us really worse than the risk of ending up in Hojo’s lab?!”

The woman froze mid-step at Tifa's shout, slowly rounding to the brunette with wide eyes.

“...H-Hojo?” she repeated menacingly. A flurry of motion burst to life as a blurred ribbon of red closed the distance between them in an instant. Tifa found herself nearly wrenched off the ground when a death grip latched onto her suspenders and the cloak reformed to reveal a whole new level of fury burning in the pegasus’s eyes “CHRYSALIS HOJO?!”

“Y-yeah” Tifa pushed through the sudden fear and was promptly dropped to the sand. She looked up to catch the girl’s eyes grow distant, no longer seeing the brunette as she began to literally tremble with rage. Not even taking the time to stand, Tifa scrambled backwards to the rest of the party.

Yellow wings gradually spread with feathers ruffled up and pulsing in tune with the woman's now heaving growls. She hunched as her muscles tightened and finally allowed an unimpeded view of her surprisingly attractive face, even with her eyes wild and teeth bared. Teeth with unusually sharp canines they also couldn’t help but notice. They wearly watched this unfold, anxiously stepping away as it seemed the pegasus was about to explode. The party braced as she took a sharp breath, a scream clearly bubbling up the pegasus’s throat.

But then it hitched, held back as the woman coiled into herself, stooped forward with arms held close. Rough, heavy breaths racked her, eyes held shut as she began to be trying to regain herself.

“Keep it inside, save it for her, keep it inside, save it for her...” the pegasus chanted under her breath, still coiled but starting to breathe more steadily. When she spoke next the words were directed at the group “These terrorists you’re looking for... Landslide?”

“AVALANCHE” Tifa corrected as she stood.

“They’re against Shinra?” the pegasus raised her head and locked eyes with the rest, her voice taking on a deathly calm “against Her?”

“Yeah” the woman took a deep breath at the answer, standing back up straight and rolling her neck after a few more calming breaths.

“Fine” she stated simply. Spike arched a scaled brow.

“Fine?”

“We’ll travel together... for now” she explained “But if we come across that changeling bitch... She. Is. MINE.”

“Sure.”
“Okie-dokie!”
“Go for it.”
“As long as you make it hurt Darling.”

The girl blinked, disarmed by the easy response.

“Um… well good” she gave awkwardly and shuffled in place. A single beat of silence passed before the smallest member of the steadily growing group was abruptly in her face.

“Well GREAT! Welcome to the party! I’m sure you already picked our names up but I’m Pinkie Sith! The unicorn is Rarity, that’s Spike and the crazy strong bouncy one is Tifa!” the mounted pony introduced, beaming as if nothing happened. Her smile faltered however as the moment stretched a bit too long, the woman simply staring back with her typical scowl “So uh… can we get your name?”

The pegasus looked uncertain, her gaze dropping as she seemed to consider her answer. So long as it was something though, at least Tifa would be satisfied. Referring to her as simply ‘her’ and the like was getting a bit old.

“...Fluttershy” she eventually mumbled.

“Oh! Not what I was expecting from someone so scary, but that’s really pretty!” Pinkie spouted, promoting the return of Fluttershy’s scowl. She looked past the pony to the remaining trio.

“Where we going?” grumbled out, Rarity speaking up.

“Well, the plan was to just get across the divide. Now though?” she tilted her head pensively “I would say Costa del Sol.”

“The resort?” Tifa questioned “Doesn’t that have the same problem as Junon?”

“Contrary to popular belief, Shinra doesn’t own Everything” the unicorn pointed out “There’s actually a lot of places where they have very little presence. Influence certainly, but all they own in Costa is part of the docks. The resort, beach and villa are all technically independent.”

“Technically?” Spike repeated.

“I'm afraid that’s the best we’re typically going to get Darling” she gave soberly “But if we stick to the edges we should be fine. We can resupply, maybe grab some actual food and who knows? Perhaps even enjoy a few moments at the beach.”

“We’re on a beach” the dragon retorted.

“Oh um, why yes... I suppose we are!” the unicorn chuckled. With no other objections voiced, they began their way north.

“So what’s with that Derpy girl becoming a Turk so fast?” a currently blonde Tifa asked the well coiffed, black haired woman across from her. They sat at a small table tucked behind a restaurant along the edge of town, their dragon accomplice draped under a simple cloak while their pony companion was actually in full-fledged moogle costume. Fluttershy had declined join them, refusing to enter the town entirely and simply saying they’d meet up on the road when they were done.

“Oh I’m sure it was almost purely for the optics” Rarity answered “Not to say Miss Hooves isn’t competent but with her being the only operative at the Fort it looked even better for them to promote her to a more visible position. Plus the fact that she’s a survivor of the Cloudsdale disaster certainly doesn’t hurt with the sympathy angle.”

“Cloudsdale?” Tifa and Spike asked simultaneously. Rarity returned a perplexed look as the stuffed moogle's head tilted.

“How do you not know what- oh! Right...” Pinkie exclaimed before a covered hoof rubbed the mask’s chin “I guess you wouldn’t.”

“Cloudsdale was ‘The first floating city since the great cloud cities of the ancient pegasi! A grand experiment’” the former Turk quoted with a faux drama

“It was made of Clouds?” Spike asked.

“No, it was a floating landmass” Pinkie answered this time, a sad tone to her voice “That way more than just Pegasi and Griffons could live there. And it worked! The experiment was a success! At least… until it wasn’t...”

An uncomfortable silence hung after the statement. The implication of a floating city and the word ‘Disaster’ didn’t leave much to figure out. Tifa redirected her attention to the burger in her hands, hoping the awkwardness would just pass. Taking a bite she had to resist the urge to give a moan of pleasure. It may have only been barely a step above fast food, but it was the first thing they’d had in weeks without the word ‘Ration’ attached to it. Her expression still caught a few eyes nonetheless.

“So North Corel was it?” Spike broke the silence.

“Yes, it’s a former coal mining town turned quarry. They’ve also a series of cable cars to nearly all the surrounding areas.” Rarity explained “We’ll make our way to Mt. Corel, take the train to the town and then a ropeway over the next range. After that it’s only a few days walk to Ponyville.”

“Too bad we can’t pay a visit to the saucer” Pinkie lamented “We probably wouldn’t even stand out there!”

“Even so, I think it’d be best to not to indulge that distraction. Besides… I doubt our funds would last the trip.”

With their food done and most of their supplies already secured, they stood and began their way back to the small suburb where most of the resort’s permanent residents lived. Tifa suddenly felt a pair of eyes on her back. She glanced over to the small dining area but didn’t spot anyone looking. She shook off the feeling and caught up to the others, hoping it was just her nerves.

“Here” the martial artist held out a bag to the team's newest member. They were already a good way down the road when they came upon the pegasus, further than Tifa felt was necessary but at least she didn’t ditch them. She slowly took the sack before looking within “It’s just a couple burgers and some fries but we figured you’d also appreciate something cooked in an actual kitchen.”

Fluttershy stared into the bag, her expression difficult to read. The curtain of hair and her cloak didn’t make it any easier. She didn’t immediately reject it like most offerings but she still seemed a bit… sad.

“You’re not a vegetarian are you?”

“No, I’m not… not anymore.”

‘Again with the muttering’ Tifa sucked at her cheek slightly before just letting it go. The cloaked woman fell to the back as she ate, a few more mumbles and whispers among the reserved chewing. However they then heard what may have been a muffled sniff. Looking back with the unexpected sound, they were quickly distracted by the sight of a growing dust cloud from back down the road. ‘I’ve got a bad feeling about this’

A heavy military-esq vehicle sped ahead of the growing viel, rapidly closing on their position. The party split and moved to either side of the road to let them pass, hoping they were just in a hurry.

A hope immediately dashed as they veered straight toward Tifa and Fluttershy. The brunette leap to the side while the pegasus sprung straight into the the air, flipping over the vehicle and opening fire down upon the roof. Swerving under the retaliation, it came to a skidding stop and a quartet of thugs jumped out ready to fight. They immediately came under fire by the rest of the group and returned it in kind.

Tifa had just regained her footing when a pair of horns blared from the dust behind her. Two pickup trucks burst from the cloud, a machine gun mounted on the back of each. One turned to speed right at her and unfortunately, she wasn’t prepared nor had the time for another leap.

“Screw it!” she shouted and punched out. Her boots dug through the gravel as she slid back but the vehicle stopped dead after a few feet, pitching forward and launching the gunner into the air.

‘Holy crap it worked!’

The thug landed hard but was quick to stumble up to his feet. Spouting curses, he furiously snapped his rifle up to back where he flew from. That fury swiftly fizzled as he saw the trucks front bumper soaring right at his face.

“Bitch!” the other truck’s gunner shouted, swiveling the heavy barrel at the brunette. The stream of bullets sprayed wide when a streak of red slammed into him. He bent backward on the frame of the bed before a fountain of crimson erupted from his chest, the rapid fire of a rifle pounding through his bangles protection. The altered pegasus next swiveled the mounted gun's aim to the back window. The passengers were helpless to avoid a similar end.

Distracted by the gruesome display, Tifa failed to notice a griffon woman from the crumpled truck dive bombing her until she was practically on top of her. With materia aglow the brunette thrust her hand out… and completely overshot her demi spell, her assailant not even noticing the dark sphere flaring into existence behind her. A hidden boon as the airborn attacker yelped, flailing as she was dragged back toward the new point of gravity.

‘Gonna have to remember that one’

Tifa seized the moment and redirected her mana to another materia. A layer of frost covered her opponent and dropped her to the ground. She began to raise shivering when a boot swept across her jaw, leaving her out cold in more ways than one.

The martial artist redirected her attention to the first vehicle, only to see the others had the rest of the situation well in hand. Two of the original quartet laid prone on the side of the road, a light smoke wafting off one. The third seemed to have been turned into a chicken, no doubt by the pink mare’s transform materia. It took a moment to find the last one until she caught the distant sight of him sprinting away through the fields as fast as he could.

“These guys don’t look like Shinra.” the reptilian party member pointed out.

“They’re most certainly not. Highwaymen maybe?” Rarity mused as she moved to inspect the largest vehicle. A wet splat drew their attention back to the remaining pickup. Fluttershy was bent over the driver's… 'remains', stripping him of his gear. She didn’t fail to notice Tifa’s gaze.

“What? They might have something useful” she gave before pulling out the thugs wallet and emptying it of gil “If nothing else we can sell it.”

“And what about the ones that are still alive?” the brunette asked looking down to the dark skinned woman at her side.

“Take their gear as well” the former Turk answered and pulled a ring of keys from one’s pocket. She also found a handful of zip ties and tossed some to the human “We’ll leave them here. Someone will find them or maybe their friend will come back. Either way we’ll be long gone by the time they come to.”

Tifa frowned and quickly moved to remove anything of value from her own assailants, binding their wrists and dragging them to the roadside. She pointedly kept her gaze away from the visceral mess their newest ally caused. She understood defending themselves, but she’d be lying if she wasn’t having second thoughts about convincing the pegasus to stay with them.

And held not a little fear that if things kept going like this, she may end up killing someone herself.

Tifa shook the thought away and quickly joined Rarity and Spike, finding them looking down at the stack of papers Pinkie found in the hummer. She blinked with surprise as her own face looked back at her. It was a picture she had taken just recently, when she needed an ID for Shinra tower. More disturbing was the fact it was placed above the word WANTED and a significant amount of gil.

“I always hated this picture" Rarity sighed as picked up another poster of her own, Tifa noticing that the former Turk’s reward was even higher than hers "My hair looks so flat.”

“Geez even I have one” Spike tilted his head that the specimen file photo on his. Pinkie also had one, though it was primarily a sketch with a blurry security camera capture in the corner “Should we be insulted that ours are so much lower than theirs?”

“At least they all say ‘Wanted ALIVE’.” Pinkie giggled back with a smile.

“Not really a joking matter guys” Tifa pointed out.

“It’s not like this wasn’t inevitable Darling” Rarity countered, picking up the last poster and holding it out the the approaching pegasus “Do you believe us now?”

Fluttershy stared down at the picture. Like Pinkie’s, it was a sketch accompanied by a grainy helmet cam shot. While her's lacked a name, the reward was the same as Rarity’s; more than enough prove Shinra’s intent. If she concerned though, she didn’t show it. Instead she simply continued to the back of the vehicle and tossed in a bloodstained bag.

“So we taking this though the mountain then or still taking the train?” she asked passively, the former Turk shaking her head.

“We’re not going through the mountain” Rarity stated “They may have set up more resistance further on and with a reward this high they’re probably not working alone. It’ll be too easy to corner us in the range. We’ll go south, cross the river and skirt the desert to approach the city that way.”

“Still leaves the problem of when we get there” Spike call attention to, to which Rarity just smiled.

“The average citizen won’t recognize us, or else the authorities would have been called while we were at ‘Sol. Trust me, the only people that care about the most wanted list are law enforcement and bounty hunters” the well coiffed woman explained.

“And we already avoid those!” Pinkie beamed before the trucked rocked with the closing of a door. They looked in to see the yellow pegasus settling in behind the backseat “Yeah, we should probably mosey.”

They loaded the rest of the claimed gear and climbed in, a steady rumble finding them as Rarity almost immediately took them off road.

“We should have just killed them” Tifa heard grumbled from the back. She frowned and stared out the front window at the thought. She knew that they were already being hunted, but having it extended beyond Shina, to extend to random ambushes from bounty hunters…

The sound of a wet splat filled her thoughts.

The next day the party found themselves ending it they same way they started the one before, skirting along a shoreline in the dark. At least they had a vehicle this time though, and more than just an endless view of the water. Instead they had a wide river with a small brilliance floating in the distance beyond. Pinkie and Rarity had both assured the rest that there were a number of bridges across, though not all were actively maintained.

Tifa looked out to the distant cluster of dancing lights atop a great pole, the amusement park known as the Gold Saucer towering over a currently unseen wasteland. Even under the full moon the tree shaped structure shone like a beacon, bright enough to leave trails in her vision.

“Like a world tree with its leaves shimmering out across the dark, guiding all who witness its glory along the path to excess” Rarity, once more driving, waxed poetically “Something I read in a travel magazine a while back. Still... it’s quite the sight, no?”

“You ever been?” Tifa asked.

“A few times, but only twice that weren’t on business. First when our parents took us when we were little and again a couple years ago when I arranged a trip for just Sweetie and I” a look of melancholy crossed the unicorn woman’s features “I sincerely hope she’s okay.”

“I’m sure she’s fine, Rina told you they’d take care of her!” Pinkie offered, though Rarity seemed only mildly assaged.

“I see a bridge!” Spike’s voice called in from out the window, distorted by the passing air. It was overgrown with vegetation and the stone work had began to crumble in a few places. He pulled his head back inside before continuing “It’s a little worn down but at least there won’t be a checkpoint.”

The well coiffed driver slowed as they hit the crossing, though not by too much. Apparently she was as anxious to get moving as any of the rest of them, if not even more irritated by the repeated detours and setbacks. A bump rocked the vehicle as they neared the opposite side of the river, a sense of relief filling the vehicle.

Until a ball of living flame sprung up from under the bridge, its wicked face giving a silent cackle before it abruptly grew three times in size.

Shattered glass filled the cabin as a deafening explosion silenced the world and launched them skidding along the opposite guard rail. More Bombs burst into sight and the clatter of rapid shots reverberated within the vehicle, the group’s altered pegasus firing at the fiery predators out the back hatch. Before Tifa could orient fully, a huge needle pierced right through the metal roof and missed her face by an inch.

A shrill screech sounded as their transport bounced back onto solid ground accompanying another blast. The long spike retracted and a few burning feathers fluttered into the cabin as Tifa caught sight of a flock of eagle sized birds with sharp, straight horns jutting from their heads that were nearly as long as they were. Streams of green and red flames shot from the back seat to drive the flock off. Tifa readily followed their example but was forced to double take as she noticed the a subtle green glow in all their assailants' eyes. Before she could consider the implication, a new threat demanded their attention.

The blurred silhouette of a figure sped past the car, distorted after images left in their wake. It stopped a ways ahead and spun in the air to face them, revealing a skull masked jester levitating in a ring of over-sized, ghostly playing cards. A barrage of the cards flew at the car, unimpeded by neither the flames nor the vehicle's frame itself. Tifa felt a sudden dizziness when one of the cards passed through her and her vision tinted green.

‘Don’t close your eyes! Focus on the enemy!’

She shook away the disorientation and glared at the jester. He readied a grip full of needles until a boulder of ice knocked him off balance, followed by the report of a machine gun. A fountain of red burst from his arm and drove him speeding into the night.

A sigh escaped the brunette as the monsters retreated with him, one that cut off when the shooter crawled back into the cabin and screamed at the front.

“TURN!” Tifa looked forward to see rapidly approaching drop down a very steep slope. Her head snapped to the still panicked driver.

“Rare snap out of it!” the martial artist tried to steady the unicorn, the former Turk shaking off the hand on her shoulder.

“We need to get away!” she snapped back, her glazed eyes darting about wildly with a subtle green glow.

“HIT HER!” Pinkie called out, a loud crack echoing as a palm met the former Turk’s cheek. Rarity blinked several times and worked her jaw, the glow of the enchantment dissipating. Her eyes flew wide with a scream and she wrenched the wheel to the side. It was moment to late however as they hit the slope “TIFFY DEMI! YOU NEED TO KEEP US FROM ROLLING!”

She followed the direction as soon as she understood, dumping the rest of her mana into the marteria and slamming the gravity spell down on the car. She fought off the urge to pass out as, even with their wheels still on the nearly vertical ground, they were still sent spinning down the sandy wall. A strong gust of wind came from ahead of them and sandy mud was whipped up in their wake, the other party members’ materia shining with their own efforts to slow them down.

After what seemed like an eternity they finally slid to a stop, the vehicle left half buried in in the sand. Catching their breath, the group slowly crawled out to find they landed at the edge of a seemingly endless stretch of desert. It was cold, but unlike when they found themselves among the sands of the beach, the air here was stiflingly dry with a breezeless chill.

“Where are we?” Spike's voice cut through the still silence.

“Corel Prison” Rarity answered gravely, shoulders slumping without further comment. They looked back up to the steep barrier of shifting sand, seeing no way they could get back up. To make matters worse, they began to lose sight of the very distant ridge as a sandstorm began brewing above their heads. Even the moon grew steadily darker behind the thickening veil.

High above the growing winds, atop the highest peak bathed in the glow of the grand silver orb of the sky, a cluster of shadows shifted. Gowned in form fitting black leather, a trio of winged figures emerged into the gentle light. A shimmer glinted off their goggles and the small accented symbol of a winged skull on the hem of their long coats. The taller, more slender of the two females stepped forward to the cliff edge and peered down to the obscuring clouds of dirt below.

“Well now, seems like our prey went and took care of themselves” a smooth voice spoke with a smug softness. She swept back her silver blue hair and turned back to the others “And here I was hoping we’d be in for a bit of fun.”

The taller, more solidly built male chuckled darkly as the shorter female shrugged.

“It’s not like we don’t have more to take care of” she smirked and jerked her head, signaling them to keep moving “Come, there’s still work to be done.”

Dust scattered as the three spread their wings and launched into the sky.

“Let’s make Mother proud...”

Author's Note

There's more than a very good chance that I'll be updating the cover image if Tifa is revealed in the Remake news that's (almost certainly) coming with E3. Especially if they make her anywhere near as GORGEOUS as they made Aerith (Here's more hoping she's even more so :raritywink: ). I know her appearance is a bit controversial in Japan at the moment but I think she looks great.

I've already updated the pic for Aps back in chapter 2 and will be updating what I can as it comes out. There was actually a good bit of indecision on which Bomb version I should use here; XV's version is pretty cool but I failed to find any good images. So I just settled on Crisis Core's as it's still in the FF7 anthology.

ANYWAY- not a lot of other details to share on this chapter. It was meant to be out earlier but I finally got the chance to play Breath of the Wild and... yeah... pretty big time sink that :twilightblush:

But for now, as always: Thanks for reading and have a good one :twilightsmile:

Chapter 10: Put to Work

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Grand Glove- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (--Current--), Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Carbon Bangle- Transform, Manipulate
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth, Materia Band- Water, ATK up --- Carbon Bangle: Sense, Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

Fluttershy: Altered Pegasus
Trooper Machine Gun- Deathblow --- Carbon Bangle- Aero, Poison
Other: Enhanced physique, Improved healing, “Unnatural Abilities”

*Pluck*

“HMN!”

*Pluck*

“GHN!”

A brunette laid across the back of the vehicle, the seat folded down to let her stretch out. Minus the driver, the party sat hunched over the martial artist with her face buried in her arms.

*Pluck*

“AHH! Nooohohooo…”

“Sorry Tiffy, we gotta try ta get ’em all out before we heal you if you don’t want slivers stuck in you for days” Pinkie consoled the woman.

“Fucking dancing cactus bastard…” Tifa groaned into the upholstery.

After the group managed to dig the car out of the sand, they started their way into the desert toward the towering amusement park, the only landmark to follow. A day later they had to change a tire and were ambushed by a cactuar, the ‘dancing cactus bastard’ trying to spray the party down with needles. Thankfully the group’s trigger happy pegasus blew one of its arms off before it could launch all one thousand.

Unfortunately it did still get off a few hundred with a good portion finding their way into the back of the unaware Tifa.

*Pluck*

“NNNnnn... can you be a little more gentle?!” she shot at the winged woman through a clenched jaw. Fluttershy simply returned a blank look and-

*PLUCK*

“GRRRrrr…”

‘At least she’s helping’

‘Oh yeah, we’re practically besties now!’

Still, the sooner the needles were out the better and at least Spike and Pinkie were being more tender with it. Spike’s dexterity might not be as bad as he told Rarity when she was helping him equip his gear, raising questions about his claim to not like bipeds. The small mare on the other hand had to use her teeth.

A fresh blush rose to Tifa’s cheeks as the pony’s nose brushed the hem of her hiked up skirt and another hot breath caressed her backside before another pinch immediately dispelled it.

“Well,” Pinkie gave before spitting out the needle “At least you picked up a skill that punches right through defences… though I guess you learned that part when it caught you from- oh, um-*snrk*”

“Behind?” Spike finished with a smirk. Pinkie failed to suppress a giggle as Tifa just rolled her eyes, even catching a ghost of a smile on their pegasus gunner’s lips. It was just a glimpse however, quickly replaced by her usual scowl. A sudden bump jostled the group huddled in the back and the Humvee began to rumble worryingly.

“Oh come on” Rarity moaned quietly from the driver’s seat. Their ride hadn’t taken to being driven off a virtual cliff and half buried in the desert very well. It took more and more cajoling to get it to start and it shuddered intermittently, growing worse each time “At this rate we won’t reach the base.”

The shuddering thankfully quieted after a moment and the golden trunk of the amusement park continued to grow closer. Nearly an hour passed before Pinkie declared Tifa’s back side clean and they were finally able to complete the cure spell without lasting consequence. She sat up to allow the others more room to stretch out themselves, rubbing her still unfortunately sore behind. Time passed a bit more slowly with their task done and it was starting to get dark before Rarity called from the front.

“I believe we’re reaching the edges of the prison proper, there are some buildings up ahead” they saw what Rarity was pointing out, though calling some of the structures ‘buildings’ may have been a bit generous. Several were missing walls and roofs and even those that still had them would be classified as unsound at best. They slowed to a stop as they reached the ‘road’ through the small patchwork shelters, stepping out to have a quick look around.

They didn’t see anyone. Or anything either. Just the sun bleached ruins and more sand.

Now that Tifa looked, they were still a fair way from the Saucer’s trunk, at least another half a day if she had to guess. They did a quick search of the area but didn’t find anything useful, not that they expected to. All there was were some occasional tattered remains of broken furniture and old empty picture frames. People used to live here at some point, but that was a long time ago. A sigh escaped the party’s former Turk as she regarded the others.

“Well, do we make camp and hope the car works in the morning or keep-”

“Wait.” Fluttershy interrupted but didn’t continue right away. Her hybrid wings spread slightly and ruffled as her brow furrowed. They watched as she looked around, a searching look on her face as the wings continued to subtly twitch into different positions. “Strong winds building… sandstorm… We need to get inside.”

“You’re certain?” Rarity asked, receiving a dull stare as a response. She sighed and continued “Alright, I think I saw a building we can fortify enough to wait this out.”

Their transportation thankfully didn’t give them any more trouble as they drove it through an opening in one of the larger ruin’s walls, one quickly filled with a rough replacement courtesy of Pinkie’s earth materia. They piled out in the room now only illuminated by the vehicle’s headlights, thankful to see the wall was the only part missing. Tifa ambled past the remains of a couch half buried in the sand as Fluttershy moved through a tattered curtain. The rattling of a door followed before the pegasus returned and looked around the rest of the room, nodding lightly to herself.

“This should work” was all she said before climbing to sit atop the hummer’s trunk without a second glance. The rest shared a shrug before settling in themselves. It wasn’t long before they heard the wind did indeed begin to pick up, continuing until the dull roar of a sandstorm filled their surroundings. A brief darkness engulfed them as Rarity cut the lights before summoning a simple ball of light from her horn to hover lazily above them.

Time passed slowly and quietly as Tifa started ambling around the room again, not that there was much to see; half the room was buried under a mound of sand, leaving no way into the rest of the building to explore. She glanced toward Pinkie and Spike in the truck, the pony watching the dragon swipe at the screen of the new burner they got him. It was nothing special, but it could fit a couple games on it, and Pinkie even came up with a rubber nub to keep his claws from scratching it. He seemed to appreciate it. Rarity had summoned her travel trunk and was currently reorganizing the contents. Fluttershy was reloading magazines.

“So how’d you know?” Tifa tried, looking up at the winged woman “About the storm, that is.”

“I’m a pegasus.” she answered curtly, clearly irritated by the question. The brunette sighed and left the gunner be. She decided to find a soft patch of sand and leaned against the side of the car, figuring she could try to get some sleep while they had nothing but time. Trying unfortunately being a keyword, the roar of a sandstorm wasn’t exactly white noise. She wasn’t sure how long she rested but a sudden bang jolted everyone to their feet. The door slammed open behind the curtain before a figure cloaked under a ratty blanket stumbled through the cloth coughing and shaking off copious amounts of sand.

“Woah!” a masculine voice exclaimed as he finally looked up to see a pair of firearms aimed his way, hands thrown up in surrender “Easy now! Easy there… Ladies.”

The figure let the cloth drop, revealing the surprising feline form of a Ronso beneath. Also, while still taller than the women present, he was notably shorter and slimmer than most would expect of the typically imposing race. He lacked the trademark blue fur as well, instead bearing a more orangeish brown. His long red coat swished as he took a step forward despite the weapons, a smooth tenor escaped his now smiling conturance.

“I must say, I wasn’t expecting anyone to be home. Especially such lovely sights as yourselves...” he cleared his throat and moved to take another step before Rarity restedied her aim. He smartly stopped and even offered a step back without even a flutter in his smirk “How did such a fine and… clean group find themselves out in this dry expanse so far from the villa?”

“We could ask the same of you Darling” the pale woman pointed out.

“Some of my fellow… neighbors grew envious of my status in our little community and well…” the bipedal feline waved a raised hand dramatically “I thought it best to take a brief vacation until tempers cooled a bit.”

“So you got run off” Spike snickered from next to the truck.

“And you fell in a hole” the atypical Ronso countered and cleared his throat again “You’re clearly not from around here, not with that ride; especially if it works. Now you think we can have the rest of this conversation without the guns?”

“You clearly are from around here. Why should we trust a prisoner?” Rarity returned.

“Because no one else will care that you don’t belong here. I assure you that even if I weren’t woefully outnumbered, I’m hardly a threat.” he gave and opened his coat, doing a spin to show he was unarmed “See?”

Rarity glanced back at the others, receiving mostly shrugs before slowly lowering the weapon back to her hip. Fluttershy took an extra moment before raising her gun cautiously, though unlike the former Turk, she chose to keep it unholstered. The Ronso dropped the hems of his coat and stood regally.

“Now that we’re all friends, I must ask; do you ladies and gentle… lizard have any, well...” he cleared his throat much longer than before as his voice grew notably more hoarse “Water?”

Incredulous looks and scoffs answered the request as Pinkie pulled a bottle from her poofy locks and tossed it to the feline. He arched a brow at the container.

“Fortunately, I’m used to hairballs” he quipped and drained half of it at once. A sigh of content preceded the return of his silky tone “Now then, without further breach of etiquette, allow me to introduce myself; Capper’s the name, information’s the game.”

“Charmed” Rarity returned not without some genuineness, as the feline offered a bow.

“Charming’s also my game love, among other talents. Talents no doubt you lot will need now that you’re stuck here, not to mention connections” he rose.

“We’re not really planning to be here long enough to need prison connections” Tifa interjected.

“Few plan on being here at all beautiful, but it’s not often their choice. It is however, to a degree, mine” he explained confidently “My connections stretch up the golden tree to the fun above. While misunderstanding the crime I’m accused of, Mr. Dio is still a man who can see opportunity. By helping keep the bigger players down here in check and weeding out undesirables from the labor pool, I’ve earned a rather presteous position in the eyes of those in charge.”

“You’re a snitch” Rarity summarized “One that was found out, else you wouldn’t be here.”

“I prefer the term informant” he corrected without a hint of offence “But alas, No. I fear my rival in acquisitions is the issue. He’s grown tired of competing with my superior products and has demanded my tail in compensation. But that’s where you come in.”

“You want us to kill him?” Fluttershy offered.

“Oh no, I’d hate to have you commit a crime that’d make you deserve this sandy prison. But you’re clearly not the delicate sorts... fine grooming not-with-standing” He winked at Rarity, earning a smile “I just need the appearance of enough muscle to keep his goons at bay while I talk to the man.”

“And then, Darling?”

“And then I reconnect. A good word here, a favor called there and…” he paused and flashed them a winning smirk “I’ll be just the friend you need…”

The storm passed and the party was on their way toward the Saucer again, going over the finer details of the plan. Not that there was much to go over; Drive up to the big building near the elevator, stand their ground and escort Capper to the ‘boss’. Beyond that he was rather mum on just how he was going to make peace. It was just after sunrise by the time they reached the makeshift village at the base of the tree, what Capper affectionately called “The Villa’. It reminded Tifa of the Undercity, if you replaced the cave with desert and all the sick people with surly thugs.

Speaking of which, they were gathering an awful lot of attention driving through the town. Some looked on confused, some ran off after seeing them, and others began to follow. They never got too close but with how slow they were forced to go in the narrow ‘street’, they were never too far behind either.

“Nevermind the rubberneckers” Capper consoled as he leaned forward between the seats “Not a lot of working rides around here. Guns either. They’ll keep their distance with your angry friend aiming at people.”

Tifa looked over her shoulder past their new ally, seeing that Fluttershy had indeed stood up to hang out the gunner’s hole. She opened the window and poked out to see the barrel of the pegasus’s rifle sweeping the area. A small huff escaped her but she didn’t say anything. They were in rather hostile territory, going to meet a man that put a hit on Capper’s head. So long as they didn’t start the shooting she supposed it was for the best to put up a strong front. Prison rules for whatever the popular media depiction was worth.

“Is that it Darling?” Rarity nodded ahead to the most solid looking building in the area, sat just beyond the gates surrounding the elevator up to the amusement park.

“That it is, it’s showtime” he confirmed and fell back into his seat. The truck rumbled to a halt before a quartet of door guards armed with makeshift melee weapons. Fluttershy stayed poking out the roof as the rest exited, the guards tensing as they saw the feline. One took a step toward the door before Fluttershy’s aim snapped right to him “Now now Jeff, I’m capable of announcing myself.”

The men stepped aside as they made their way to the short set of steps and through the door. They entered a large, mostly empty space save for a set of filing cabinets and a desk at the other side of the room. Another pair of guards with actual guns raised their weapons against the intruders, confusion dominating their features until Capper strutted forward from the back of the group.

“VERKO!” he cried jovaly as he walked ahead completely unconcerned. Tifa held her breath as she focused on the guards; a heavyset gryphon from the looks of him and a tiger striped Ronso. He wasn’t blue either but, unlike Capper, he wasn’t lacking the typical Ronso muscle or stature at all.

“CAPPER!” an ugly little rat of a man sprung up out of his chair. Sprung right up onto the desk in fact. Little wasn’t an understatement “You got some balls-”

“Ahhh!” Capper groaned languidly, arms wide in a twirl as he approached the desk “Nothing like a few days in the dunes to make you really appreciate AC.”

“You really think you can just walk in here without a care huh?” Verko stood tall with his hands behind his back, matching the alley cat’s stare as he sauntered up “You think a pack of women and a... lizard dog can take the whole prison for you.”

“I don’t have to take the prison Verk, just you” Capper answered and leaned in close to the man with a truly unhealthy amount of confidence. The miniscule man chuckled and shook his head.

“You’ve been here what? 6 months? Already thinking you’ve got it all figured out, everyone on your side” he sneered before a blade as long as the man was tall flicked out from his sleeve and hovered an inch from the smooth talker’s throat “I can kill you right here and the only one who will care will be whoever I have clean it up.”

Capper’s smile grew wider just before a deafening boom filled the room and Verko slammed against the back wall. The heavyset guard swept his weapon but found a sawed off aimed at his gut, held aloft by the Ronso’s tail. A burst of fire shattered against the steps outside to confirm Flutters was still keeping them covered.

“What are you doing!?” the boss screeched clutching his gut, his protective bangle’s enchant the only thing that saved him. His own feline bodyguard meanwhile was standing utterly nonplussed at the events, “KILL HIM!”

“Now why would he do that?” Capper posed “Chummer and I are old friends. Sure we had our falling outs but that’s all behind us, right Chum?”

“Sorry ‘Boss’” the taller Ronso shrugged down at the bleeding man and looked up to his fellow guard, who promptly dropped his weapon and backed off. Verko scrambled across the floor away from the two, making for a window.

“Mind taking care of that Chum?” Capper asked as he strode around to the other side of the desk and flopped into the chair. He kicked his paws up onto the wood before the tiger striped double agent caught the rodent of a man… and a spine chilling crack filled the room “NOT WHAT I MEANT CHUM!”

“Sorry” the Ronso shrugged again, dropping the remains out the window. The party stood aghast as Capper pinched the bridge of his snout.

“Geez, you really have been in here too long.” With a heavy huff he turned to the other guard with an expectant stare.

“Uh… Orders Boss?” he gave an uneasy smile, earning a smirk in return.

“Go tell the boys outside ‘the plan’ worked, and start spreading the word there’s been another change of management. The angry woman outside can come inside now too… also have someone clean...THAT up” he waved squeamishly toward the window. The man nodded and rushed outside “And don’t let anyone mess with that ride!”

“Why’d we have to watch the door guys if they work for you?” Spike was the first of the party to speak, a rather queasy looking Pinkie swaying back and forth on his back.

“Only two of them were in on it” he explained as Fluttershy quietly saddled in through the door “None of that is to dismiss you lot’s part in this of course; We’re WAY ahead of schedule thanks to you!”

“So happy to be an accessory to murder” Rarity sneered back “Now we had a deal.”

“Hey now, Ol’ Capper’s a cat of his word. And believe me, I really did have other plans for him” he held his hands up defensively before slowly lowering them “Of course I’m not gonna say it will be easy smuggling Shinra’s Most Wanted out of here… or necessarily quick, Ms. Rarity.”

The party tensed. They hadn’t even told him their names, Rarity even pulled the party aside to tell them not to use them. It appears their reputation preceded them. Rarity rolled her neck slightly and regarded the Ronso.

“You are well informed...”

“Wanted posters aren’t hard to come by, even here” he returned evenly, staring seriously back at the horned woman… before snorting, failing to suppress a laugh “Please, un-clench ladies! I’m not planning on turning you in.”

“No?” Rarity asked cautiously.

“While I’m sure it would be more than enough to immediately end my stay in this hole and learn just how deep Shinra’s pockets really are, I’ve learned they’re also not the best at repaying favors. Besides, I would so hate to see such lovely women behind bars, more than they already figuratively are at least” he assured them, leaning back to put his feet up again “Though I’m afraid I wasn’t lying about getting you out. Normal folks falling in the hole would be tricky enough, but keeping them from recognizing you as quickly as I did-”

“We have disguises!” Pinkie piped in cheerfully.

“You got IDs? Passports? Money?” He countered “Now I know what you’re thinking; Why would the first two matter? Well, I’m afraid you picked a pretty bad time to get stuck here. Shinra’s got some kind of convention going, or so they say, and their security is swarming all over. No one’s getting on those ropeways without getting checked and there’s no way to force it, they’ll just shut them down on ya.”

“What makes you think it’s not a real convention?” the former Turk posed.

“Dio found something, something big that he’s keeping under his hat. And you know Shinra, they like being the only big thing in Equestria. Whatever he found, they want it” he clarified before waving the matter off “But don’t fret. Things will take a little longer but we can still pull it off with some doing.”

“We?” Tifa asked, eyebrow arched ”What can we do?”

“Work” he answered simply “Like I said, I also help with ‘Labor Acquisition’.”

“You want us to work up in the park?” Rarity asked incredulously while Pinkie seemed overjoyed at the idea, bouncing excitedly on Spike’s back.

“You said you had disguises” he smirked “Workers don’t get checked and while I can probably arrange a window in which you won’t need credentials, it’s gonna cost a bit. And while I’d love to cover you, I am a businessman and we did just have a change in management you understand. Also, I just don’t have it.”

“What kind of work?!” Pinkie squeaked out.

“Oh all kinds my little cotton candy! I’m sure I can find a use for all your particular talents” he grinned winningly as (most) the party lamented. He cast a particularly pointed smile at Tifa. “In fact…”

‘I have a bad feeling about this…’

“I know of a position that just opened that a woman with your assets would be perfect for…”

Rarity glided between her tables, her roller skates clacking with every subtle crease in the floor. It wasn’t exactly ice skating but it was hardly her first time on wheels, and a little magic helped keep her trays upright for any slips. She weaved her way through the diner’s “outdoor” seating and toward the silver double doors.

“Corner” she called before rolling through the ‘in’ side of the opening, bin of dirty dishes in tow. Depositing her burden at the sinks, she quickly rolled on before she was called on past her shift to clean them. She gave a quick wave to the manager on her way to the terminal, clocked out, collected her tips and got the hell out of the retro grease factory for the day. She didn’t even stay to change out of her skates, stopping at a bench in the Round Square’s park area on her way back to the hotel instead. She worked a double and she’d be damned if she was going to stay a moment longer than she had to.

She winced as the stiff leather scraped at her heel before it completely slipped off. She took a moment to rub her feet, the poofy skirt of her uniform making it all the more tiresome. She flinched again as she hit a particularly tender spot and ran her finger over a small lump.

“A blister… just fabulous” she grumbled to herself before the rollercoaster roared over her head for the millionth time that day. A small whimper escaped her as the laughter of a small crowd drew her gaze across the space to a small throng surrounding a pair of performers: a large stuffed lion perched on a ball as a moggle balanced on his nose waving sparklers around “At least they’re having fun.”

She replaced the skates with a pair of slip ons and shuffled her ways towards the trams, squeezing into the first one to the aptly named Ghost Square. Their first couple days after helping their feline friend’s coup were spent down in the prison, an uncomfortable affair to say the least. They however finally coaxed Fluttershy into working at the hotel after her request of working at the stables was turned down. The free room was even worth the angrier than usual stares she leveled at them in the meantime, no matter how gaudy and undersized it was.

“Hello Miss Diamond…” the doorman croaked in the ‘spookiest’ voice he could muster. She paused as he opened the door to the ‘haunted manor’ “Good shift?”

“Good to be done with it, thank you James” she smiled tiredly, passing the costumed attendant who seemed to just love being in character, keeping it up even when he didn’t need to. She entered the elevator and pulled off the scrunchy, letting the ponytail of her currently black coiffeur fall free. Still fluffing her hair as he exited the lift and slid her key card at their door, she stepped in, ripped the oversized frames off her face and slumped against the door.

“I’m not going back there!” a muffled voice came from the bed, a curled form holding the sheets tightly over its head. Rarity rolled her eyes, she really didn’t want to deal with this right now.

“Tifa dear you make more than almost all the rest of us combined” she argued “I know it’s not the most glamorous job-”

“It’s Humiliating!” she growled as she sprung up in the bed with a scowl. Her currently blonde hair and blue eyes did little to mute the frustration “And the customers! I thought Hop’s was bad but this…”

“I know Darling, I know” she sat on the bed, putting a consoling hand on the deeply frowning girls arm “Go take a shower.”

“I already did” the martial artist mumbled.

“Well then go get changed, you don’t have time to dawdle” Rarity gave gently, causing Tifa to pout and stomp off to the bathroom. She moved to the wardrobe herself, slipping out of her uniform and into a simple bathrobe. She sat and began brushing her hair, hearing her comrade grumbling on the other side of the door “Look at the bright side Darling, at least you don’t have to wear my horrendous uniform!”

Said door swung violently open, revealing the buxom fighter with her assets enhanced in all the right ways by the Stylized, Black and Yellow Leotard now hugging her form.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” she demanded with a glare “I got pinched and slapped FIFTY-SIX TIMES yesterday! It was only a four hour shift! MY BUTT IS STILL RED!”

“Yes Darling, I’m kidding” she huffed exasperated “Now come here so we can do your makeup.”

Tifa twisted uncomfortably, pulling at the fishnet stockings as she stepped forward and kneeled in front of the bed. A dejected look crossed her face as the former seamstress pulled out her kit and went to work.

“Sorry…” the blonde muttered. Rarity returned another tired smile.

“It’s okay dear, I know it’s hardly dignified. This hasn’t been easy on any of us” she applied a layer of eyeshadow as she spoke “At least you’re just serving drinks and not… anything else. You’ll probably make more in tips tonight alone than I did this whole week.”

“Guess these blobs are good for something” she quipped half heartedly, even shaking her chest a little.

“You look phenomenal Dear. I’m quite proud of my figure and still don’t think I could pull this off half as well as you” the horned woman offered. The corner of Tifa’s lip tugged; it wasn’t a smile but it was something. With a few last finishing touches, the martial artist’s makeup was done “There we are, now you look even better. You want help with your stinger?”

“No, one of the girls will help when I get there” she answered, picking up the striped bulb and moving to the door with a heavy sigh “Thanks though, enjoy your shower.”

“Oh I fully intend to Darling” Rarity purred and watched the martial artist solemnly plod out the door. The depression faltered as she stood and made her way to the bathroom, kicking her own uniform into the corner along the way. In truth she really hadn’t been kidding; she hated the dress with a passion. Not that there wasn’t any appeal in that era’s fashion, far from it, but that over stylized rag was not it. That and Tifa really did look good in the outfit, and at least it wasn’t one of the bikini versions.

‘Though I’m sure she’d cause some heart attacks in that too, if she weren’t so closed off…’ the unicorn woman noted absently before stepping beneath the shower’s warm embrace and let the day wash away with a contented sigh.

Tifa trudged her way towards the tram, trying to ignore the glances and blatant stares of those she passed, when a shadow descended in front of her. Her eyes rose to meet a dark toned thestral woman with grey hair before her.

“Um… here” the disguised Fluttershy handed her a plastic bag, not making eye contact before taking back off. Tifa watched her form shrink on its way back to her stall before glancing in the bag. Ointment. She actually got her the ointment she asked for. Fluttershy was paradoxically the one among them that blended in the best at the saucer; people just figured she was from the Ghost Square. The fact no one really knew her face and her not being a small horse or talking dragon also helped limit any risk. As such she was the one now doing most of their shopping, albeit rather begrudgingly.

‘Well, maybe she’s starting to not hate us… as much’ Tifa thought before noting she also wasn’t glaring at her so much lately. ‘She is glaring at the others even more though…’

‘Maybe she just glad she’s not dressed as a bee too’

The brunette nodded to herself as she boarded the transit, holding the ring above her as it took her toward her new daily fate. Fluttershy wasn’t exactly lacking 'assets' of her own, something even her large cloak couldn’t entirely hide. Something Capper even noted when trying to find her a job placement, suggesting she work with Tifa. She met him with a stare she had never laid on any of them before, teaching them the woman had been holding back with them this whole time.

The martial artist thought she heard her muttering something about ‘scars’ afterward too.

The jostle of the tram stopping jarred her out of her thoughts. She stepped off and, with a sigh, made her way to the large yellow and black building covered with neon down the way. From humble beginnings in a Midgar slum, the Honey Bee Inn grew into a wide spanning franchise entertaining people the world ‘round. Yes, even Spira now had a couple locations. So of course “The World Tree of Entertainment” would have a location.

‘Lucky me’ the brunette made her way through the lobby and skirted the edges of the main theater to the changing rooms. Madam Jubilee herself helped with Tifa’s stinger before affectionately shooing her out to the bar. If there were any positives to the job it was that the girls and her boss were all very welcoming and nice. The Madam could have made her a dancer or… worse. But no, she was just making and serving drinks, which… limited the groping. For as progressive as Equestria was as far as gender equality, here it mostly just meant that sometimes she got pinched by women too.

Her shift dragged on before long, most orders coming from the tables while the bar stools were either empty or occupied with people more interested in each other than talking up the bar girls. Not that conversation was easy with the music and shows but if she was gabbing with a customer she could get away with hiding behind the protective counter easier. Plus they sometimes tipped better after chats. The bar head nudged her, jerking his head toward one of her tables.

“Yeah, sorry…” she offered before loading up her tray and making her way back over to the small groups of Shinra employees. She was nervous at first but after a day she realized that not only would her disguise hold up well in the bar’s lighting, but that her chances of running into any of the few employees she had actually met personally were pretty slim. That and the customers weren’t usually looking at her face most of the time. Not that all her customers were bad, most were surprisingly respectful; but they knew why they were here and some were still worse than others.

‘Speaking of decent customers’ she smiled slightly more genuinely as she brought the last of her tray’s load to a quartet of Shinra security. A first class SOLDIER drinking with a second class and a pair of troopers while a bee the martial artist was pretty sure named Blossom played hostess. She was currently giggling at the gryphon female currently trying to egg her fellow SOLDIER into getting a lap dance.

“AERITH!” three of them cheered as she approached, the last smiling gratefully at her for the distraction. They’d been here most of her shifts so far and were almost always in her section, having grown fond of the ‘busty blonde’. The gryphon woman smiled cheekily “Here I was just trying to get the boss a dance and up walks the perfect girl for him!”

“I’m not a dancer” Tifa reminded her gently “Besides, if I’m stuck dancing, who would bring you your drinks?”

“That’s a good point! Still though!” the SOLDIER yanked the normally brunette girl into the booth, an arm draped around her shoulders “Your company would be hard to beat, even in this crowd!”

“We can’t keep her from her work Gild'” the ‘boss’, a white unicorn who’s name she’d yet to catch, admonished lightly.

“This is her work! She can still sit with us a while” ‘Gild’ protested and looked to Blossom “Right!?”

“She most certainly can” the senior bee answered eloquently, and rather pointedly at Tifa. She suppressed a sigh and forced a smile. Still, she supposed it could be worse; her butt was under her and for as boisterous and crude the second class SOLDIER could be, she’d been harmless so far. The woman in question cheered and downed her old glass before starting on her new one.

She found herself sitting with them a good while longer; watching shows, retreating and returning with drinks and following Blossom’s lead playing hostess. In all honesty, it actually wasn’t too bad. She knew she didn’t want to be a hostess, not with their typical clientele. But with this group, it was actually kind of… well, fun. The three were playful and funny while their ‘boss’ kept them in line without being a stick in the mud. This obviously wasn’t his regular kind of scene but he seemed cool enough to go with it for his comrades.

“So…” Blossom broke in “What’s Shinra really doing here?”

Tifa perked up. She of course tried to butter up an employee or two for answers but was either too subtle or not smooth enough to really get anything. Blossom meanwhile just out and asks.

“It’s a convention” the second class answered with a shrug, the blush of ol’ Mr. Booze coloring her cheeks.

“I don’t think so many troopers, let alone SOLDIER, would be here for a business convention” Blossom snarked playfully.

“It is a convention…” Gild repeated and gave a shrug “It’s just not only a convention...”

“Gilda” the senior SOLDIER warned seriously, glass stopped half way to his lips to side glance the woman.

“Who’s she gonna tell?” the winged second class waved him off “Dio found something, we’re just here to protect it ‘till a deal can be worked out.”

“What did he find?” Tifa found herself asking before she could stop. Thankfully it came out innocently enough and no one batted an eye. Gilda leaned in with a drunken smirk to share her little secret with the smug glee of a six year old.

“Materia.”

“That’s it?” Blossom asked incredulously, a skeptical smirk of her own shot back “Must be a rare one to cause all this. He find the Knights of the Round itself or something?”

“Nah!” Gild rasped out “It’s just big.”

“What, like the one made for Cloudsdale?” one of the troopers asked before Blossom started fussing.

“Hey hey now, none of that. Only happy thoughts here at the Inn!” she tried to redirect the tone the question threatened to bring.

“Naw, this one-”

“Alright!” the horned SOLDIER elite stood abruptly, running a hand through his spiky locks before starting to shove the gryphon woman out of the booth. Tifa quickly saddled out to make way for the pair. “I think we should get some rest before our next shift.”

“Oh come on boss, we’re still having fun!” the second class protested as he took her arm. She cut her voice to a harsh whisper “You’re making us look like dweebs.”

“And you’re running your mouth like an ass. Now go sober up before you cause any real trouble” he snapped back and let her go, nudging her toward the exit. He looked to the troopers “I suggest you two do the same while conveniently forgetting this ‘drunken haze’. Understood.”

Subdued yes sirs escaped the pair as they ambled out. The elite sighed and turned back to the bees.

“Sorry Blossom, Aerith” he offered genuinely, shifting uncomfortably at the attention the little scene caused “Still, this conversation-”

“Oh honey no worries about that” Blossom slapped his chest playfully “With everything that comes out of the mouths in this joint, mum is always the word.”

“Didn’t happen then?” he confirmed all the same.

“Just more drunken nothings'' Tifa chimed in. He seemed satisfied and left them with a nod to settle the bill up front.

“Drunken nothings, I like that” Blossom nudged her affectionately.

“Feel free to it” the brunette chuckled back.

“Well I got a new phrase and you got to be a hostess for a bit, looks we both learned something tonight” the bee winked and made her way to another table, quickly earning herself a seat.

“Yeah” Tifa muttered softly “We certainly did…”

“You sure it’s a huge materia?” the drake posed.

“No, but based on what else was said it seems most likely” the martial artist concluded. As soon as her shift ended, Tifa called everyone back to the hotel room. Fluttershy was the only one still on shift but didn’t much seem to care if she lost her job. The others were, as it would mean losing the room, but with this news and a little luck, they may not need it that much longer.

“And you’re sure she said it wasn’t artificial?” Rarity asked next.

“She told the trooper that asked no before she got cut off” she clarified “Look I know it’s not a ‘we have exactly what you’re looking for’ but what else could it be?”

“I’m not saying you’re wrong dear, and a huge materia would certainly explain the large presence of troops at a convention, but if he does have it then why hasn’t he just sold it by now? Or put it up in his little museum?” the former Turk proposed.

“Leverage?” Spike offered “Maybe he’s holding out for more?”

“Shirna isn’t exactly sparing any expense in this search, they’d meet his price” Rarity shook her head “And if it was really that ridiculous of a price they’d just take it, even if it did burn such a lucrative bridge.”

“Maybe they’re planning to” Tifa cut back in “There is a lot of fire power walking around this park right now.”

“Maybe it’s the grand prize” Pinkie spoke up, earning confused looks from everyone save the dragon nodding beside her “...What?”

“Grand prize for what?”

“Well, for the race of course” she answered to the same faces “...The big chocobo race at the end of the week? There’s ads for it all over the place!”

The group exchanged glances all around, the mood growing hopeful.

“Does anyone know how to ride a chocobo?” Rarity began.

“I do” Fluttershy spoke up.

‘Wait’

“Really?” the pony exclaimed “Like how to race?”

“I haven’t raced them” the winged woman scowled “but I know how to ride.”

“Better than the rest of us I bet” Spike pointed out.

‘No’

“Do you think Capper can get us in?” Rarity asked.

“Do you think he can get us a chocobo?” Pinkie returned.

‘Stop’

“And we’d still have to get out even if we do win-”

“STOP!”

The room fell silent as the pugilist called out. They stared at her, wide eyed and not a little bewildered. Suddenly aware of herself, Tifa cleared her throat and rolled her shoulders.

“Okay... simpler plan:”

Dio, the glistening god of the golden saucer, stood in his private booth above the battle square watching a squad of Shinra Troopers trying their skills against the first stages. They weren’t nearly the spectacle that drunken SOLDIER woman offered him the other night but they were not nearly so costly either. He wouldn’t lose as many monsters to this group, though he did lament the lack of entertainment. That gryphon could really put on a show when blowing off some steam. Still, she did bring in a lot of viewers so maybe he’d still make a profit. The sound of the door drew his attention to his secretary now striding in.

“Mr. Dio, Mister Capper says he has some information you need to know” she informed him “He’s waiting for you in the museum. Shall I escort him here?”

“No, this fight is dull anyway” she returned and made his way to one of his favorite places in the park. With only the heavily armed guards at the door and a few patrons that were milling aimlessly about the displays present, the lanky Ronso wasn’t hard to spot.

“As sharply dressed as always boss” Capper gave, ignoring the flat look of the man looking more wrestler than manager as he glanced toward the muffled sounds of battle behind him “Still don’t get the allure of that place, I’ve never been one for violence myself.”

“Would you have me believe your recent return to prominence below was done with silvered words alone?” the statuesque owner returned as he approached. Normally his conversations with the cat were more private, but he had little fear of being overheard here.

“That… wasn’t planned so much as a misunderstanding” the feline articulated carefully.

“Please Capper, I don’t care what you dishonorable criminals do to each other in that desert so long as it stays down there” he gave with some disdain “And so long as the ones you send up aren’t causing trouble. I'm getting a lot of complaints that one of them is scaring people in the Ghost Square.”

“Isn’t that the point?”

“Genuinely scaring them” the manager's impressive mustache twitched as a sneer reached his lips.

“Well wouldn’t you know it, they’re why I’m here” the ronso clarified with a smirk “It would seem some of my recent picks may have stumbled onto some tempting information they just couldn’t resist.”

“As much as I appreciate a fellow showman, I will ask you to get on with this Capper” Dio delivered calmly. Capper simply gave a slight bow, his smile unwavering.

“Of course boss. It seems they learned from some loose lips about that huge materia you dug up” Dio froze. His poker face was commendable but didn’t prevent a quick, nervous glance to his secretary “Oh not to worry sir, I wouldn’t dare spill the secrets of the man holding my freedom. But I am afraid they have ill intent of their own.”

“I’m afraid their information will do them little good” Dio’s secretary interjected, “We intend to announce the race’s grand prize tomorrow afternoon. And we have little intention of allowing any prisoners to race.”

“I thought you were letting previous champions race” the ronso noted.

“The champions aren’t prisoners anymore” Dio countered.

“Fair enough, but with what they asked me to help with I’m not sure the race will be their only consideration” the feline elaborated. The bare chested man simply chuckled.

“Come with me” he smirked and led the way to the back of the hall to a large and heavily reinforced door. He reached to a covered keypad, all angles blocked from sight as he put in a long and rather complicated seeming code. Capper was politely looking away anyway. The door hissed and opened to reveal the owner’s private collection. Capper had actually been in here before, during a similar chat, but a new addition demanded his attention. He let out a low whistle at the large, high tech safe built into the back wall. “See? I doubt even a trickster like you could get into this baby.”

“Not without a good hacker and at least a few hours, more time then I’d ever get” he stroked the man’s ego without sacrificing all of his own.

“Damn right. Not to mention that without the code that door isn’t opening for anything. It could stop a behemoth in its tracks, and I’ve tested that” Capper wasn’t sure if the man was joking. There were rumors he actually had some in the arena’s lowest levels. He led the feline back outside “So you see, I’m hardly concerned about these other considerations.”

“And here I thought I could earn some more brownie points” Capper lamented dramatically.

“And so you shall!” Dio exclaimed boisterously, slamming a heavy hand on the ronso’s shoulder “Just because I have nothing to fear doesn’t mean this wasn’t important! I assume you have pictures of these malcontents?”

“Sure do boss” a folder emerged from the folds of the red coat.

“Splendid! Robin, if you would”

“Of course sir, I’ll have security track them down immediately” the secretary took the folder and swiftly made her way out, leaving the pair.

“I do hope these rare bad picks won’t shine too unfavorably on me” Capper addressed the theme park owner again.

“As long as you point them out afterwards like this they won’t” Dio assured him “Why you keep this up and you’ll be free before I know it! Maybe even with a bit of honor to boot.”

“We can only hope.”

“Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome! I’m so glad you could join us today for the grand announcement!” Dio’s voice boomed over the museum speakers and over the crowds gathered. The displays had been smartly stored away to accommodate the throng of jockeys, managers and press fluttering about.

“You finally tell’n us what I’m gonna win?” a jockey called out, earning a wave of laughter.

“I wouldn’t count your chocobos before their hatched champ, you got racers from all over the world here for this. And I promise you, this prize is one for the ages” the entrepreneur returned before nodding to Robin, who disappeared into the private collection hall “But yes ladies and gentlemen, here we reveal the prize of this year’s great race!”

The audience stood with rapt attention.

“Something so special even Shinra’s been clamoring all week to get their hands on it. But this is not a treasure to just be sold. Something like this must be earned! No offense Madam President, but if you want this prize, you're going to have to win it!” He delivered dramatically to one of the cameras with a mighty grin. He took a breath to continue but was interrupted by his secretary hurrying back out anxiously. She whispered quickly to his ear “What?!”

“Sir, the safe is missing” she repeated quietly.

“That’s impossible! That the best safe money can-” he hissed before readdressing the crown “Ladies and gentlemen, just a moment please.”

“That safe can’t be cracked, not without setting off every alarm in the park” he grumbled as he and several security guards followed.

“Sir I didn’t say the safe was cracked” Robin clarified and gestured to the back wall, a gaping hole where the safe should be “I said it’s missing.”

“But… But HOW!?” the boss roared “How’d they disable the security!? How’d they get through the DOOR?!”

“I have two entries logged for yesterday sir” a tech announced by the door.

“Two?!” Dio repeated. He looked to his secretary, not accusingly, but certainly confused “Did you come in?”

“They’re both your code sir, no one else’s have been used for over a week” the tech continued.

“Is it possible Mr. Capper somehow memorized your code?” Robin suggested.

“He wasn’t even looking at me...” Dio shook his head, brow furrowed “Still, call him up.”

“Sir” another aide poked his head in “The crowd’s getting restless out here.”

Dio looked around. To the hole, the door, the tech, the aide, his secretary and finally just up.

“HOW?!”

The group stood gathered around the Ronso and Pony working on the safe. Pinkie was doing something clever with a laptop, even more clever than somehow typing with hooves, as Capper listened intently with his ear against the metal. Tifa looked around nervously. They were more than far enough away from the railway station and the outcroppings of rocks and weeds giving them more than enough cover but she bounced nervously all the same. It didn’t help that they had to wait down there a whole day for Capper to show up with the safe, wondering if the plan to smuggle it out as one of the relocated museum displays would actually work.

Or if their feline ally would honor his end of the deal.

“Oh!” Capper exclaimed happily after a twitch of his ears “Good work cotton candy! Now it’s Capper’s turn again.”

He pressed his ear closer as he twisted alternatingly between three dials. They’d been going back and forth like this for almost two hours now. Two long, quiet hours. The second part being from them shushing the moment anyone spoke, and the first from having to start over when either one made a misstep on their respective parts. To have to jump back and forth between a digital lock and a triple dial… Mr. Dio really didn’t want someone in his safe.

A click loud enough for everyone to hear sounded, followed by the heavy thunk of the safe’s lever. With a smile and showman flare, Capper slowly opened the safe, revealing a rough crystal the size of a watermelon glowing a bright red on the center shelf. A low whistle escaped the feline.

“Oh that is a pretty sight, a pity to see it go” the now former prison snitch delivered “But a deal’s a deal, plus I have no idea what I’d do with it anyway.”

He lifted the nexus of magic and handed it to the martial artist before diving back into the safe.

“Looks like you were right Darling” Rarity offered as they took in the sight.

“Feel anything?” she asked the former Turk.

“I don’t think so... but then I’m not sure if I should” the unicorn woman answered hesitantly.

“You’d feel it” Fluttershy stated simply.

“So this one is for a different bearer, assuming it’s attuned to a current”

“Aren’t they all?” Tifa asked quickly.

“Not necessarily. Shinra has found master types before, attuned to the different varieties and not a current. This could actually be a master summon...” she pouted briefly before brightening “But either way this will certainly give us an in with AVALANCHE.”

“How do you know they want it?” Spike asked, walking around the Ronso sorting through the rest of the safe’s contents with Pinkie helping organize.

“Because it was what they were after at the tower” the former Turk answered grimly “Those weren’t fodder troops they sent to the lab. I don’t know where they stand in the group but you don’t send firepower and experience like that unless you know there’s something to get. They knew the materia was there. And if they wanted that one, they’ll most assuredly want this one.”

“Either way we don’t want Shinra to have it” Tifa concluded “And if AVALANCHE can deal with the trouble of protecting it instead of us, all the better right?”

“Ummm…” the trio’s attention was drawn back to the safe where a reluctant Capper was looking up at the party's pegasus. She was holding up a rather large pistol, examining it closely. The deal was they got smuggled out and would keep the huge materia while Capper was free to whatever else was in the safe. Apparently the gun was in the safe. Fluttershy gave the inquisitive cat a single glance before he smiled uneasily “Suits you!”

She gave noncommittal hum before simply grabbing the weapon’s spare magazines and a box of what looked like a very large caliber of ammo and walking a little ways ahead. He looked back at them perplexed.

“Can any of you get an actual read on her?”

“Yes, angry” Rarity answered bluntly, earning a giggle from Pinkie.

“Well then!” Capper sprung up and simply swept the rest of the safe’s contents haphazardly into a bag, now earning a huff from the pony. “I suppose this is where we part ways. A sad thing to see you all go.”

“Yeah, thanks Capper” the martial artist shook the ronso’s hand.

“Yes, I dear say we’d be lost without your help” she offered her hand as well, to which Capper regally bowed to and kissed “Charmer.”

“It is my game… though speaking of” he straightened and looked back to Tifa “While it’s not an uncommon trick of the trade, you don’t exactly strike me as the thieving type. What made you think to take the safe to crack it later?”

“Saw on tv once” She admitted and followed with a paraphrased quote “Safes have advanced beyond simple clicks and tumblers over the centuries. They’ve gotten a lot harder to break. But walls? Walls haven’t changed much.”

“Yet people still trust them” Capper chuckled “And the code?”

“Mime” Tifa answered again “I have the mime materia. That’s why I just had to see him when he put in his code.”

“Really?! Those are a rare prize…” the feline marveled. He looked at his bag of loot before giving it a jostle “I don’t suppose you’re interested in a trade?”

“I... can’t really part with it” she fumbled out less easily.

“Well, can’t blame a cat for trying. Anyway as I was saying; Sad to see you go but I have I feeling parting would be better for my health. Ladies” her purred to the trio still present before nodding to Spike “Gentle lizard”

“Alley cat” Spike returned with a smirk matched by the ronso, who gave one final bow before absconding with his haul. They released a collectively held breath as he left sight. It had been a week, that was for sure. They looked to one another and to the pegasus waiting ahead.

“To Ponyville?” Pinkie asked.

Rarity nodded with an unhappy sigh.

“To Ponyville...”

Author's Note

Okay, so before you all start rolling your eyes thinking "Well there was Thisguy's yearly update" I am happy to inform you that the next three chapters are actually already written! :pinkiegasp: I know right?! They just need another pass or two in editing and they'll be up in relatively short order- only days apart AT MOST, if not notably less. :pinkiehappy:

Also, at the moment my inspiration and, perhaps more importantly, motivation seem to be holding up so I should hopefully still be writing more regularly after their release too. I'll be aiming for a chapter every couple of weeks, though more often would be nice too. There WILL be more chapters, I've just learned not to make promises about this the timing... :twilightblush:

But for now, as always, Thanks for reading and have a good one! :twilightsmile:

Chapter 11: Ponyville

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Grand Glove- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (-New-), Earrings

Pinkie: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Silver Armlet- Transform, Manipulate, Time
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth, Materia Band- Water, ATK up --- Carbon Bangle: Sense, Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

Fluttershy: Altered Pegasus
Bigg Handgun- Deathblow --- Carbon Bangle- Aero, Poison
Other: Enhanced physique, Improved healing, “Unnatural Abilities” Trooper Machine Gun

“So you used to live here?”

The group had a surprisingly uneventful trip the rest of the way towards Ponyville. Not that it wasn’t unwelcome; after almost every other stretch between their destinations so far, they could use the break. There were of course a couple groups of monsters, but it wasn’t anything they couldn’t handle. In fact, Tifa was actually starting to feel confident that she was getting stronger. Maybe not a lot, but she now felt she could at least hit Canyon Crusher on her own before getting floored again.

‘That’s something, right?’

“Yes Pinkie, I grew up in Ponyville” Rarity answered with a sigh. The closer they got, the more clear it became the former Turk wasn’t excited about the homecoming.

“Worried people will recognize you?” Tifa asked.

“I know people will recognize me. It hasn’t been that long since I left. Hopefully either AVALANCHE will have enough influence or people simply won’t care enough to know they could turn us in” she tried to assuage the implied concern. She sighed again and continued “No it’s just… I left for a reason, and it wasn’t a happy one.”

“Got some old grudges?” Spike mused.

“No, nothing like that Darling. I just… couldn’t stay anymore” was as far as she elaborated and nobody wanted to push. Other than the unicorn saying they were getting close, it was a fairly quiet trip from that point on. Soon enough they did spot the sight of buildings in the distance, the slight roll of the hills giving way to the township nestled into the base of the mountains. They swung around to avoid the front to instead head to the farm land stretching out from the town proper; to a sweeping orchard that dominated the landscape in paticular. As they approached the edges of the tree line though, a peculiar detail dawned on Tifa.

“Why are all the apples blue?” she queried aloud.

“They’re Belles” Rarity answered simply, before noticing her companions continued confusion “Mana Apples.”

“Mana infused fruit is what they make ethers out of” Pinkie cut in “You never noticed how a lot of ethers taste a little like cider or fruit juice?”

“I… guess I never really thought about it” the brunette admitted as they entered the tree line “I did notice some taste different. Like some are more citrusy.”

“There are mana oranges too, along with some other fruits and vegetables” Pinkie continued “But the Apple’s orchard is one of the largest mana orchards in Equestria. Something in the soil lets them grow like Everblight out here, with a lot more mana close to the surface for some reason. Many believe it has something to do with Nibelheim, though I don’t see how from all the way over here.”

“Why would the ruins of an old town help make magic apples?” the group actually stopped to look at her.

“Well, because the mako reactor there went critical there… it’s how the town was destroyed” Rarity answered slowly “Everyone knows that…”

“Not from around here, remember?” the pugilist reminded them and remembrance dawned on the group, save for a slightly perplexed looking Fluttershy. Before the conversion could resume however, a surprised grunt alerted them to a rather large man patrolling the trees a ways ahead. He froze at the sight of them, eyes flickering between all them before reality seemed to dawn on him. He immediately spun around and dashed off into the trees. A loud clatter soon followed but as the party closed on where the sound came from, they found only some knocked over baskets of apples with the towering male nowhere to be seen.

“Well we’ve been announced then,” Rarity muttered before looking to the others “I suppose we shouldn’t keep them waiting.”

They continued through the trees until a large barn came into view through the trees.

“KWEH!”

The musical note filtered to them and through the orchard. It was soon followed by several more, the notes singing happily to each other. Some from even deep in the trees. A single awkward “WARK” rang out next, silencing the rest.

“Chocobos?” Tifa asked with a small smile. She knew the sound but not really from personal experience, and certainly not from anything like the brief musical they just experienced. She never got a chance to see the few that would come through the slums and she never took the time to go to any of the races at the saucer.

“The Apples do breed them if I remember correctly,” Rarity nodded as they approached the barn. As if to confirm the former Turks memory, a young voice was shouting from inside.

“OH COME ON! FUCK ALREAD-OW!”

“Language” a much deeper, masculine tenor was heard as they entered the side door. They came to the sight of a red-head in her early teens rubbing her head and scowling at a tall, broadly built blonde staring back at her unimpressed. He wasn’t as big as the man they saw in the orchard, but he still wasn’t lacking in muscle. That was for sure. An almost musical giggle escaped another teen next to them.

“Sweetie?!” Rarity exclaimed. The younger horned girl spun, eyes wide as saucers as she saw the group.

“RARITY!” she cried back, rushing into her sister’s arms “What are you doing here?!”

“What are You doing here?!” The woman countered, letting the girl go to answer.

“Well after Mz. Drops picked me up, I stayed with her and Miss Lyra for a few days until Mom and Dad got me and brought me back here” the teen explained with an occasional crack in her voice “And now I’m staying with the Apples.”

“Staying with the- but where are-UGHhhhh...” a heavy, groaning sigh escaped the former Turk mid-sentence. Her shoulders slumped and eyes closed as a hand reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose “They went back out on one of their trips, didn’t they?”

“You know Mom and Dad...” Sweetie answered with a shrug. During the exchange, the blonde had grabbed a farm hand and whispered something to him quickly before sending them off through the barn’s main door. He was tense with a serious frown firm on his face as he watched them, but didn’t interrupt the reunion “Some people have been saying some pretty bad stuff sis, and with how you disappeared, I-”

“I know Darling, I know” Rarity interrupted her softly. A gentle hand cupped to the girl’s cheek to wipe away a tear before she brought her back into another hug “I’m so sorry Sweetie, I never meant for any of this to happen…”

The pair rocked in each other’s embrace for a moment, no one really sure if they should say anything. Finally the red-head spoke up, scratching the back up her head.

“So hey Miss Rarity, long time no see” Sweetie pulled away a little hurriedly, a blush on her cheeks as she cleared her throat.

“Oh um yeah, you remember Applebloom and Big Mac right?” she gave, wiping her face and fussing her curls. Rarity smiled warmly, squeezing the girl's shoulder affectionately.

“Yes dear, I remember” she looked up to regard the pair, particularly Big Mac. Before another word could pass her lips however, a flurry of adorable balls of yellow fluff poured into the barn and swirled about their feet. As unbearably cute as the chocobo chicks were, the rest of the group found themselves dumbstruck by the impossible sight they had triggered instead.

Fluttershy shifted as the mass of tiny feathers danced about below her, looking down with a warm smile as she giggled. She actually giggled. The angry half-threstral that glared at them at every opportunity, whose vocabulary half consisted of angry growls and snarls, and who never hesitated to pull the trigger... had just giggled like a schoolgirl...

And was pretty cute while she was at it.

“Get back here you little puff balls!” a new voice signaled the arrival of a third teen. A tomboyish looking pegasus girl with messy hair and notably small wings barreled in after the chicks. Already holding a small clutch peeping happily in her arms, she chased futility after the flock now escaping out the other door. With an exasperated groan she began after them but stopped abruptly, turning to the party with a look like she’d just seen a ghost. The expression dropped to mere confusion and she tilted her head, searching. The moment was short lived as one of the chicks in her arms hopped free and ran after the others, spurring the young pegasus back into motion and out the door.

Tifa looked to the rest of the group to see Fluttershy now hidden from view behind the door, her face down cast and hidden within her hair and cloak. It would seem it was a day of interruptions though, as Tifa was suddenly distracted by the sensation of something gently nibbling at her earring. She turned and came face to face with a Chocobo leaning out of its stable. The bird blinked and cocked its head, the light illuminating the scar of a large crack up its beak.

“KWARHK!” the bird suddenly exclaimed before nuzzling the brunette vigorously.

“H-hi there! I like you too!” She laughed as the feathers tickled her face and earned some laughter from those gathered.

“Well now look at that” another new voice emerged from the main doorway “Kiwi usually ain’t much taken with strangers but if he likes ya, Ah guess y’all can’t be that bad.”

Tifa extracted herself from the cuddly bird enough to see a woman at the entrance. She was tall and well built with an obviously well loved stenson resting on her blonde locks. Most notable however was the rough looking robotic hand she reached up to straighten it with. That and the rather fresh looking scars where it met her arm, just below her elbow. She held a bundle of rope in her other hand, coiling it as she approached.

“Applejack” Rarity delivered evenly. The slight smile the farm girl held a moment before falling, her tongue probing the inside of her cheek as she regarded them.

“Girls why don’t ya go help Scoots’ roundup those chicks” she suggested, not breaking eye contact with the unicorn.

“Oh come on AJ! We know about this st-”

“Git.” the older Apple responded pointedly as she stared down her little sister. The teen looked past to her brother, who just jerked his head to the door. A defeated breath escaped her after only a few more stubborn moments.

“Alright. Come on Sweetie, let’s go catch up” she relented. The paler girl seemed even less eager to leave then the red head.

“It’s okay Sweetie, I’ll be around a little while. We’ll catch up in a bit. Okay?” Rarity assured the girl, who reluctantly nodded and left with her friend. The unicorn waited a moment longer after they left before regarding the cowgirl evenly “So, should I be thanking you… or negotiating?”

“Wut?” Applejack met her gaze with a furrowed brow. After a moment however, the implication dawned on her. She gave a disgruntled huff and rolled her eyes before frowning at the former Turk “Look Ah’ know y’all think of us as terrorists, but it ain’t like that.”

“You’ve taken hostages before,” Rarity pointed out.

“Not here! And sure as hell not kids!” the farmer snapped back, startling the stabled chocobos. She paused and regained herself, continuing more calmly “Look, yer folks asked if anyone was willing to take her in. Sweetie and Bloom are friends, so we volunteered like we did with Scootaloo. That’s all.”

“Look the last time we ran into you guys we were almost killed” Tifa stepped forward between the two, hands up calmingly “I’m sure she was just shocked to see her sister here. It wasn’t something we were expecting.”

“I-” Rarity began before catching herself, stopped to recoup as well “Yes, I’m sorry. It’s not fair to come here and just accuse you. Especially when we’re looking for help… Thank you for taking care of her.”

“Y’all ain’t the only ones that almost died that night…” Applejack scowled, her new hand flexing at her side. She huffed again but relented “But yeah, no problem. Like I said, she's Applebloom's friend… and a good kid besides. We weren’t jus’ gonna leave her out in the cold.”

“Well now that that’s out of the way…” Spike interjected, turning them back to the matter at hand.

“Oh, um yes… so as I was saying-”

“Y’all here fer help. Yeah, we caught that” AJ finished for her “But what do you expect us to do?”

“You’re AVALANCHE” Rarity stated plainly.

“Are we now?” the farmer cocked an eyebrow “Says who?”

“Well other than the far from subtle implications of the conversation up to this point; Says that banner that was behind you in that airship you were bleeding out in” the Turk countered. AJ glanced at brother.

“Was really hoping that was just me seeing things from blood loss” she muttered.

“Told ya” Big Mac returned simply.

“Yeah thanks Mac” the farm girl rolled her eyes “So if y’all supposedly saw me then where has Shinra been? Why didn’ a dozen SOLDIER storm our barn and arrest us ‘soon as we got back if we were there like ya say?”

“Because I didn’t tell them.”

“Why not?”

“I’m not sure how well you follow the news but we’re not exactly on Shinra’s good side at the moment” Rarity pointed out.

“Ah noticed, but ah also noticed y’all didn’t start caus’n trouble till a while after the tower was attacked” AJ countered, frown unwavering “How’da we know this ain’t all some kinda trap? Some ruse ta pull one over on us yokels and get yer people on the inside, huh?”

“Because Shinra would never even risk giving you what we’re about to” she gestured to the party’s martial artist “Tifa dear?”

The brunette stepped forward and pulled the duffle from around her back. The pair tensed, with Mac standing straight from his lean and Applejack turning her side to her. Tifa moved more cautiously but continued, pulling the mass of magic crystal from its shelter. The siblings’ guarded expressions turned to awe.

“Well now ain’t that a fine howdy do?” the farm girl breathed.

“Eeyup…”

Applejack stepped forward and reached for the materia but hesitated, meeting the martial artist’s red eyes. Tifa didn’t shy away and offered the gem openly. The farmer took it slowly, bringing it close to stare down at it. She handed it to her brother, who studied intently as he turned it about in his hands.

“You want the bag?” Tifa offered, bringing the pair back to reality.

“Eeyup” Mac repeated and took the duffle, returning the oversized materia to it.

“Okay” Applejack looked over the group with a new regard, nodding unconsciously “We can talk.”

She led the group through the barn’s main door… and into the center of a dozen people armed and waiting anxiously. Chief among them the very large man from before now covered in dirt and twigs. That did little to make the minigun he was holding any less intimidating though.

“It’s alright everyone, we’re good” AJ waved them down, the crowd relaxing as one. She turned back and offered an amused shrug “Gotta be prepared, y’know?”

“And then some…” Spike muttered apprehensively. She gestured for them to wait a moment and stepped away with Big Mac, waving a unicorn woman with striped hair over to them. The concerned girl looked at the pair through the thick frames of her glasses, though Tifa noted one of her eyes seemed permanently closed behind them. The other eye flew wide however as AJ whispered to her before it snapped to the duffle. She ripped open the zipper and gawked at the contents. The cowgirl held up a quick hand, halting the girl before saying something else, the unicorn nodding vigorously in response. AJ nodded and called to the rest “Alright everyone, y’all can get back to work. Shoes, yer with us.”

Half the group holstered their arms and made their way back to the fields, the rest stayed with the party as they were led out of the orchard towards the town. Big Mac followed them to the edge of the farm before handing off the duffle and leaving them with little more than a wave. They skirted the edge of the town proper, but couldn’t avoid the citizens entirely. It seemed they didn’t need to though. Those they passed seemed completely unconcerned about the group of armed people escorting the party, even the one with the giant gun.

“Guess Rares was right about them having influence in town” Tifa gave as they walked.

“You can say that again” Spike returned quietly. Tifa then noticed the pony on his back staring ahead with an uncharacteristic melancholy in her eyes. She followed the path of her gaze to the unicorn whispering excitedly at the farm girl at the front of the group. Tifa now also noticed the woman’s whole left arm was also a prosthetic, though notably sleeker than Applejack’s.

“You know her?” she asked, startling the small quadruped.

“Huh?! What? Know who? How would I know anyone here silly?” the pony blathered off with a laugh. She then smiled almost too brightly as she looked decidedly everywhere but towards the unicorn again. Tifa frowned.

‘Just not a day for sharing, is it?’

She looked away to Rarity, who had quickened her pace to join the leaders at the front. She could hear her asking when she would have time with her sister before receiving a quiet answer Tifa couldn’t make out.

She then looked over to Fluttershy. On any other day the pegasus would be yards ahead of the group or trailing behind, yet she was right here with them in the center of the group making its way through the town’s back roads. Tifa only then realized that the pegasus hadn’t reacted at all to what was essentially an ambush waiting for them. If anything, she seemed to be intentionally making herself smaller at the moment, like she was hiding from…

‘From that girl we saw earlier.’

The brunette sighed but didn’t even bother asking. They could barely get her to tell them what she wanted to eat half the time. She very much doubted the woman would acknowledge her at all at the moment. Before long they arrived at the gates of a large estate. It wasn’t the prettiest thing around, the signs of its age beginning to show, but it was still quite the sight.

“The old Shinra mansion?” Rarity asked in an amused tone before a scoff escaped “Right under their noses?”

“Fitt’n huh?” AJ grinned back before leading them inside, most of their group now dispersing and leaving just AJ and the unicorn with them. To say the first sight wasn’t what Tifa was expecting would be an understatement. Cork boards full of flyers, toys scattered about behind the stairs, and open side rooms that included a makeshift yoga studio and what looked like a cooking class setup.

“This looks more like a community center than a base of operations” she muttered.

“Cause it is a community center” AJ answered simply “Topside is anyway. Come on, this way.”

She led them up the stairs and to one of the side rooms. It was rather unremarkable save the ugly brick wall of one of the mansion’s support pillars. It was that very wall AJ walked up to and pushed in a brick, triggering a large section to open. A small lift sat in the center of a spiral staircase leading into the depths.

“It used to be a sconce that opened it” the unicorn spoke up with an amused tone “But that felt just a little too obvious after a while.”

The elevator’s gate squealed as she pulled it open and stepped on, moving to the back to let the rest of them on. It was a tight fit, Fluttershy even being jostled against the gate as the bespectacled unicorn tried to squeeze in. Again though, the perpetually angry women didn’t even seem to notice.

“Don’t worry none,” Applejack assured them “We’ve had heavier loads than this without it fall’n.”

While not particularly expedient, the lift proved faster than the stairs would have. A good thing too, as they seemed to be descending a decent ways underground. With a small jostle and another squeal of the gate however, the party exited to a sparsely furnished cavern. A small card table with some chairs and a wall lined with wooden crates being the only sights. The resident AVALANCHE members guided them towards the opposite end of the cave.

“Right through here” the apple farmer led the way through a narrower tunnel, past a door labeled ‘armory’ and finally into a surprisingly bright room that looked more like the wing of a library than a cave several stories underground. Passing by the shelves though, the library gave way to a mad scientist’s wet dream.

“Where’d you guys get all this?” Tifa posed as the unicorn moved to one of the stations, placing the huge materia in one of the large tubes lining the walls before moving to the equipment next to it.

“We didn’t” AJ answered. “Was quite the surprise when Shoes tripped into the wall up there and it didn’t stop him. Even more of one when we found all this... Shinra jus’ loves their little secrets, don’t they?”

“Unfortunately…” Rarity agreed. As they waited for the unicorn to finish whatever she was doing, the former Turk continued “How did you manage to get the whole town to go along with this?”

“Go along with wut?”

“AVALANCHE!” she nearly shouted “Surely the whole town isn't complacent in terrorism!?”

Whatever response Rarity was expecting it wasn’t for the apple farmer to burst out laughing.

“Wut’re you talk’n about?” the cowgirl’s laughter petered off “You jus’ met more than half the unit!”

“More than half the unit?” Rarity parroted, brow furrowed.

“Wut? D’ya think you were ask’n the big boss fer help? That Ponyville was AVALACHE headquarters or sumthin?” AJ shot her an amused smirk “Sorry ta tell ya Sugar Cube, but while we’re not nobodies, the heart of the resistance we ain’t.”

“B-...but the townspeople,” the pale unicorn stuttered “They didn’t even blink at you walking through the street with guns!”

“We’re the militia!” Applejack responded as if it was obvious “Come on Rares, you know what kind of nasty critters can find their way down the mountain.”

“Does that kind really call for a minigun?” Spike interjected.

“They… can be pretty ornery sometimes” the apple farmer answered hesitantly. The drake looked to the former resident, who shrugged with a relenting nod of her own. A series of beeps from a monitor now lighting up with a read out killed the rest of the conversation “Ah! So wut’s the word Moon?”

“It’s real” ‘Moon’ responded evenly “Element attuned too: Loyalty if these readings are correct.”

“So you know about that then?” Tifa asked. The Scientist unicorn turned to her.

“If you mean that Shinra’s looking for Elements of Harmony substitutes? Yes, we figured that out” she quipped “Though we still don’t know why.”

“Even I was never told that Darling”

“You’re a Turk though” Moon accused “More importantly, one assigned to that task. You can’t expect us to believe you weren’t told anything.”

“WAS a Turk” Rarity corrected “And truthfully, they didn’t tell us. It seemed like only the director and the president herself knew exactly why we needed the Elements.”

“And folks ta use ‘em” Applejack added, earning an arched brow from the former Turk “We… knew a little more than Ah let on when y’all first got here.”

“And yet you took us to the heart of your operation” Spike pointed out.

“We led y’all into a cave with only one way in an’ out that ya know of” AJ countered smugly “Part of the playbook. Fool ya in ta think’n we trust ya to trap ya. If we needed ta that is.” she quickly added.

“But you trust us now?”

“Since that gem’s real, yeah. At least enough to give y’all the benefit of the doubt.”

“So you’ll help us?” Tifa cut in, the lab-coated unicorn answering her again.

“If you can help us” she put simply “If it was some kind of witness protection you were hoping for, then I’m afraid you’re out of luck.”

“But if y’all are will’n ta keep being a thorn in Shinra’s side with us then yeah, we can have yer backs” the apple farmer finished.

“Attacking Shinra won’t exactly keep us off their radar” Rarity grumbled.

“With two bearers, I don’t think there was much chance of that anyway” their resident dragon pointed out.

“Wait” Moon stepped forward abruptly, “Two of you are bearers?!”

“Generosity and Kindness” Rarity returned, gesturing to herself and the still unresponsive Fluttershy “And Tifa here was a failsafe substitute.”

“Well shucks and here I thought the maretia was the only gift y’all brought fer us!” Exclaimed the cowgirl before slapping her comrade on the back, stumbling the poor girl “Two elements and three bearers! We’re leave’n Shinra in the dust!”

“Wait” now it was Rarity’s turn to step forward “Two elements? Three bearers?!”

“Yep! You’ll never guess what we found grow’n in one of the tanks up at the reactor” AJ posed rhetorically before leaning in with a wink “Or who started glowin’ when she got near it.”

“You’re a bearer?” Tifa asked for clarification.

“Potential bearer o’ Honesty, if’n Moondancer here is right” the farm girl slammed a paw down on the unicorn’s shoulder.

“Ahem, uh yes.” Moondancer recovered for the second time in as many moments “The tests show AJ reacts most to those currents, so we expect the materia to be the same.”

“Can’t you just run the same test you did on that one” Spike pointed to the tube.

“It’s still in the reactor, we only discovered it recently” Moondancer shook her head “And we unfortunately lack the means to safely extract it yet. Thankfully it’s in an out of the way compressor manned by a sympathiser, so Shinra doesn’t know about it… yet. One of our other branches should be acquiring the needed equipment as we speak.”

“You don’t seem any worse for wear from the tests” Tifa shot at Applejack, eliciting a confused look from the farmer.

“Attunement tests are normally very benign dear” Rarity explained “Hojo’s just a monster.”

A sudden snarl made the group jump, reminding them of Fluttershy’s existence. A furious glare was leveled at the farm girl.

“You” the pegasus growled “Can your group get me close to that bitch?”

“Hojo?” AJ asked only to cause the gunner’s expression to somehow grow even more angry.

“We’ve been gunning for her for years” Moondancer cut in, her own voice now cold as ice “You’d hardly be the first we've helped take a shot at her and yet she’s still breathing.”

“I won’t miss” Fluttershy left with no doubt in her tone. The unicorn tilted her at the response, studying the thestral like woman with her one eye. The ghost of a bitter smile crossed her lips after a moment.

“We’ll go after her again at some point. No question. I’ll see what I can do to make sure you’re part of it.” Fluttershy took a moment herself, anger ebbing slightly. A simple nod showed she was at least accepting of the answer, if not satisfied with it.

“Well with that tension out o’ the way” AJ cut back in “Let’s get y’all back top side and set up at the Inn... and Rarity here ta her sister o’course. Ya staying here Moon?”

“Yeah. I’ll call down some of the others and run more tests; figure out the best way to make use of our new materia” Moondancer returned with a nod and gave a half smile to the rest “Welcome to AVALANCHE.”

With that they were led back out to the lift and back into the halls of the mansion. They just reached the top of the foyer steps when a voice called out, drawing attention to the stately, grey-haired woman at bottom.

“There you are Applejack! I heard we had some guests in town” the woman straightened her glasses and regarded the group before her eyes landed on the former Turk “Why Rarity dear, is that you? I was wondering if you’d be following that sister of yours back to us!”

“Oh um, yes” the unicorn coughed “Hello Mayor, nice to see you again.”

“Oh and wonderful to see you! Why after what happened I wasn’t sure we’d ever see you again” the Mayor gave with a sympathetic smile “But Ponyville will always be a home to you. I must admit I was a little worried at hearing our new arrivals were being escorted by the militia.”

“Jus’ ran inta them first is all Mayor. Nothing to get yer tail in a twist over” AJ consoled “Was just showing them the center and about ta get ‘em set up at the Inn.”

“Oh well then tell ol’ Flint I sent you to get a discount then” she winked at the group “And Welcome to Ponyville!”

The woman sang before leaving them to their business and retreating to one of the side rooms. A befuddled Rarity shot the farmer a look.

“Does she really not know we’re wanted?”

“Ya know how most people in this town are Rares. If it’s over them hills, it’s not on their radar” she returned a knowing gaze “Some folks do pay attention though, so we’ll be keep’n y’all ta the outskirts all the same.”

The Inn ended up being near the entrance to town but still nestled away enough they could come and go unnoticed with some caution. The owner also seemed to be in the know because he set them up in an isolated room by the exit stairs without AJ saying a word. Even with the back door open to them, AJ said staying put would be best until nightfall just to be safe and that she’d bring them something to eat in a little while. Noone argued as she and Rarity made their exit, leaving the outsiders to their own devices. Literally. There was little to nothing to do beyond looking out over the town’s entrance and playing on their phones.

“Y’know” Spike spoke up after a while “I think I know that Moondancer lady.”

“Really?” Tifa asked more incredulously than intended.

“Hey I know people. I did have a life before Shinra caught me… Y’know, sorta” he added a bit bashfully “Though it’s from Shinra that I think I know her from. I think she was on one of the science teams that studied me.”

“That’s not encouraging” Tifa commented but Spike waved it off.

“Nah, it was before the tests got bad. Before Hojo took over” a low growl escaped Fluttershy but they had learned as long as they didn’t say the actual name too much, she wouldn’t get too nasty “But if it is the same woman then something definitely happened to her since then; she didn’t have the robot arm back then… do you know who was on the old teams Pinkie?”

The crown topping the equine’s puff nearly toppled as she jerked up at the dragon’s sudden questioning.

“Oh uh, not really. I only started seeing you after things started getting bad, remember?” the pony scratched at the back of her head with an apologetic frown.

“Where were you before that?” Tifa realized they still knew practically nothing about the tiny horse. Even after all the time they traveled together, the pony always managed to keep away from the topic.

“I wasn’t anywhere. I was born there” Pinkie answered simply, an innocent smile on her face.

“You were born there?” the pony nodded enthusiastically “How old are you?”

“Technically one and a half.”

“Technically?” Tifa stared with her face scrunched “What does that mean?”

“Well, are you a you when you’re born or when you become aware?” Pinkie asked before the door opened and caused the group to jump to their feet, just to see Applejack enter. She adjusted the bags she was carrying as she shot them a bemused look.

“Jumpy lot, ain’t ya? Got nothing to worry about here, nothing we wouldn’t be able ta tell ya about first at least'' she offered before setting down and opening the bags. A distinctly delicious smell filled the room almost immediately “Bet it’s been a while since y’all had some authentic home cook’n, huh?”

“A lifetime” Tifa sighed happily, not entirely joking. She moved to help the farmgirl move the portions to plates. The fighter joined the others at the room’s small table while AJ moved to the pegasus still sitting by herself next to one of the windows. She set the plate on the sill but remained standing over the grim woman.

“Wut’s yer name?”

“Why?” the gunner returned bored, studying the food in front of her.

“Is it Fluttershy?” that drew the pegasus’s attention. Her crimson eyes locked on to Applejack’s.

“Why?” she repeated. AJ’s eyes narrowed with a frown.

“Scootaloo was asking about you. Do ya know her?”

“...Who?” Fluttershy asked after just a moment too long. The farmer’s hands rested on her hips as her tone grew stern.

“Listen here now, that girl’s been through a lot and lost more than her fair share for a dozen lifetimes, let alone the one she’s barely started. So iff’n y’all know her-”

“I don’t” Fluttershy cut her off, tone surprisingly passive “You don’t have to worry about me.”

“That ain’t…” the cowgirl started but let drop with a sigh as the thestral woman turned her attention back to the food, ignoring her. She turned back to the others trying and failing not to eavesdrop in the small room “Rare’s still with her sister but shouldn’t be too late.”

“Any word on us yet?” Spike asked in good humor. A small smile graced the farmgirl’s lips.

“That’s still up in the air. Usually takes a couple days to figure what ta do with normal recruits. And, I mean this in the best possible way, y’all ain’t exactly normal.”

“Thanks!” Pinkie beamed brightly beneath a face covered in mashed potatoes, earning a chuckle from the rest. Tifa spoke through the side of her own full mouth.

“No worries, I’m just glad we’re in a friendly place with an actual militia and not a crazy backwoods cult” she smiled before pointing with her fork “This is amazing by the way.”

“Granny rarely disappoints'' Applejack declared proudly “But yeah, heard ‘bout that bit of trouble y’all ran into at Condor. It was actually what got us looking inta ya. Gotta admit though, started getting second thoughts after that mess in Junon. Ah might not be one ta talk, but shoot’n in the middle of a parade…”

“Yeah that… that wasn’t planned” Tifa gave in a grim tone, then even muttered under her breath “Or appreciated.”

“Yeah, I can relate to things not goin ta plan'' AJ gave herself, glancing down to her new hand. She rolled her neck, and shrugged back at the pugilist “We never want things ta get messy after all.”

“Yeah but… we could have done that better” Tifa concluded with a frown. AJ however gained a warm smile.

“Well with a sentiment like that, I guess Kiwi really did get a good read on our new recruits” she patted the brunette’s shoulder as she passed, pausing at the door just briefly enough to quip “Abnormal as they may be.”

“I like her!” Pinkie declared after the farmer left.

“She does seem rather genuine” Spike concurred “Though I suppose that makes sense. Honesty and all.”

‘Not sure the element makes the bearer’ Tifa thought but left unsaid, especially since it wasn’t just Fluttershy’s example that made her think it. Still, she felt the need to say something “It is hard not to feel like we can trust her.”

“Not everyone’s out to get us Tiffy” Pinkie reminded the martial artist.

‘Tell that to Rarity’ again, she left unsaid and just returned a tired smile before refocusing on her food. The unicorn herself arrived shortly after the sunset. The food wasn’t as warm but there was still some left, to which Rarity politely declined.

“If there’s one rule of Ponyville Darling, it’s that you don’t spend an evening at the Apple’s and leave with an empty stomach” she gave with a smile, followed by a distressed wince as she rubbed her midriff “Whether you like it or not...”

Before long it was time to try to get some sleep. Despite her best efforts to do so though, Tifa found herself stuck awake and dwelling on her earlier thoughts. She felt guilty about thinking of Rarity that way, especially when she had been nothing but kind to Tifa herself. She just couldn’t shake off certain reactions the unicorn woman had on their journey so far though. Then, as if reacting to the fighter’s conflict, she heard the former Turk stirring. As quietly as possible, the pale woman crept to the door, unaware of the brunette’s eyes following her exit. The pugilist let a moment pass before doing the same.

She kept her distance as she followed the well coiffed woman, though was frankly amazed she hadn’t been caught yet. The former agent’s training hadn’t seemed to have diminished however, as she managed to unknowingly lose the brunette even in her distracted state. Even worse, it also occurred to Tifa that she now had no idea where she was. She moved another street over but failed to recognize anything.

A subtle ‘psst’ sounded behind her.

Big Mac leaned against a nearby house, giving a flat stare to the woman blushing back at him. His eyes flickered down the way before returning to Tifa’s and he jerked his head pointedly down the road. The night left little to see beyond a vague, oddly shaped mass at the block’s end… and the pale skin of a unicorn standing nearby, shining in the moonlight. She gave nod to the imposing yet strangely not intimidating farmer, who simply returned it before walking away.

“Rarity?” the woman started at the sound as she rounded with a gasp.

“Oh! Oh, Tifa Darling it’s just you” she slumped with a hand to her chest “I’m sorry, did I wake you?”

“No, I couldn’t sleep” the brunette waved off and moved to join the horned woman looking over what Tifa now saw as the rubble of a burned down building. The charred remains of a few wooden chocobos stuck out as an oddity among the rest. It took a moment for the martial artist to recognize what they were “An old merry go round you used to love?”

“It wasn’t a ride Darling” Rarity answered with a slight smile “It was a shop. The man who built it used to design and build carnival attractions. I bought it after he moved and thought the aesthetic too quaint to change.”

“This was yours?” The unicorn nodded sadly, still looking over the ruins as she crossed her arms. Tifa looked over the remains again, remembering a cut off conversation at the revelation “‘not many of ours’ first choice’”

“Carousel Boutique” Rarity stated matter of factly, a fleeting pride emerging before dying with a sigh “A dream that ended with a rather rude awakening…”

“This is why you couldn’t stay,” Tifa stated, already knowing the answer.

“I just couldn’t stand seeing it anymore, knowing that all I worked for was worth nothing more than used up tinder” she waxed, kicking an old lump of charcoal “I’d be mad it was still here if Applejack didn’t tell me it was hiding an entrance to their little hideout.”

“How’d it happen?” Tifa asked carefully.

“A bomb” the former Turk answered a little too casually.

“A bomb?!” the brunette gaped back “Like the monster-”

“An Ink bomb” Rarity clarified “With an unfortunately faulty triggering device. She didn’t mean to destroy my home, just my work.”

“Who?”

“Another designer I had lent some rather dynamic fabric to during a contest” she answered, nary a flutter in her resigned tone.

“Wait, you helped this woman to possibly beat you and she repaided you by sending you an ink bomb?” Tifa marveled at the unicorn’s lack of anger “What a bitch!”

“She was out for herself, just like everyone else” the Turk returned with a disturbingly uninterested shrug “It’s just the way of things.”

Tifa stared at the horned woman, a lot finally clicking into place. She opened her mouth but Rarity beat her to it.

“Let’s go, I’ve had enough of this place” she abruptly turned to leave at a brisk pace. Tifa’s gaze shot between the rubble and unicorn before she jogged to catch up.

“Rarity-”

“I don’t want to talk about it Darling. I don’t even want to think about it anymore. I-...” she paused as if to look back before shaking her head with a tight eyed scowl “I don’t even know why I came out here.”

Tifa’s arms fell in defeat as her friend strode away, heels clacking aggressively with every step. Every attempt she made to talk on the way was back shot down before it could start. Eventually she let it go, following in step behind the Unicorn leading her back to the Inn. They quietly entered the room to find the party’s smallest member standing on her bed with her hooves up on one of the windowsills, bouncing anxiously as she stared out with worried eyes.

“Pinkie?” Rarity asked softly, the pony wheeling around as if surprised by the pair “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing. Nothing!” Sith repeated loudly enough to make Spike stir. She blushed and stuttered in a more hushed tone “I was just uh... worried about you two! It’s awfully late to be going out.”

The bipedal pair shared a look. They didn’t know Pinkie to lie but that was hardly convincing.

“Seriously Pinkie, what’s up?” Tifa pushed.

“Nothing, really! I’m just being silly” she smiled nervously “It really is late though, we should just try to get some sleep don’tcha think?”

Tifa stepped forward undeterred but Rarity just huffed and moved to her bed, grumbling a defeated ‘whatever’ under her breath. Pinkie seized the opportunity to dart under her sheets as well. The brunette gawked as she looked back and forth between the uncaring Rarity and the hiding equine. She looked to Spike to still find him asleep and while she couldn’t tell if Fluttershy was awake, she knew better than to expect any support from her in this. She slumped and placed her head in her hands.

‘I’m really not great at this whole friend thing’

‘Maybe tomorrow will be better...’

She picked her head up and turned to her bed when a sudden chill ran up her spine.

She was being watched.

She turned to the window, where she could have sworn she had felt a pair of eyes drilling into her back. She leaned in close to the closed glass, searching the area but seeing nothing. Frowning, she stood and closed the curtains before returning to bed, trying to shake the sudden uneasiness.

It was some time before she finally fell asleep.

The door slammed open with a bang, jolting the brunette out of bed with a start. An anxious Applejack strode into the room and straight to the window, ignoring the large handgun Fluttershy was lowering with an irritated glare.

“We’ve got a problem” she informed them, peering out through the slit in the curtain as the party roused themselves “Ah don’t know how but Shinra’s found out about the materia.”

“What? But-” Rarity began before concluding “We didn’t-”

“Ah know, that ain’t wut Ah’m saying” AJ interrupted, casting them a glance “We know ya didn’t make any calls.”

“How?” Rarity asked, only for Tifa to answer.

“They were watching us” she said without accusation, remembering Big Mac finding her last night.

“That and Flint has a jammer downstairs” the farmgirl added abashedly, glancing apologetically between the group “We turned it on after y’all went ta bed.”

“But how could they have known we would've brought it here?” Spike asked.

“They don’t, they know about the one at the reactor” Applejack explained before a faint but distinct buzzing filled the air.

“That’s an airship” Rarity stated.

“Not jus’ any airship, the president’s airship” she stepped aside to let them see the distant craft “They’re not letting this one slip through their hands.”

“Can we beat them to it?” Tifa offered, to which AJ shook her head.

“Wouldn’t do us any good if we did. We still can’t get it out of the dang pod” she sighed “I ain’t here so we can stop this, we can’t. We lost this one… be we ain’t lost you. Like Ah said, they know about the reactor materia but they got no idea ‘bout the one y’all brought us or that you lot are here. The gang’s clearing us a route to the mansion. We’ll hide out in the caves till this blows over and see what we can do from there.”

“So we just have to let them have it then” Tifa lamented. AJ Shrugged.

“Can’t win ‘em all Sugarcube. It’s a damn shame but at least it won’t do them any good without someone that can use the thing.” She returned, Rarity chiming in next.

“It’s more than possible that there are more potential bearers out there.”

“How many y’all find?” the cowgirl asked.

“Just us so far as I know” Rarity smiled.

“Then we work with wut we got” she returned encouragingly.

“Shouldn’t we be going then?” Spike added anxiously.

“Not until we get the signal. There’s already troops securing the town for the president’s arrival” she explained “Sorry, we didn’t even know ‘till they had already started. Don’t worry none though, there’s more than one way in ta the caves and if nothin’ else we can jus’ hunker down here; Flint’s got our backs.”

The group nodded and began the agonizing wait. The minutes stretched on as the buzzing grew to a low roar. They could see troops gathering in the square by the town’s main entry and Mayor Mare fussing among them as she prepared for the Shinra matron. Applejack’s boot heel started to bounce impatiently before she moved back to the window. She squinted at the airship now just slowing to a hover outside the town’s borders, scowling as the gusts it kicked up whipped through the orchard’s distant trees.

“Gonna be some sour ethers this season” she grumbled. The troopers she could see stood to attention suddenly, their rigid posture all the signal the apple farmer needed “Plan B it is. Hunker down everyone, the president’s here.”

Rarity and Spike saddled up behind Applejack, peering past to the square as Tifa and Fluttershy peeked through the other window’s cover. A thin sheer blurred their vision some but would keep anyone seeing any more than a shadow from outside. Tifa held her breath as a squad of Troopers wearing distinct red sashes marched into town, rifles on their shoulders.

“Elites, figured as much” the cowgirl muttered before the unmistakable figure walked into view, towering over her entourage “And there she is. Too bad she’s so blind ta wut she’s actually doin’. She don’t seem like a bad sort really…”

Considering all Tifa had seen she doubted Celestia was completely ignorant of her company’s sins. Still, she never got the impression of any malice when it came to the president and either way there were still good people at Shinra. As a matter of fact she caught sight of one of them hurrying after the president not a moment later.

“It’s Twilight” Tifa pointed out the familiar unicorn. The sheepish treasurer looked around square nervously as Celestia shook the excited Mayor’s hand with a warm smile. A first class SOLDIER stepped up next to the bespectacled woman before giving her an affectionate nudge. It took the brunette a moment to recognize him as the ‘boss’ from Gilda’s group at the saucer “Hey, I know that guy.”

“That’s Twilight’s brother” Rarity answered, eyes glued to the gathering group “And one of the best SOLDIER Shinra has ever had. And if he’s here then- yeah, there’s Gilda... and a handful of Third Classes as well”

“Ya sure ya didn’t tell ‘em Ah was AVALANCHE before y’all left?” AJ mussed with dark humor “Cause that’s an awful lot of security ta bring to a small farm’n town, materia or not.”

“They’ve only got one other Element stand-in, they must be getting desperate” Rarity offered “I don’t see any Turks at least, not even the Director.”

A small comfort indeed when half a dozen SOLDIER and a virtual platoon of troopers were little more than a pane of glass away. Tifa’s heart sank just a little more at the sight of even more marching up behind the president’s group, surrounding a grey skinned woman with a distressing familiar nap of sickly green hai-

‘OH SHIT!’

A solid thud pounded into the wood as the boxum woman pounced on the red ribbon trying to fly out the door. A furious, muffled scream tried to escape the gloved hand clasped over the thrashing pegasus’s mouth. Tifa blanched as she was lifted into the air, her weight not matching the strength she was barely holding the enraged gunner with. The pair hit the ground again as another weight landed on top of them, Spike’s smooth scales scraping Tifa’s back as he and Rarity joined the pile as well. Another would be screech strained against the leather before Applejack swept down to crouch before the group. She flinched at the intense glare the thestral leveled her way but stood her ground and returned one of her own.

“Now Ah know that butcher out there is a right proper monster and whatevers got you this miffed is clearly personal but y’all told Moon ya wouldn’t miss yer shot, and Sugar Cube, This-Ain’t-Yer-Shot” more suppressed curses were ignored as the apple farmer kept course “Ah don’t care how tough ya think ya are, that’s an army out there and whether you miss or not they Will take you down. Ya get that?! You screw this up you won’t get another shot. Now you wanna take yer chance with an army in the way or wait till you know you’ll hit?”

A vicious growl ripped from Fluttershy’s thoat, her eyes virtually burning into Applejack. Slowly though, very gradually did the resistance ebb. The pegasus’s breaths came in long, ragged heaves but were less eratic than before. Finally, she stopped fighting, allowing her tense muscles to relax slightly and remained still as the party cautiously let her go. With slow, trembling and very deliberate movements the gunner picked herself off the ground. The party cringed as a brief glower was leveled at them before returning to the farmgirl.

“The FIRST real opening there is at all-”

“We’ll be sure you’ll know” Applejack finished for her “I’m sure Moon’ will even buy ya drink if ya make it hurt-”

“More than she could ever dream.”

“She’ll be happy ta hear it. Jus’ keep it holstered till then, ‘kay?” AJ asked, taking Fluttershy rolling her neck as the best confirmation she was going to get. The group released a collected breath, trying to recover before a buzz issued from the farmer’s pocket. She quickly snatched the phone and read the screen “We’ve got a clear path. Let’s move before we lose it.”

The group moved out as quickly as they dared to, desperately hoping they were choosing the right balance between speed and stealth. A young woman met them outside the back door, waving them down the alley as she kept watch. An older man stood leaning against a wall not much further on, directing the farmer with a nod as they passed. A small hope presumed to flare in Tifa’s heart before their sixth sentry suddenly motioned for them to stop before an open stretch of road.

“Come on Twily! What’s got you so nervous? There’s nothing to worry about in a cute little place like this'' a familiar voice reached Tifa’s ears. She risked a peek around the corner to see the first class brush a hand through his long, spikey mess of blue hair as he walked with his sister.

Right next to where they needed to pass.

“I just… have a weird feeling is all” Twilight answered awkwardly, tapping rapidly at her tablet. A pale hand suddenly shot out to grab hers, drawing her attention up to her brother smiling assuredly at her.

“Come on, the President said to take it easy until we head to the reactor.” Twilight looked like she was about to argue, her eyes returning back down to her tablet when her expression went blank. Her gaze grew distant, darting about slightly as she seemed to process something. Then, as suddenly as she paused, she snapped back up with a bright smile.

“You know what? You’re right.” She stepped to her brother's side and took his arm, guiding him back the way they came “That little cafe near the town hall looked nice, let’s get some coffee.”

As soon as the pair left eyesight the sentry waved them over. They practically sprinted past the open space despite the threat now gone, pausing to decompress once safe.

“Helping us without even knowing…” Tifa lightly panted “Thanks again ‘Twily’”

“Moon always said she was one of the good ones,” Applejack added. If she was going to say more however, she never got the chance.

An explosion suddenly erupted near the town square.

“Wut in the goddamn?!” the apple farmer exclaimed before catching a stumbling Rarity. Alarm bells filled the town as panicked screaming joined them.

“The girls” the unicorn gasped, terrified.

“Fluttershy!” Tifa called out to the now missing pegasus. She looked back to the group, speaking without a doubt “She’s going after Hojo.”

“Damnit… Lily, lead them the rest of the way” Applejack told the sentry before meeting Rarity’s gaze with a confident smile “Don’t worry Sugar Cube, the girls were still at farm. Even if we didn’t have a bunker, Granny and Big Mac wouldn’t let nothin’ happen to those three. Bet my life on it.”

Rarity returned a nod, obviously still worried but accepted the assurance. The Apple turned then to the pugilist.

“I’ll go get yer ‘Not Fluttershy’.”

“By yourself?!” Tifa yelled after the woman now running toward the commotion.

“I ain’t the one who’s wanted here!” she shouted without turning back.

“Come on” the girl AJ had called Lily urged them on.

Tifa gave a last fleeting glance back before following.

The two halves of the next grinning fireball to streak into the town square split in half before it had a chance to explode while a twisted, dark hound pounced only to find itself impaled on the end of a blade. Not many fighters could hope to make such masterful use of the standard issue SOLDIER sword as the figure standing between the Shinra entourage and the horde of monsters that abruptly appeared.

Shining Armor was no ordinary fighter though.

The first class scowled as the beast on his blade dispersed into a shadowy mist. Monsters left corpses and he knew pyreflies didn’t look like that. Someone was summoning these things. The conclusion did little good as more poured into the square though. He cut down another pair before calling to the gathered troopers.

“Squad A, get these people inside! The rest of you, find the president! We can handle things here!” She had her elite guard and Shining knew better than to doubt the power of an Alicorn, but he still knew their duty. The knowledge of the first two things was what let him be okay with not going himself. As the non-combatants fled however, one stayed behind “Professor! Go with the others!”

“I’ve never seen creatures quite like these before… some sort of corrupted fiend perhaps?” Chrysalis mused absently in her flanged voice, ignoring the order completely. The changeling gave a bored sneer as another hound was sliced apart by the winged second class's dual blades right next to her, much closer than the scientist appreciated “Do try harder to keep these things away from me.”

“Oh yes, because it’d be such a shame to lose you.” Gilda spat back. The professor simply returned a flat stare before lazily glancing to a flock of razor toothed buzzards now dive bombing the SOLDIER. A series of flourishes left little more than feathers as the Gryphon glared back again “You ain’t the target here Doc.”

The changeling’s sickly green shield abruptly burst to life as a bullet impacted above what would have been right between her eyes.

“HOJO!”

A mild surprise swiftly slipped into a triumphant smirk aimed at the second class.

“You were saying?”

A flurry of shots rang out before a blur of crimson sped toward the scientist. Chrysalis’s passive gaze swept towards the smear before it was intercepted by the first class standing by. Sparks flew as his sword crashed against a thestral looking woman’s clawed gauntlet. The butt of a handgun crashed against his face before the pegasus snapped off another pair of shots and leapt away. Sharp pings echoed through the square as the second class deflected the attack.

“Hojooooo…” the shooter snarled, her loathing gaze unwavering from the jagged horned woman despite the two augmented fighters between the pair. A bemused smile creased the changeling’s features and she found herself leaning in, head tilted curiously.

“...Have we met?”

Fluttershy exploded forward with a furious wail before being blasted back in a burst of flame. She tumbled and launched into the air only to be intercepted by Gilda, the SOLDIER’s twin blades swiping across her chest before kicking her back to the cobblestones. The pegasus braced against the following dive when a hound collided with her opponent midair. With barely a thought, the altered pegasus seized the scant window with a desperate hope as she upholstered her trooper rifle to fire blindly at the first class as she circled to the round the opposite side of the professor. Her new handgun hammered into the shimmering barrier while her pursuer tried to close.

With her second to last round, the shield cracked. A cold and bitter satisfaction filled the markswoman as she witnessed a spark of genuine concern find the changeling’s expression when their eyes met. A deafening boom filled the courtyard...

And a heavy rifle round tore through Fluttershy’s shoulder, her own shot going wide as she faltered back. She barely managed to knock Shining’s blade away before another bullet grazed her cheek. She launched herself away with a flap of her wings before a third round tore through the left appendage. Sorrow threatened to consume the gunner as more hounds and buzzards filled the square with the former seeming to now focus on only the pegasus. Some even charging right past the vulnerable scientist to pursue her.

A final, pained scream escaped the woman before the red blur of her cloak retreated deeper into the town.

A dark coated figure chuckled from her rooftop and followed with her rifle.

Tifa panted as they ran after their guide, dodging the stinger of another oversized bug leaping out from behind a corner. A ball of fire met it midair, leaving it to fall behind them in a lump of green flame. Unfortunately it wasn’t the only flaming ball to fly near them: a bright streak swept between Lily and the party before the monster’s eternal smile swelled and detonated.

“Lily! LILY!” Tifa heard Rarity yelling as she pushed herself off the ground. A high pile of rubble that was once a house blocked their way forward and any sight of the resistance fighter. A thankfully much smaller flash went off to her side as Pinkie leapt into the arms of her robotic mog.

“Hup-Hup Moggy” she breathed before she was hurled skyward. Her gaze searched over the debris before falling back to Gaia. She tapped her hoof rapidly on Moggy’s paw as soon as she landed and was launched up again. Again, she searched desperately before she was caught again “I can’t see her…”

Grim looks were exchanged before the rattle of a Shinra rifle sounded nearby, too close for their comfort. Tifa sighed before looking to the most well coiffed of the group.

“I don’t think being seen is the biggest risk anymore. You can lead us through town right?” Rarity didn’t respond immediately, a moment of hesitation before gave a nod.

“I can get us out of here” she immediately turned and ran down another alley. They had to dodge a flock of the buzzards Rarity called Zuus and were forced to fight their way through a pack of the shadow hounds but the resistance seemed to be thinning, the sound of fighting and panic becoming more distant. It was when their path started uphill and turned to dirt as the houses gave way to farmland that it dawned upon the brunette.

‘Shouldn’t it be getting louder as we get closer to the mountain’s base?’

‘Turn around’

Tifa glanced back and immediately ground to a halt. She could see the mansion from the incline they were on. Almost on the other side of town from them.

“Rarity! We’re going the wrong way!”

“No we’re not Darling” the former seamstress called back, still climbing the gentle incline “I said I was leading us out of here.”

“Fluttershy’s still back there! Your SISTER’S still back there!” the pugilist argued without following. The unicorn woman huffed and finally stopped to grimace back at the rest.

“Fluttershy already knew the risk of going after Hojo. Besides I seriously doubt she’d bother going back if it was one of us” her expression softened slightly “And I’m sure Sweetie Belle will be fine. The Apples are tough and connected to the bunker.”

“And what about AJ?! We’re just going to leave her with no idea what happened to us!? What if she gets back to the bunker just to head back into that mess to try and find us?!”

“She’ll be fine! Now come on, we don’t have time for this.”

“No!” Tifa stood her ground. Rarity’s grimace returned.

“This is just the way things-”

“NO!”

The group was literally taken back a step as the martial artist’s scream cut the seamstress off.

“No more screwing over allies! No more firing into crowds! No more leaving friends behind! I’m sick of this survival at all costs Bullshit Rarity!” the brunnette raved at the woman “I get that you were fucked over in the past but things can’t keep going down like this! We eventually have to trust someone! Rely on someone!”

Noone dared interrupt. Pinkie and Spike were caught glancing nervously between Tifa and Rarity as the latter was stunned into a gawking silence.

“I mean how long will it be until we’re the ones you’re leaving behind to save your ass?! For fuck’s sake Rares, you’re supposed to be the Element of Generosity!” Tifa slumped forward with a heavy sigh. She rubbed her eyes before straightening and regarding the horned woman again. When she spoke, all the anger had left her voice. All that was left was disappointment.

“You could’ve fooled me…”

Without another word, the pugilist turned and ran back toward the town. Rarity fell to her knees, lost as she watched her go. Pinkie and Spike gave the unicorn a brief, apologetic look before following, leaving her alone on the hill.

An entire pack of hounds vanished in a blinding flash, the towering alicorn glaring at the shadowy wisps that were their remains. She stepped forward and a beam of light from her horn sliced through the air, cutting down a trio of reptilian flyers. A fresh pack of the corrupted wolves materialized at the opposite end of the street before charging her. She needed to find who was summoning these beasts.

One street over a buxom woman charged ahead when a streak of black crashed into the cobblestones right in front of her. Tossed back by the impact, Tifa quickly scrambled to her feet to see a tall man in a long dark coat rising from the miniature crater. His hand rose from his side covered in a dark mist.

“Well well well, if it isn’t the broken girl” he smirked, his magic encased hand flaring before a trio of the twisted hounds formed behind him.

“Tiffy!” a shout sounded from behind her, Pinkie and Spike running up the road. The pony pulled out her megaphone with its materia glowing brightly when a mass of shadow erupted between the martial artist and her allies, so many of the dark summons appearing she couldn’t see the pair through them.

“No interlopers!” the pegasus with swept back silver hair yelled. The mist dissipated from his hand before he raised both to bear, the prongs of an electrified gauntlet snapping into place as his smile grew “I hear you use a dead style… show me.”

Tifa smelled ozone as the gauntlet passed inches from her face, dodging barely in time while her hair rose with the static. The same unfortunately couldn’t be said of the man’s follow up. His formerly mist covered fist slammed into her cheek and sent her sprawling. She rolled to her back to see him leaping after her, lightning gauntlet raised. She thrust out her hand covered in a darkness of her own, the materia on her glove glowing brightly..

The pegasus brawler’s face turned to a scowl as he cast a shell spell between him and his prey, as if disappointed in her use of magic. The expression turned to surprise though as the darkness on Tifa’s hand flared and he found himself dragged back the way he came. A crushing pressure found him as the black ball pulling him back touched his wings. He turned the defensive spell and threw it into the demi spell before righting himself with a flap. Until a steel grip clamped onto his ankle that is.

The road was dented again as he met it at great speed. He twisted in her grip and cast a current of lightning, amplified by his weapon, into his captor. Tifa winced as the shock ripped through her, burning her from the inside even with her protective bangle. Her grip held though, whether from personal effort or the seizing of her muscles she wasn’t sure, but she pushed through the pain and spun in place, hurling her opponent through a nearby wagon. A low groan followed as the figure stirred beneath the broken planks.

A geyser of red and green flame burned an opening in the swarm of hounds long enough for the quadrupedal pair to break through. Cutting through a side yard, the group retreated a street over before halting from the sound of steel on stone. Blazing into view was the graceful form of the president herself, leaping back from the sword of a female pegasus dressed much like the one they just left behind. The flyer lunged again with her double bladed katana when a flash of light preceded the clash of metal on metal.

The alicorn now stood with an ivory and gold gilded sword as tall as Tifa and perhaps even more wide. The massive blade was spun easily around in the president's hands before a second sword was extracted from the central mass in a flourish of its mechanisms.

‘Oh holy shit...’ the unsuppressable image of spikey blonde hair over blue eyes glowing an eerie green filled the brunette’s mind.

“NOPE!” all three declared before turning and fleeing back the way they came. Lightning fist had to be better than fighting THAT.

“You’re the one summoning these monsters!” Celestia spat at the winged woman playing with her short, silver-blue hair.

“Well, one of three” she returned smugly and spun back into the attack. Her blade stopped dead against the impossible mass of Celestia's main blade before the other forced her back once again.

“You would go this far, hurt all these innocents just to try to assassinate me!?” a fury burned behind the alicorn woman’s gaze. The pegasus’s eyes flew wide as a hand rose to her chest.

“Assassinate?!” she gasped dramatically “ Oh no no no Auntie, I would never try to kill you!”

“What?!” Celestia’s breath caught in her throat.

“Not when Mother is so looking forward to it herself...” the dark coated female grinned maliciously and charged. Her determination was rewarded as Celestia’s shock allowed her to slip past the alicorn’s defences. Blood stained the cleanly sliced fabric of the president’s top, two new shallow lines of red bordering the collar bone beneath.

A sudden burst of ice exploded against the pegasus’s side, launching her away from the CEO before a follow up was landed.

“Madam President!” two third class SOLDIER sprinted towards their leader with a squad of sash wearing troopers in tow. The squad opened fire on the female. She deflected the wall of lead with apparent ease but glowered as she had to begrudgingly retreat from the gathered force.

“See you next time Auntie” she shot before taking to the air. The Shinra flyers present moved to pursue but couldn’t hope to match the silver haired girl’s speed. The far off blur banked and headed toward the town square, toward the sounds of more battle. Celestia cast a quick cure on her wound and led her troops toward the noise.

An increasingly tense worry building in the back of her mind.

The trio almost ran into a gathering of troopers overwatching the way to the square. They didn’t know if they would recognize them or even care with everything going on but better safe than sorry. They darted through a shopping district to nearly bump right into the giant man known as ‘Shoes’. His minigun hosed down monster after monster, preventing any threat getting past.

“AJ ran through a second ago with your friend, she wasn’t looking too good!” he shouted at them between bursts “That way! Follow the gatling fire that ain’t mine!”

They wasted no time save to give a quick thanks to the large gunner before heading out. Soon the rapid rattle of a smaller gun met them, not as big as the one they just left but too rapid to not be what they were looking for. They ran toward the shots when a heavier boom echoed over the constant reverberations.

They spotted the streak of another black coat dart between the rooftops of buildings surrounding a wide market space, avoiding suppressive fire while trying to return fire of her own. In the center of the scattered stalls was Applejack, her robot hand transformed into rotating barrels currently spitting death as she stood protectively over an unconscious Fluttershy. A pair of hounds pounced on the farmer from the shadows, distracting her long enough for the rifle toting pegasus to pause and level her shot.

“Tiffy!” Pinkie called from the closest market stall, a stand for homebrew liquor as told by the sign. The pony tossed a bottle to the buxom fighter while Spike hunched with flames dripping from his maw. She hurled the bottle as hard as she could at the riflewoman. She frowned as the glass shattered against her hip.

‘I was aiming for her head...’ she grumbled internally. The pegasus pouted at the wet distraction until the gout of green flame swept her way. She jumped back and into the air but failed to keep the hem of her coat from catching ablaze. She shot a glare at the celebrating trio and leveled her rifle, quickly ending their jubilation. A shimmer of flames flared across her gun and a flaming lance of her own streaked past her attackers.

Straight into a barrel at the back of the stall.

Celestia kept running even as her troops branched off to help the town militia member with the chain gun cover the road. She remained grounded to dispatch as many threats to the people as she could. The hounds were dwindling since the retreat of the silver haired pegasus, and the monsters didn’t have nearly the same means of reinforcement. The distant light of a flame dancing mid-air drew her attention. Two figures joined a third trying to put herself out before flying towards the mountain.

Her own wings spread and she braced before a market stall exploded to her right. She turned to see none other than Tifa Lockhart between her and the burning stall. The martial artist stood frozen, staring back at her with eyes full of fear as the flames silhouetted her form.

A blazing village

Night sky filled will acrid smoke

Red Brown Eyes meeting hers with surprise

The keen of a blade

The splatter of blood

“Sister…”

Celestia stumbled as the visions overtook her, mind reeling. The expression of the girl before her fell to confusion before giving a startled yelp as she was scooped up onto a Chocobo rushing through. The alicorn woman stared blankly, barely registering the purple hair of her former agent riding the bird and picking up another pair in the square. Her remaining troopers ran after the mount and the dragon glowing with a haste spell sprinting behind it.

She stayed where stood, simply watching as the overburdened mount turned a corner and out of sight. She could catch it if she took flight, but her body refused to react. She turned back to the burning stall, a look of pure incomprehension on her face as her eyes grew distant.

“But…” she struggled. The memory burned as bright as the sun and as clear as the day it brought, but she still couldn’t understand how it could be.

“You died…”

Author's Note

Long chapter is long...
Last one was longer than expected too, and that was after taking out a flashback of how Tifa met Zest! (Don't worry, I'll fit it in somewhere later :raritywink: )
Still two more chapters ready to go after a bit of editing! Get ready for some revelations :rainbowderp:

As always, Thanks for reading and Have a good one! :twilightsmile:

Chapter 12: Nibelheim

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Twilight Sparkle: Unicorn
Personalized Shinra Tablet Model Number 2163g ---- Shinra Alpha(Bangle) - Restore, Esuna
Other: Stain Resistant Lab Coat, Advanced Magical and Scientific Education, Glasses

Celestia: Alicorn
Fusion Sword- Ultima, Neo Bahamut, Seal, Long Range ---- Minerva Band- Alexander, Cover, W-Magic, Comet
Other: High Level Natural Magic, Centuries of Experience, Notable Playfulness

Twilight walked through the damaged town, searching for her boss. While it wasn’t unheard of for the president to disappear occasionally, usually to simply have a little fun, the bespectacled unicorn seriously doubted that was the case this time. Only a few others knew she was missing thankfully, most believing she was resting in her personal quarters on the airship. It had been over two days since the attack and all the monsters were gone, exterminated or driven off with Celestia working tirelessly the whole time. Few begrudged her for finally taking the chance to rest.

‘If only she was actually resting’ Twilight sighed. Shiny was directing troops and preparing to take a team up to the reactor. The professor was skulking about impatiently and being a general nuisance. The troopers were assisting the townsfolk in clean up and repairs wherever they could. All but one unaware their boss was currently AWOL.

She paused in her hunt as she considered. The stretch of road she was on looked nearly untouched, as did many other parts of town. It stuck her as odd how the attack was centered in only certain areas, along certain paths. She had been stuck inside and under guard with the rest of the Shinra non-combatants for the majority of the attack but she still managed to pick up enough to learn it was a targeted effort, even if there seemed to be more than one target.

The president being one was obvious, but whoever the other targets were was harder to narrow down. She considered they may have been after Rarity and the rest but if whoever was summoning the hounds was against Shinra, she would think they’d be at least indifferent to the fugitives. She also knew the professor was attacked but Shiny said that was likely someone else, raising even more questions.

An idea then came to her. It was overtly simple but it was worth a try. She made her way to one of the damaged streets and stopped, closed her eyes and focused. The tip of her horn glowed slightly as she reached out with her magic, sorting through the lingering energies saturating the area. It was an uncommon magic here in Equestria, and even during her time studying in Spira she didn’t encounter it as much as she expected, but it was just what she needed at the moment.

The remnants were stale and faint, not surprising after two days. She frowned as she prepared to move on when she caught a trace of what she was looking for, a more recent and recognizable signature. She smiled as she followed the latent magic; Celestia had been here, and more recently than the battle too, probably while helping in the aftermath. The path grew older, prompting her to follow it back the way she came until she gathered enough to be able to trace the owner’s aura proper. Granted, if Celestia didn’t want to be found then it was an easy thing to suppress, but she cast the tracking spell anyway…

And was pleasantly surprised to feel a strong reaction, the president’s path becoming all but obvious to her. She followed the signal all the way across Ponyville, right up to the base of the mountain to a sheer cliff face bordering part of the town. She blinked as she double checked her casting. The path ended abruptly, right at a rock wall. She frowned and tilted her head, looking around.

Noone else was around. She could see the town’s community center not far away, nestled in the shadow of the cliff. She considered the president may be there and recast the spell but the trail didn’t go anywhere near that direction; it still led right to the solid stone. She stepped forward and ran a hand along the rough surface and even gave it a solid knock.

“Ow…” She mumbled and looked at her knuckles. They didn’t really hurt but it left little doubt it was solid. She cast the spell yet again and poured more mana than was necessary into it in her frustration- “Wait.”

She felt something, a fluctuation. It wasn’t in her spell, it was… right in front of her. She placed her on the rock again and focused.

‘It’s a glamor!’ she marveled. While again uncommon in Equestria it wasn’t unheard of, but that wasn’t what put her in awe. It was a permanent glamor, and one that affected all senses ‘This is old magic! Something Equestria hasn’t seen in centuries!’

Well, ancient secrets or not she wasn’t about to let a spell stand in her way. She concentrated on the fluctuations before her, probing the matrix holding the glamor together. It was even more sophisticated than she at first believed; even she may not be able to dispel it. Then again, she didn’t have to. Glamors allowed passage when you knew how to use them. She just had to find the key.

A few moments later she opened her eyes with a triumphant smirk and pressed on the spell. Her hand seemed to sink though the stone as she stepped forward, sliding gradually through the illusion until she found herself in a remarkably well lit tunnel. She made her way forward and up a flight of stone steps covered in a light overgrowth. Nobody had been through here in a long time.

No, that wasn’t quite right. Someone had been through here, the first in ages with her the close second. She continued along the only path open to her until she spotted a room up ahead. Inching forward she soon found herself in the doorway of a long room bordered with black marble polished to a mirror sheen, untouched by the passage of time. At the end of the long room was an opening overlooking the town below, the thin veil of another glamor hiding the secret retreat from the outside.

Standing just before her, staring at the stone, was Celestia. As Twilight looked closer she could see something etched all the surface of the marble in lines. Names. There had to be dozens of them across the whole of the wall.

“A memorial” she breathed. It was barely a whisper but the alicorn woman’s head shot up, surprise clear on her freautes as she spotted the treasurer in the polished stone’s mirrored surface. Worry creased Twilight’s brow as she locked eyes with the president’s reflection. A voice in her head screamed at her to run. She nearly did… until the alicorn gave her a warm smile.

“You always were very clever Twilight” she stated kindly “Were I still taking personal students, you’d be at the top of the list.”

“You were a teacher?” the unicorn blurted out, eliciting a small chuckle from the taller woman.

“Once upon a time…” she answered with a hint of melancholy before returning her attention to the names in front of her. Twilight, more confident she wasn’t trespassing, stepped up next to her employer. Celestia’s smile had faded, her face now presenting a sad regret as she studied the names. Or rather, one name in particular.

“Tifa L-... Lockhart?” Twilight read aloud, fumbling as it struck her. Her brow furrowed as she took in what she was seeing and looked over the names again “Wait… What? I don’t understand. What is all this?”

“You were right the first time Twilight: This is a memorial” Celestia confirmed before gesturing to the room as a whole “A remembrance to lives lost during the tragedy of Nibelheim… despite so few having ever seen it that is…”

“Nibelheim?” the treasurer parroted “But why would it be here? And why is it hidden?”

“The answer to the second is… complicated. But essentially, it was to cover up a mistake. Whether that mistake should have been covered up or not, well… it seemed like the right course of action at the time. Now though?” she pondered sadly “I wonder… not that I can undo any of it...”

“But… everyone one knows the reactor went critical,” Twilight argued “That's why mako extraction wasn’t tried again until technology could reach the level needed to process it correctly. Unless-”

“The reactor did go critical, just not for the reason history says” Celestia finished for her “You’re still right however; We were not ready… for so much.”

“But again, why is this here and not the ruins to the west?”

“That has a much simpler answer,” she looked to the natural window of stone “Where better to have a memorial then the site of the incident?”

“You don’t mean-”

“That’s right Twilight,” the president walked regally to the opening, hands clasped before her. She looked down over Ponyville, mind already distant in memory.

“Welcome to Nibelheim.”

200 years prior…

The alicorn awoke with a slight start when her carriage hit a bump. After rubbing the sand from her eyes she opened the curtain to see the new day had come, the morning sun illuminating the hills rolling gently past her transport. She leaned back into her seat, simply enjoying the mostly smooth ride the landscape offered. The same couldn’t be said about the whole trip out but it was thankfully less eventful than it could have been. They were making good time, which was a welcome surprise to precede what she was sure to be a truly momentous event.

‘To actually touch upon the Stream itself, even guide it to improve our lives...’ she was once more awed by the implications of The Harnesser. Even within her own long life they had still learned so little about the life blood of their world, the river of harmony that connected all life. Much was theorized, both in faith and study, but now they may just be able to finally know. And that was only the beginning.

Why, they may even be able to create their own materia! No more dangerous mining or risky refinement. Laborers would no longer fear mana sickness and materia jewelers wouldn’t have to fear making a single wrong cut and ruining the crystal… or worse. They wouldn’t have to roam treacherous landscapes in search of mana wells in hopes of finding viable materia growths either as any significant flow could possibly be used. It could create a whole new era of magic! Even if all they could manage was imparting a simple cure spell then it could still revolutionize medicine as they knew it.

‘Though the apothecaries may end up a little sour over it’ Celestia suppressed a small chuckle and shook the day dreams from her thoughts. She was getting ahead of herself again. Still, it was hard not to get excited about what they were trying to accomplish, or that she was finally working towards the good of Equestria as a whole again. The days of her rule were long past now, few even remembering her old title beyond the fairy tales.

No, the name Celestia didn’t hold the same weight anymore, especially compared to the days before Equestria moved past the era of kingdoms. Not that she had no reputation: Being the mysterious alicorn investor still garnered her some notoriety. But the time of Princess Celestia the Wise? Princess Celestia the Radiant? Celestia the Playful?

‘Well, I suppose that one is still true’ she smirked.

“We’re coming up to Nibelheim Ma’am” the carriage driver called out, pulling her from her mental wanderings. She leaned out the window to see the small hamlet in the distance, slowly growing closer. Further up towards the mountain’s peak she could see the faint lines of the site’s construction platforms. It might take a while to hike up there but she should have plenty of the day left to get a good look at the operation.

The vibrations that had been accompanying her throughout the long journey finally ebbed as the carriage eased to a stop next to some others lined outside the town gate. The alicorn woman climbed out of her wooden transport and stretched with what was a not-entirely-ladylike moan of content. If there was one silver lining of her now forgotten status (though there were actually a decent number more), it was that she no longer needed to constantly strive to present an infallible front for the sake of her people.

“Teacher!” a young woman’s voice reached her. She turned to spot a bright eyed unicorn girl running up with an even brighter smile “I’m so glad you made it in time! Did you have a safe trip?”

“There were a few encounters but nothing too troublesome” she returned with a smile “How are you Moonstone?”

“I am Fantastic!” the horned girl squealed and bounced on the balls of her feet “Because we’re Ready!”

“W-We are?” Celestia blinked at her beaming student “I thought we wouldn’t be ready for another month.”

“I know! But the Steam must have been closer to the surface than we thought, or maybe we just lucked on a flare but whatever the reason, we’ve already tapped it!” the girl explained at a rapid pace “And here you arrive as we’re packing up the igniting crystal and just in time for the activation-!”

“Calm yourself Moonstone!” Celestia interrupted with a cheerful laugh before her student sprained something “It would seem the fates have granted us most fortuitous luck indeed, though in that case I suggest you save some energy for the celebration.”

“Of course ma’am” the unicorn girl steadied herself with a deep breath “This certainly will be something to celebrate.”

Her student led her to the main entrance of the charming hamlet and into the quint town square. The space dominated by the small water tower was abuzz with activity, making the open area seem almost cramped compared to the last time she visited the village. A familiar face weaved its way through the workers loading carts as he made his way to them.

“Ms. Celestia! You can’t imagine how glad I was to hear you were arriving early!” the portly gentleman arrived in front of them, taking the taller woman’s hands into his own “None of this would have been possible without your support!”

“Hello Mayor, wonderful to see you again” she returned happily. “Moonstone just told me the good news.”

“Better than good my lady! Stupendous I’d say!” he declared, his bountiful mustache bobbing as he spoke “But come, come! We just finished packing that overlarge materia you sent and the men are gathering at the base of the mountain.”

Celestia took in the town’s newest additions as the mayor led the way, not that they were hard to miss. Copper wires hung suspended above their heads atop wooden poles as they weaved a web though the town, threaded into homes and connected to the cloudy balls of glass on metal stands that would be replacing the village’s sconces. A seemingly small thing but Celestia thought the humble fixtures more than fitting. What better way to start a new era than with a light to guide the way?

“You’ve accomplished so much since my last visit” the alicorn praised.

“Ah yes, we are very proud” the Mayor returned contently. They soon came to the edge of town, still alight with the morning sun as their guide waved down a man directing the others “Brian! Brian, over here! Ms. Celestia, this is Brian Lockhart and his daughter-”

“So I hear you alicorns live pretty long” the young woman in cowboy attire piped in with a smirk “You’re not the Princess from the old fairy tales are you?”

“Tifa” her father gave in a warning tone. Celestia for her part, merely smiled.

“I’m afraid not dear, I’m just named after her” she lied with practiced ease before turning to the brunette’s parent “It’s nice to meet you Brian, will you be leading us up today?”

“Yep!” Tifa announced with a grin before her dad saddled between them.

“Yes, I’LL be leading this group up” he clarified “She’ll be staying safe down here with her sensei.”

“Oh come on Dad!” the teenager protested “I can handle anything up there! I wanna see this thing turn on!”

“You’ll know it’s on when those bottles light up” he returned unmoved.

“There called bulbs Dad” Tifa huffed exasperated.

“Come on Tif” his tone softened as he squeezed his daughter’s shoulder “We’ve already got too many head’n up at once that I gotta keep track of, I don’t need to be worrying about you tumbling off too.”

“Okay…” the brunette relented begrudgingly. She gave the alicorn a halfhearted smile before making her way back into town “Nice to meet you Miss, thanks for giving the town all the money.”

Celestia gave a giggle as Brian sighed heavily.

“Sorry ‘bout that Miss” he offered “She’s a bit too headstrong for her own good sometimes.”

“Not at all Brian, she seems like a good kid” she returned warmly.

“Yeah, yeah she is…” he shrugged before straightening “Well, I suppose we shouldn’t keep the eggheads up top waiting too much longer. Come on men! Let’s get moving.”

“Have a safe trip you lot” the Mayor bid them adieu “We’ll all be waiting down here with baited breath.”

Celestia was prepared for the hike, having made it several times before. She did have to reign in a mild impatience caused by the care taken in transporting the igniting materia. Thankfully, she had more than enough practice in the act and knew it was far better to be safe than sorry in this case. Not only had the huge gem been quite the investment to obtain but the potential damage it could cause if mishandled warranted the extra cation. The last thing she wanted was for it to fall down a chasm and explode, triggering a rock slide toward the town.

They arrived at the Harnesser within a couple hours, the great pillar of iron and glass jutting from the rock from within the center of a wide metal disk leveling out the incline. It was a decidedly ugly piece of machinery with a particularly jury rigged appearance, but what it represented couldn’t be more beautiful to the pair of honed women taking in its form.

The shorter of those two stepped forward and began directing those that were already gathered and awaiting their arrival. Celestia stood back with the laborers, watching her student at work. This had been her project even more than Celestia’s, her near obsessive, single minded focus leading the way since her teacher approved it.

“Any trouble?” Brian’s concerned tone came from behind her. She tore her eyes away from the work to see the bandana-wearing man conversing with a couple of the tower’s guards.

“Not a peep since yesterday actually” one answered “And that was just a couple of Zuus flying past. They didn’t even swing around for another look.”

“Do the monsters really give you that much trouble here?” Celestia frowned. Brian shifted his feet before giving her a nod.

“We figured all the noise and vibrations would rile them up a bit, but they’ve been haggaring us particularly hard up here the past few weeks. Few even found their way near the town… we lost two before we upped the guard” he relayed with grim honestly. He then squinted up to the spire of metal “Sure hope this thing will be worth as much as you think it is.”

“I’m sorry about your losses” she returned with remorse but then looked to the tower with more resolve “But this will be the first step into a new world. It’ll be worth it.”

‘It has to be…’

The more scientifically and magically inclined workers continued to prepare, though the more physically oriented had to help when it came to lifting the heavy segments of the great disk the tower was situated in. The heavy wedges housed large, polished metal mirrors that were now aimed at the glass panels around the tip of the pillar. Just as Celestia helped lift the final wedge, Moonstone emerged from a hatch beneath it.

“Igniting crystal in place! Let’s get this baby harnessing!” She cheered, climbed up and led the group along a cluster of thick cabling connected to a set of panels set a safe distance from the machine. As she and a few others twisted knobs and cranked dials, the alicorn looked back to the Harnesser. The raised segments now made the spire look like a giant fork stuck into a huge metal pie missing every other slice, making it even more of an eyesore. Yet no one dared look anywhere else. “Okay! Activation in 3… 2… 1!”

Moonstone slammed down a comically large knife switch lever, flinching away from some unexpected sparks. Her expression grew tentative until a low hum began to fill the area. She rushed to her teacher’s side and began to bounce excitedly again. The hum rose in intensity as a dull, green hued light began enveloping the machine. It didn’t remain dull long and soon even Celestia had to squint before the radiance. A final, blinding flash forced all gathered to look away; the alicorn suspected even those down in Nibelheim had to shield themselves against the glare.

When the light faded, the sight that met them was a shining spire surrounded by half a dozen beams feeding into the panels from the mirrors.

A scream of pure delight sounded next to her as her student literally jumped for joy. The young unicorn pounced on the alicorn with a tight hug, which she happily returned without a care at all about the lack of decorum. The gathered townspeople joined the revelry with hoots, hollers and applause all around. The pair extracted from each other enough to take in the sight again with proud smiles.

“Huh” Brian muttered next to them, genuinely impressed “Well, whether you changed the world or not, that’s still a hell of a sight.”

‘It sure is…’

Celestia’s predictions of their celebrations ended up not being ambitious enough. The entire town was filled with music and jubilation. Everyone was eating, drinking, dancing and laughing beneath the shining moon and the glow of the freshly powered electric lights. The alicorn herself was smiling as she watched Moonstone dancing in the square when Nibelheim’s portly leader offered her a hand. With a bright grin she rose and joined him amongst the rest, laughing heartily as he led her in a swinging waltz.

“Ah, Ms.Celestia!” he exclaimed through the music “Your and your student’s names will be remembered for eons with this! I dare say even beyond your long life!”

“And Nibelheim with them!” she shouted back. The music eventually ended, the band taking a small break before continuing. The mayor layed a gentle kiss upon her hand as he bowed at the end of her dance. She darted in and planted a peck on his cheek before leaving the blushing, chuckling Mayor to make her way to her student. The girl spun with an open mouth smile before spotting her teacher, somehow having it grow even wider. She took a heavy, panting breath.

Celestia never heard what she was going to say though, the words dieing in her throat as a massive tremor ripped through the town. The townsfolk fell to the ground as their entire village quaked beneath them. A horrific whine filled the air, drawing all attention to the tower half way up the peak where immense bolts of green lightning arced across the slopes as the harsh light strobed.

A second, far more terrible flash then filled Celestia’s vision, granting barely an instant for her to react.

“TEACHER!” echoed unheard as the flash collided with an enormous golden barrier, shattering it in an instant and overwhelming the consciousness of its caster.

An acrid smell tinged the edges of Celestia’s senses, slowly drawing her out of the dreamless dark. She could taste blood and feel a dried trail of it from her nose. She attempted to stir only to be met with an intense pain flaring in her head. Nevertheless she pushed on, groggily rolling up onto her knees and opening her eyes.

She almost wished she hadn’t.

The entire village was ablaze. Nearly every house she could see was covered in flames. She looked up to where the harnesser once stood and gawked at the sight, her heart skipping a beat. The whole mountain face was twisted and charred, the glimmer of darkened glass reflecting the light still emanating from the crater now at its center. Great ribbons of white and green reached toward the moon hanging low in the sky as tendrils of pure black spread through them.

‘Oh dear Minerva, what have we done?!’ she lamented. She forced herself to her feet, fighting off the persistent pain and dizziness to begin searching. Bodies surrounded her on all sides, none of them moving. She didn’t understand; if the town was still here then she stopped the explosion from reaching them. If there was falling debris then there should be craters. She began walking, and then running as she searched for anyone left alive. The more ground she covered, the more frantic she became ‘Please, someone! Anyone! SOMEONE has to still be alive!’

She turned a corner and froze.

“No” she whispered desperately, stumbling forward and falling to her knees.

“Noooooo…” she moaned weakly, staring down at the unmoving form of her student. Gently lifting it up, she cradled the girl’s body to her chest and began to rock back and forth. Tears streamed down her face as choked, haggard sobs ripped themselves from her throat. “I’m so sorry...”

She looked down to Moonstone’s face, brushing a lock of hair away. The shadow of a worried distress still lingered on her features, disturbing what should have been a peaceful and far off final rest. She inspected the rest of her student’s body and gasped at the wound across her chest; A deep gash running from collar to hip glistening a dark red.

‘But… this looks like it was caused by a weapon!’ her mind reeled ‘Who-’

“Dad! Daddy!” Celestia’s eyes flew wide and her head snapped up, a sorrowful hope raising in her breast. Someone was still alive! She remorsefully set her student back down upon the stone and sprinted toward the calls. Charging straight through the crumbling remains of one of the burning homes, she emerged onto the next street in a burst of embers and fire.

The world seemed to slow to a crawl as the frightened brunette turned toward the former monarch. She met her with wide, red-brown eyes as she was silhouetted by the flames behind her. Before the alicorn could react, there was a flash of metal and the sharp keen of a blade filled the air. She felt a warm splatter across her face as the teenager’s bright eyes glazed over and she fell limp to the ground at her feet.

“Sister…” Celestia’s blood turned to ice. She began to tremble as her gaze rose from the teenager before her to the woman standing across the road. She matched her in height and shared in having both wings and a horn. “It has been Far too long…”

“Luna” a shaky gasp slipped past the paler alicorn’s lips as she stared in disbelief “How?”

“How?” the nightmare purred, slitted pupils sitting in irises glowing a sickly green sparkled with sadistic humor “Why, you set us free of course… meddling in the flow of the stream, draining the lifeblood of the planet to light up some baubles… really sister, We’d expect you of all people to know better.”

“Lifeblood?!” she repeated. She shook her head “No! No, we were just-”

“Using the planet as a battery, yes. And we are so pleased you did” she smiled with a disturbing smugness “Here we thought to be trapped forever, eternally waiting for the end of it all, sealed helplessly away by harmony. Yet here you and your little pebble go and wound the planet. A mere pin prick of a thing perhaps but even the smallest of cracks can grow. You destabilized the Stream just enough for us to fit a wedge, and pave the way for our return... We cannot thank you enough.”

A blaze of solar flame ignited as Celestia leapt back, a massive, solid slab of gold gilded steel appearing in her hands.

“You will not leave this place alive!” the older alicorn declared, readying her immense sword. The twisted image of her sibling threw her head back and laughed.

“Calm yourself Sister” the corrupted alicorn hummed. She lifted her impossibly long katana, admiring it as she ran her fingers across its length “Our time is nearly done here… for now.”

“Your time?!” Celestia snarled “Your time slaughtering innocents?!”

“Oh these meaningless dregs? A pitiful bunch, hardly sporting” she waved off before shooting her sibling another cruel smile “Just a small gift of despair, but a taste of things to come. But don’t worry, you’ll have a while to prepare whatever pitiful plan you’ll come up with now that the Elements are gone; do try to make it at least entertaining. But yes, it will take time to come back ourselves.”

“Yoursel-” Celestia parroted until wisps of green began to rise around Luna’s image “Just a shade… all this-You’re-”

“A mere shadow. A simple puppet to deliver a gift” Nightmare’s image purred again before the wisps of the stream began to dissolve the illusion “We are so glad we had the chance to talk with you again Tia, so sad to have to wait so long again before the next… but at least we had the pleasure of meeting your newest student.”

Celestia charged with an anguished, furious wail, bringing her heavy blade down on the smirking shade. The ground split as the sword crashed to Gaia, little left of the illusion but fading smoke. She fell to knees, clutching the blade for support as more tears rained to the dirt...

The laughter still echoing in her mind.

Present...

“I searched among the rubble for days, but there were no survivors. The town was reduced to ash and the mountainside little more than glass” Celestia delivered, her low, regretful tone barely wavering “I buried the bodies and used my connections to cover up any hint of what really happened. I knew I couldn’t make people forget the town, but with travel and communication not even a fraction what they are today, it wasn’t too hard to make everyone think it was just a little further along the range…”

Twilight stood in stunned silence, not even thinking to interrupt. As the tale finally came to a close, she found herself teetering in place and nearly collapsed. She would have had the president not caught her. After she was raised back to her feet and stabilized by the alicorn, she finally found her voice.

“Nightmare Moon… The Mistress in the…” she fumbled, eyes searching and distant “I always thought it was just a myth. A scary story for kids to tell eachother.”

“That was the intent” Celestia stated plainly.

“But why? Why cover it up? Why go to the extent to build fake ruins just to still admit to the reactor failure?” Twilight pleaded for answers. Celestia sighed.

“Because a failure people will accept. A tragic mistake is just that, a tragedy. A regrettable event but nothing more. But an ancient evil returning to slaughter a town? A malevolent force corrupting the very Stream of Harmony itself and threatening all life?” She mused rhetorically “That’s reason to fear, to panic… and to exploit.”

“Exploit?” Twilight repeated.

“I fear not all believed my sister was a myth. Even now there are cults that worship the name Nightmare Moon. I suspect those that attacked the town to be among them. At least, I hope that is the extent of their connection to her. Given their abilities though…” she trailed off for a moment before continuing “Even without the cults, there are still souls that would fall to the temptation of her power, her gifts. They could sow panic, even wound the planet again to hasten her return should they ever learn what enabled it.”

“That’s why we’re gathering the Huge Materia! That’s why we need Bearers! Because-” the realization hit the treasurer all at once. Her face grew pale, her next words coming in a terrified whisper “Because she’s coming back…”

The president put a comforting hand on the unicorn girl’s arm, looking regretfully into the frightened eyes staring back at her.

“I’m afraid so.”

“...W-when?” she stuttered.

“Soon… that’s all we know” the alicorn lamented, head dropping as she turned away again. Twilight closed her eyes, hoping to find this was all just a bad dream when she opened them. That was of course not the case as they opened to the president once more looking over the town.

“Ponyville. None of them have any idea, do they?” she asked, seeing Celestia shake her head out the corner of her eye.

“The Apples and Pears only resettled the land about 70 years ago, finding it perfect for mana crops. Not that they know the Stream surges closer to the surface here in an attempt to heal the damage caused by my sister” she explained, though then gained a rather comically disgruntled look immediately after “Not that the knowledge stopped Shinra from building another reactor here. He was a brilliant young man but certainly not always the wisest… arrogant little twerp.”

A snort abruptly escaped the unicorn, completely catching her off guard and earning a small smile from the president. Twilight fought off the laughter, finding she very much needed the reminder that such things still existed.

“History does say he was quite the character” she added in regard to the company's first president, though it wasn’t long before her smile faded again “Though to think he’d build another reactor, to build ANY reactors if he really did know what happened.”

“You understand better than most how much we consider the effect they have on the Stream now Twilight. We made a lot of progress over that century and then under Shinra’s talented leadership.” the former Princess countered “We make triple sure and then quadruple sure again we aren’t actually depleting the Stream, or ‘confusing’ it anymore than necessary. We even built the Shinra Mansion to house a hidden monitoring lab beneath the mountain. This land is stable again, if overly active. Though yes, had I found out about the reactor here before it was already finished I would have stopped it…”

"And the mountain? Everything is still dead and, as I understand it, there monsters are quite vicious even when not assaulting the town.”

“I fear some scars never fade, even long after the wound is healed” she returned somberly. Twilight nodded, thinking over all she had learned.

It made sense, hiding this big of a secret. She didn’t like it but she understood it. She could only imagine what certain members of the board would do if they got wind of the truth or, Minerva help them, Chrysalis Hojo… Still, did it justify all that the president tolerated to prepare? Was it worth enabling people like the professor or betraying people like Rarity and Tifa? At that thought, another realization stuck her.

“Tifa…” she muttered, looking back to the wall of names.

“Ah yes,” Celetia returned to the name she had been studying so intently before the treasurer arrived “The mystery that brought me back to this place after so long.”

“Could it just be a coincidence?” the bespectacled woman offered. The CEO chewed the inside of her cheek at the thought. She had considered it but…

“You’re aware of the Stream cycle theory, yes?” she asked. The unicorn’s brow furrowed as she tilted her head.

“Well, sure. It theorizes that when anything that’s alive dies, its lifeforce and soul returns to the Stream of Harmony... or Lifestream, depending on the interpretation. There it joins the current and shares its experiences before mingling with other strands of the Stream and returns to the surface to create a new life” she iterated. She then squinted, unconvinced “You’re saying Tifa’s been reincarnated?”

“I’ve met a great many souls over my long life Twilight, some of them very familiar after a while. Those that carry sparks that I’ve sworn I’d encountered in an earlier generation. Why, I can even think of a couple that I can easily see being among your past lives” the president informed the treasurer, enjoying her blink of surprise at the idea. Then her own brow furrowed however, as she once again took in the girl’s name resting beneath her father’s “But never, not once, have I ever met the same person. Miss Lockhart has the same name, the same face, even the same voice as the girl I saw die that night. She even uses a martial art that died out shortly after the incident. Only her personality and age seems to have deviated. Tifa Lockhart died before my eyes and yet, two centuries later, I find her staring at me from almost the same spot I saw her fall. I have no answers for any of it…”

“I’ll help!” Twilight announced suddenly, catching herself right after. Trying to shake away her embarrassment, she clarified “I mean, I’d like to help you find those answers, if they’re there to be found. I mean… if you want me too.”

Celestia smiled warmly down to the blushing woman, placing her hand on her shoulder.

“Twilight, you’re in the know now. I dare say you’ll be helping me with much more than that from here on” the unicorn paused at the implication, though only for a moment before nodding back confidently. Celestia’s smile grew and she gave one final glance to the memorial “We don’t seem to be finding those answers here though, and I daresay we should get back before anyone else realises I haven’t been resting.”

She made her way to the tunnel doorway but stopped to see her newest confidant hadn’t followed. The bespectacled woman was instead looking over the wall thoughtfully.

“It’s sad” she said “All these names, hidden away to be forgotten.”

“They’re on the memorial at the false ruins as well. For however little that’s worth” the president offered with a sigh. Twilight gained a small grin.

“It’s worth something.” she answered without doubt and joined the alicorn.

Shining Armor paced across the deck of the airship impatiently. He immediately had to catch himself when he realized what kind of message it was sending, so instead she started doing squats. Still weird for most people but everyone had long since gotten used to his restless habit. Celestia was still missing and now his sister hadn’t been seen for over an hour. The sun was beginning to set and he had no idea where either the most important person on the continent nor the most important person to him were. He stopped at fifty and made his way to the railing to scan the town again…

And let out a sigh of relief at the sight of a notably tall woman making her way to the ship. He squinted and saw what could only be his sister’s hair bobbing next to the alicorn beacon. He turned to make his way down to meet them when he caught an unexpected sight in his peripheral; an unusually pensive looking Gilda was leaning against the opposite railing and staring off at the horizon, her expression stressed.

“You alright there Gild?” he called out, approaching his fellow SOLDIER.

“Huh? Oh, hey Shiny. Yeah I’m alright, I was just…” she turned to face him and hesitated, expression still down “Thinking.”

“I thought I smelt something burning” he quipped.

“Fuck you too Boss” the second class smirked back before giving a shrug “Ehhh… It’s just that psycho chick that went after the professor. I realized she kinda looked like someone I used to know. Friend of an old friend.”

“Yeah?” Shiny crossed his arms, trying not to show his redoubled interest “You sure it wasn’t her?”

“Nah, she wasn’t a thestral. Even if she was, this chick was wuss wrapped in a door mat made of gimp leather. Meek doesn’t even begin to cover it. No way she could have turned into that.”

“You’d be amazed how much people can change” the first class returned.

“Species?” Gilda countered, earning an acknowledging shrug “Yeah, not that much. Even if I had a falling out with my friend, I doubt they went exchanging half their feathers in for webbing.”

“Falling out?” the unicorn inquired. A frown tugged at the corner of the griffon woman’s lip.

“Ok, so y’know how I can sometimes be kind of a bitch?”

“Sometimes?”

“Yeah well, back then I was also a bully. Mix that with Little Miss Scared of her own Shadow and it doesn’t take a genius to figure how we got along” she elaborated “When my friend found out, she dropped me like a bag of hammers. Literally. Socked right across the jaw and knocked me right on my ass. I mean we’d been tight since our preteens but she chose her over me without a second thought. I was so stunned I couldn’t even say anything as I watched her grab her friend and walk out of my life forever.”

“I’m sorry to hear that” the senior SOLDIER offered, but then pushed “Still, if there’s any chance, then maybe it’s worth trying to reconne-”

Gilda turned back around with an exasperated groan.

“It’s not her Shiny! And I couldn’t reconnect if I wanted to” she reiterated in almost a growl, leaning on the railing again. She looked down to her fidgeting hands, her tone softer and much more somber when she spoke again “They were both at Cloudsdale.”

“Oh. Uhh…” Shining’s posture dropped as he awkwardly shuffled his feet and scratched the back of his head “Shit... Sorry.”

“Yeah…” Gidla returned, eyes returning to the horizon without really seeing it “Me too.”

“Professor, we really should wait to head up with the others.”

“Yes, you’ve made your opinion perfectly clear. I don’t care” Chrysalis rolled her eyes, her gossamer wings twitching in annoyance. She was already twenty minutes up the mountain on the way to the reactor. She may not be able to extract the maretia by herself but she could damn well start studying it without having to wait for the president to satisfy her infantile guilt indulging the townsfolk “You can go back. At this point I’d rather deal with any creatures myself than listen to anymore of your whining.”

“We can’t just let you go up alone Ma’am” her other trooper bodyguard informed her. She finally stopped, her stooped posture twisting around to let her sneer at the pair.

“Are you worried about keeping your pathetic jobs that much? Then allow me to ease your burdens. You’re fired. Now shut up and go away.”

“I’m afraid you don’t have the authority to fire us Ma’am” the second trooper informed again, unintimidated. The changeling woman groaned as she shook her head, looking to the shy.

“Someone save me from these imbeciles” as soon as she spoke, two booming shots echoed through the pass. Her guards flew back as heavy rounds tore right through their armor and dropped both to the ground. Hands still clasped behind her back, she nevertheless started on with wide eyes. She turned toward the direction of the shots to see a trio of dark coated pegasi with blue-silver hair descending in front of her.

“What’s the matter Doctor? Afraid it was that thestral back for seconds?” the one with the large, scoped rifle quipped as they landed. The changeling’s expression dropped back to boredom.

“I would assume since you didn’t shoot me as well that you have something to say?” she drolled with a slow, unimpressed blink. The shorter female leading the other two tilted her head with a curious smile.

“Not even a flinch at the death of your bodyguards?”

“A couple of troopers?” the professor returned a single arched eyebrow “Kill a pair of SOLDIER with the same ease and maybe you’ll illicit my interest.”

“I must say, you’re not quite what we were expecting, Doctor” their leader grinned. She twirled her dual bladed katana in her hand as she turned to the others with an exchange of looks. The sword stopped as her gaze returned to the doctor and considered a moment, before being sheathed with a flourish “Here we were going to just scoop up a potential tool yet instead we may have just found a kindred soul.”

“You insult me by thinking you three are anywhere as smart as I am” Chrysalis’s sneer returned. The taller pair scowled at the insult but their leader threw her head back and laughed.

“And not an ounce of fear! Oh, I do like you Professor. But no, I didn’t mean to suggest we could match your intellect. Simply that our goals may align” she leaned in and began to circle the changeling “Our Dear Mother could offer you untold opportunity without any of the stifling limitations you seemed to be burdened with under the president.”

“Your Mother?”

“The Mistress of the Moon herself” she declared as she and her siblings stood proudly.

“Nightmare Moon?” the woman with the jagged horned asked incredulously, receiving an eager nod from the pegasus. She reached up and adjusted her glass “I see. So you’re insane.”

“Maybe a little” the girl purred, “That doesn’t mean we’re wrong.”

“No, the lack of her existence does” Hojo returned bluntly “Your ‘Mother’ is nothing more than a fairy tale.”

“She’s not!” the male pegasus shouted before his rifle wielding sister grabbed his arm.

“Calm down Loz” she offered and rolled her head back toward the doctor “You know how much Auntie has done to bury Mother’s legacy.”

“Belief or not Doctor,” The katana wielding sibling spoke again “I know you can accept the fact the president has been keeping things from you, secrets she greedily locks away despite their potential.”

“I have no idea of their potential,” Hojo countered.

“Always the pragmatists, you scientists” The winged woman complimented. “Would you like to know why you’ve been seeking the Elements and Bearers? Why it’s so very imperative to not disturb the Stream?... Have you ever even heard of The Promise Land?”

She watched the doctor’s eyes narrow slightly, glancing at her brother and sister before returning to her. A wider smile crossed her lips as she saw the Changeling’s eyebrow rise again.

“...I’m listening.”

Author's Note

Couldn't sleep so edited, put out early. May be mistakes, will check later. :rainbowderp:
Now try sleep again :ajsleepy:

Thank for read, have good ones :twilightsmile:

Chapter 13: Moving Forward

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)
Armored Grand Glove- Fire, Ice, Gravity ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle) - Time + Added Effect
Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn
Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice ---- Shinra Beta (Bangle)- Barrier, Lightning
Other: An undecided rotation of outfits (current), Earrings

Pinkie Sith: Pony?
Sparkly Megaphone- Lightning, Earth, Fire --- Silver Armlet- Transform, Manipulate, Time
Other: Red Cape, "Moggy"

Spike: Sapient Dragon
Claws and Teeth, Materia Band- Water, ATK up --- Carbon Bangle: Sense, Restore
Other: Natural Fire Magic, Hardened Scales

Fluttershy: Altered Pegasus
Bigg Handgun- Deathblow --- Carbon Bangle- Aero, Poison
Other: Enhanced physique, Improved healing, “Unnatural Abilities” Trooper Machine Gun

AppleJack: Earthie
Gatling Gun Arm- Earth, Barrier --- Silver Armlet- Defense Up, Magic Def. Up, Cover
Other: Robotic Hand, Tough Ring, Lasso, Lucky Hat

Tifa sat and stared at the fire with Kiwi snuggled up against her side as he dozed. She scritched at his feathers, earning a muted murmuring that mixed with the crackle of the fire echoing off the cavern walls. She smiled as it reminded her of some of the noises her family’s pet birds used to make.

It had been three days since they managed to escape Ponyville thanks to Rarity’s timely arrival with the mount. With having to dodge the search parties and avoid being spotted by the aerial patrols, it was a tense few days to say the least. Doing it with such a large party and a big yellow bird in a half-dead mountain range didn’t help either. Still, they wouldn’t have made it out without the swift avian curled up next to her, taking a much needed rest. It was a much needed rest for all of them. They could finally take a real break and breathe now that they were deep enough into the range that they no longer had to worry.

The party’s four original members sat in a peaceful silence, just watching the flames. Applejack had gone outside to try to find a signal, knowing the mountains' maze of tunnels far better than any of the rest of them. She told them they had mapped them all out in case they needed a way out of town if everything went “cockeyed”. While perhaps not with the people she had expected to be with in that event, she never lost confidence of just where they were most of the time. As for the last member of their party...

The brunette looked over to Fluttershy laying in her bedroll, still unconscious from the fight. They’d managed to heal her fairly well but she was still hurt pretty bad. Both Rarity and Applejack said she should recover just fine, that it would just take time. She wouldn’t even have much scarring.

‘Much more scarring at least…’ Tifa’s expression fell as she thought of what was revealed beneath the leather and cloak they had to remove. Cuts, tears, punctures, bullet wounds, burns… Scars of all kinds covered her skin. It wasn’t quite head to toe, there were still places of relatively untouched skin, but you couldn’t follow it far before a marred or twisted mark disturbed the peace. Several also looked like they were never properly treated and just left to heal on their own. Not all of them were old either, some fresher than the faded ones beneath, signalling they must have come after her time with Hojo. ‘Possibly even while she’s been with us… She has always seemed pretty paranoid whenever we get the chance to bathe...’

“I’m sorry.” Rarity spoke up from the other side of the fire where she was darning Fluttershy’s clothes “I know I should have said something earlier but between all the running and hiding and you three not bringing it up in front of Applejack, I thought I wouldn’t waste your-”

The former Turked paused before a tired chuckle escaped her.

“Your generosity in not divulging my failings to our newest ally” she continued “You were right Darling, I’ve been selfish. While I’ve been content to fool myself with a giving attitude in the day to day affairs, when it comes to something important, when real decisions have needed to be made? I’ve fallen into the very thinking that destroyed my dream. And I’m sorry for that.”

“Eh, it’s not like you’ve been stingy.” Tifa offered awkwardly “I mean it been you funding us most this time and you’ve always been good to us. I was maybe being a little too harsh-”

“No Darling, you were precisely as harsh as I needed you to be” the horned woman cut back in, before her face dropped in shame “I have thought of leaving you behind, of breaking off from the group to protect myself. And unlike the woman who accidentally burned my home in spite, I would have made my decision knowingly and… and I don’t want to be that person. I don’t want to be only superficially generous, afraid everyone is only helping me to take advantage of me later. I want…”

She hesitated and looked to the cavern ceiling, eyes distant as she let go an almost swooning sigh.

“As hopelessly romantic or ‘corny’ as it may sound… I want to be someone worthy of bearing an Element. Not just because I happen to align with that flow of the Stream but because I actually deserve to be chosen, just as in the old stories.”

“I don’t think it’s corny” Pinkie spoke with a sympathetic smile.

“I do” Spike added, then gave a relenting shrug “But it’s also kind of cool, y’know... in a fairy tale kind of way.”

The unicorn smiled warmly at them before looking to Tifa with resolve.

“I’m going to do better, I promise.”

“Oh, um… I uh” the martial artist fumbled “Cool… yeah.”

“Good news y’all!” AJ’s voice called out as the cowgirl came jogging down the tunnel, saving Tifa from any further bumbling. For her part, Rarity merely gave her an affectionate wink before turning her attention to the apple farmer “Ah managed ta get a call out. Got cut off after ten minutes but Ah got us an update and at least the beginnings of a plan.”

“My sister?” the somehow still well-coiffed unicorn asked anxiously.

“The girls are jus’ fine Sugarcube. Sweetie’s a little miffed ya had to disappear again but Ah’m sure she’s jus’ worried about ya.” the apple farmer assuaged her. Rarity visibly slumped, letting go of a held breath with a hand to her chest “Damage to the town wasn’t as bad as Ah thought neither. Don’t get me wrong, there’s gonna be some double bunk’n fer a while but a lot fewer people were hurt than I feared.”

“What about Lily?” Pinkie’s worried voice interjected. Applejack’s grin faded.

“She... she got hit pretty bad. Still laid up in the hospital but alive...” the cowgirl hesitated “They had ta take her leg though… and they don’t know if she’ll keep her arm.”

The team sagged at the news.

“Now don’t y’all go blame’n yourselves. Lily’s AVALANCHE and part o’ the militia besides; she knew the risk of things when she signed up. And she’s still alive. AVALANCHE may not be able ta get parts fer the prettiest or most comfortable replacements but Moon’ll get her set up with whatever she needs” AJ got ahead of the sorrow, emphasizing her point with gestures from her own prosthetic “So bring them smiles back before I start crack’n jokes; with Pa gone I had ta pick up the slack in the groaners.”

The smiles did return with a smattering of giggles.

“I like dad jokes” Tifa added, earning a grin from the farmer herself. The brief merriment was interrupted by the sounds of stirring behind them. They turned to see the party’s pegasus twitching beneath her blanket, angrily tossing before her eyes snapped open and she leapt to her feet “Whoa, you should really stay in bed!”

If she even heard the suggestion, the thestral woman ignored it. Eyes wide and confused, her head swiveled about erratically, searching her surroundings. As she realized where she was, her expression grew furious. Yellow wings gradually spread with feathers ruffled up and pulsing in tune with the woman's now heaving growls. She hunched as her muscles tightened and teeth bared. It was just like at the beach.

Only this time, the pegasus didn’t hold back.

They all flinched back as the anguished, wailing scream ripped through the cavern like a banshee. Kiwi awoke with a wark and leapt behind Applejack now covering her ears, and not very effectively with her prosthetic unfortunately. After what was actually an impressively decent wait, the pegasus woman’s cry petered out. Ears still ringing, Tifa cracked open an eye to see the nearly naked woman still hunched.

“Dang girl, got some lungs on you” Applejack probed an ear with a cringe. With a light huff she regarded the screamer with a hand on her hip “Look Darl’n, ya missed yer shot sure, but then managed ta survive to take another. Ya had a second and first class SOLDIER between you two and still managed ta put the fear of Minerva in her. There ain’t nothin’ ta be ashamed about in that.”

“LIKE YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT REAL SHAME!” Fluttershy snapped and began stalking towards the farmgirl.

“Easy ‘Shy!” Tifa jumped in front of the enraged gunner. Thankfully, said guns were out of reach.

“Shy?!” she growled, her infuriated gaze locking onto the new obstacle.

“Uhhh-”

“Why…” she breathed, the pugilist’s face winkling in confusion. Fluttershy’s voice rose “Why are you always trying to be so… Nice to me?! What reason could I have possibly given you!?”

“Oh, uh… I-I don’t know” Tifa stuttered, more than just a little afraid at the moment “I guess I just haven’t seen the point in being nasty back… You’ve clearly been through a lot and I figured it couldn’t hurt to just be… well, nice. I mean, I get it.”

Whatever response the brunette was expecting, it wasn’t the markswoman’s face to fall blank. Then to an incredulous mockery.

“You get it?” she asked in barely above a whisper. Then, somehow, her face twisted into something even more enraged than before “YOU GET IT?!”

Tifa stepped back as the woman advanced on her, eyes burning in contempt.

“Do you have even the smallest clue what it is to lose EVERYTHING?!” Fluttershy stopped inches from her face “To have your home, your family, your friends, even your very Life torn away before your eyes!? To have the one that did it laugh as they twist all you’ve ever known to their uncaring whims!? To literally feel the cold oblivion of death to only wake back up in a world you no longer know and in a body you can barely even recognize!?”

“DO YOU GET. THAT!?”

…

“YES!”

The pegasus was literally taken aback as the brunette snapped back, retreating a few steps in shock.

“I know you were late to the party Fluttershy but you may have picked up that I’m-not-from-here!” the buxom fighter shouted back at the completely disarmed thestral “I wasn’t born on Gaia or with this body! I woke up here barely a year ago after some twisted fuck turned my friend into an actual zombie and let her rip my god damned throat out! I had to helplessly watch her dissolve before my eyes as I lay bleeding out on the floor. I died, all that I was slipped away as this prick rambled on about his experiments! Then I woke up at some random Inn in the slums with half my memories missing, a foriegn body and all alone, having no idea what I was supposed to do or why I was even here! And then, THEN as soon as I think I’ve got shit figured out, Shinra swoops into my new life to fuck it up all over again!”

At this point there were tears streaming down her face as her rant came in broken gasps.

“So yes, Fluttershy, I can say with some confidence that I, at least to some degree, get it…”

Without another word, the brunette turned away and fell back into her earlier seat, head in her hands as she tried to overcome the tears. The other three constants of the party gathered around her. Rarity placed a hand on the crying girl’s shoulder and Pinkie wrapped her hooves around as much as she could while Spike laid his head in her lap. They all felt a heavy weight jostle them as Kiwi nestled into the pugilist’s back, his head draped across the lot of them.

Applejack stood back, respectfully silent while her new companions, far more familiar with each other, tried to comfort the girl. Fluttershy just stood there unmoving. Her face was to the floor and hidden behind her hair. After a while Applejack let out a small sigh, gingerly stepped past the huddled group and gently led the pegasus back to her bedroll. The still injured woman didn’t fight it, shuffling unevenly to the mat and sitting down. She wrapped her arms around the knees she had brought to her chest and dropped her head into their protective depths.

Rarity lightly wiped a stray hair from the prone martial artist’s face, glad the exhausted girl had managed to fall fast asleep after they guided her to her sleeping bag. She stood and looked over to Fluttershy, who at some point slipped back into her own bag and seemed to be sleeping again as well. It was a bit hard to tell with her turned away. She made her way back to the quiet group around the fire.

“I did offer her a hug when she first told us” the party’s hooved member said sadly as the former Turk took the spot next to her.

“I know Pinkie” Rarity ran a hand down the pony’s back “You know how closed off she can be sometimes.”

“Sooo,” Applejack began hesitantly “She’s... what? Like an alien?”

“The best we can guess is that she might be a permanent summon” the horned woman answered with a sigh “Though honestly that’s simply from the lack of a better explanation.”

“Huh” the farmgirl hummed thoughtfully and gave a shrug “Well I guess consider’n the rest of y’all, it ain’t that strange.”

“I suppose we are quite the motley crew, aren’t we?” Rarity admitted with a tired smile. She took a deep breath and gazed at the fire “So where do we go from here?”

“Cosmo Canyon isn’t too far,” Spike offered.

“Nah, we don’t need to go bother’n them” AJ returned “We’ll make our way down ta the river and catch one of the skimmer ferries headed north.”

“Doesn’t the river have a bunch of waterfalls?” Spike asked.

“The skimmers glide just above the water Darling” the group’s unicorn explained “They can rise high enough into the air to clear the falls… How do you know so much about the area?”

“Oh um,” Spike muttered with a small blush creeping into his scales “I was actually caught around here…”

“After we pass the range we’ll off load and make our way to Crater Town,” Applejack continued to save the drake further embarrassment “Moon said she’ll work on getting us a ride from there.”

“A ride to where though?” Rarity proposed.

“Ah was think’n Wutai. If she can, Moon’ll meet us with whatever she arranges and the materia y’all brought us,” AJ elaborated, leaning back with her hands behind her head “and get it ta the resistance HQ. We figure they’ll be able ta keep it the safest. Hopefully they can also point us in the right direction from there.”

“Resistance?” The former Turk raised an eyebrow at the apple farmer “The Wutai resistance is gone Darling.”

“Yeah, that’s jus’ wut we wanted y’all ta think” Applejack shot back with a smirk “Grant’d, Shinra left ‘em with a heck of a shiner, but how d’ya think AVALANCHE got off the ground so quickly afterward?”

“We figured there had to be remnants of the organization in your ranks but are you saying AVALANCHE was just a…” Rarity searched for the right word “Rebranding?”

“I would’n put it quite like that” the cowgirl answered with an amused chuckle “It’s a bit more complicated than that but yeah, I guess sorta. AVALANCHE grew from the Resistance’s changing in tactics.”

“Shinra knows a lot less than we thought we did apparently” Rarity returned with an impressed admiration. Applejack smiled smugly.

“That is kinda the idea.”

It took a couple more days but Applejack led the steadily growing group out of the tunnels and down to the river. They managed to flag down the second skimmer that passed by after the first ignored them. With a bit of convincing (and a small bribe), the captain agreed to take them as far as his route went. They also got lucky in that he was a cargo ferry and not a passenger one, meaning they wouldn’t have to worry about being recognized. Other than Pinkie losing her crown to a particularly strong gust of wind while hanging her head out the window, it was a rather pleasant trip.

After off loading past the range as Applejack said, they set off across the open plain toward the northwest. As much as the party would have liked to have had as quiet a trek as they had from Corel to Ponyville, they found themselves running into unusually frequent encounters. With the size of the party had grown, each wasn’t too threatening but as a whole it was growing rather draining. Both on them and their supplies. Fluttershy still being injured wasn’t making it any easier either. It was little over a week until they could finally see their destination in the distance as anything more than a smudge.

As welcome as the sight was, Tifa didn’t fail to notice the dots of airships coming and going over the day.

“This place some sort of trading hub?” she asked as the town grew bigger.

“Sorta” Applejack gave simply “More of a fill-up station than anythin’ else.”

“I’d say it’s a bit more than that. It’s where Cloudsdale launched from.” Rarity elaborated “The ‘crater’ is actually the hole left by the city's removal. With all the equipment and docks left behind after the launch though, and given its location, it became a natural shipyard. Most any airship passing through even near to here will usually stop to do maintenance and yes, refuel.”

“It’s what’s kept what was left from goin’ under too” AJ added. As if to compliment the topic, a small gust washed over them as an airship passed overhead. Tifa squinted as she followed its course to the town, noting its design’s clear deviation from the norm and marking its Spira origins. She looked quizzically at the ugly, boxey part jutting out of the top of it though.

“They must do a lot of business in Equestria” Pinkie spoke up “I’m pretty sure that’s a Mako converter.”

“Spira airships don’t use Mako?” Tifa queried “What do they use then?”

“Either more traditional fuels or, uh… hmmm,” She rubbed a hoof on her chin “I know what they are but can’t remember what they’re called.”

“Aeon Recycling Spheres” the answer came unexpectedly from the pegasus riding Kiwi. It was one of the very few things she had said at since their exchange in the caves. She’d been mostly acting like she had been just after seeing Scootaloo: unnaturally passive. She hadn’t even been glaring at them when they tried to talk to her. In fact, she seemed to be actively avoiding eye contact, even more than usual.

“That’s it!” Pinkie cheered “Funny enough they’re actually a lot more efficient than Equestrian engine designs.”

“Then why don’t we use them more?” Tifa asked curiously.

“Because they’re a bitch to build and maintain” the answer again came from Fluttershy “And the spheres are expensive to replace.”

“Pretty much. Plus they’re a heck of a lot harder to find parts for here” Pinkie agreed and looked up to the mounted woman “How do you know so much about this stuff?”

The gunner’s gaze fell, the answer never coming.

‘And I guess she’s done talking’ Tifa internalized. She wasn’t really sure what to make of the sudo-thestral’s recent behavior. She knew it couldn’t be a coincidence that it started after she had snapped back at her, but didn’t know what it could mean. Pinkie, for her part, simply shrugged it off and continued watching the ships. Tifa decided to follow her lead.

They managed to make it to town as the sun started to set, so it wasn’t too late for them to make arrangements for the night. They split up, Rarity taking the more noticeable members of the team to find an Inn while Tifa went with Applejack to shop for supplies. The apple farmer took them to a market district bordering the edge of the eponymous crater, letting her see it was actually almost full of water.

“Oh, it’s a crater Lake, not just a crater” she spoke the observation aloud.

“Huh? Oh yeah. When the city took off it unplugged the reservoir... or aquifer or whatever it’s called. Mixed with the rain, she filled right up” AJ broke down “Still don’t know where the heck the fish came from though…”

‘At least it’s warmer here than the one I visited’ she remembered back to the trip she took with her family. A pang tugged at her heart, her expression falling. It was a nice trip, one she could actually remember and here she was thinking about how cold it was. She let out a sigh and jogged to catch up with AJ walking into a gun store ‘I guess her arm does use quite a bit of ammo. I wonder where she keeps it all…’

She didn’t ask right away. She instead used her musings on the question to pull her thoughts away from the home she involuntarily left behind. She had found distraction was usually her best chance not to dwell. She did eventually ask though. The cowgirl converted her hand to the weapon and pointed to a small summon materia not unlike the one Rarity used for her trunk. She explained that while she still had to change the drum mag, she could keep the lot of them in the materia. Up to a limit at least, hence why she had to restock whenever they got the chance like this.

Before long they were laden with bags and the street lamps were already on. They followed Rarity’s directions to a small Inn with a stable behind it. They took a moment to check on Kiwi, making sure he was taken care of and given some affectionate scritches before they joined the others in the room.

“Oh thank you Darling! I know it was a bit of an odd request” Rarity gave as Tifa handed her the small cut of fabric she texted them to get. She unfolded the piece and admired the crimson cloth with a coo “Ooooo, I knew I could trust your eye on this.”

“I did use to make costumes,” the brunette returned with a shrug as the unicorn went to dig through her trunk. She then moved to a table of take-out they had apparently ordered, sitting next to Spike already digging in. Applejack joined them while Rarity began working on something with the cloth at her bed. Fluttershy sat eating by the window, staring out at the water. Tifa was halfway through her portion when the absence dawned on her “Where’s Pinkie?”

“Oh, I’m right here” the pony’s head popped down from the top of the window frame.

“Pinkie come in dear, I have something for you” Rarity told the equine.

“Kay. Help me down Moggy” the white mit stretched down to let the mare hop back into the room before disappearing back into its new materia now fastened to her cape’s collar (The robotic mog had thankfully been summoned when she lost her crown). She hopped up to join Rarity on her bed “You got me something?”

‘Why’d she have Moggy out on the roof?’
‘Maybe she was having him toss her up to look at the ships’

It didn’t seem unreasonable, especially for Pinkie. She shrugged it off and returned to her food.

“I made you something” Rarity corrected and held out a small, and rather exceptionally done queen style crown made of gold wire and the cloth Tifa brought “I know it’s a bit different than the one you lost but it’s the best I could come up with on short notice.”

“Oh wow Rarity, it’s Great!” the pony beamed and plopped the gift atop her poof “It even has little prongs to keep it in my hair! Thank You!”

“Not at all Darling” she smiled at the mare. The pair rose and joined the rest at the table. Tifa noticed Fluttershy shift at the window out the corner of her eye. She was fiddling with a fold of her cloak, inspecting a fresh seam from Rarity’s repairs. A thought came to her, though she didn’t hold much hope of success.

“Would you like to join us?” she asked with a neutral tone.

“No.” Fluttershy returned with no particular inflection. Tifa shrugged and let it go. That was about what she expected. What was unexpected though, was what came next “...I used to live out there.”

‘Wait, what?’ the whole party turned to the pegasus still staring passively out to the lake. ‘Is… is Fluttershy… Sharing?’

“You lived in Cloudsdale?” Rarity asked after a moment. The cloaked woman nodded slightly.

“Since I was born. I tried to stay by making the proposition to-” she paused briefly before sighing and shaking her head “By expanding a stupid hobby of mine. They turned me down, of course. But my friend managed to get them to let me stay by making me part of her maintenance team… She was always looking out for me...”

“Rainbow Dash” Applejack spoke up. The pegasus turned slowly to look at the Apple, her expression… difficult to read “You do know Scootaloo.”

“Yes,” she closed her eyes and sighed again before turning back to the window “I knew her. She was practically a little sister to Rainbow.”

The winged woman’s gaze turned to the sky.

“Rainbow was practically a sister to me. She was more of a sibling to me than my own brother...” she gave with a touch of sadness “Minerva did she love flying. So much that she loved anything just related to flying, even if it wasn’t with her own wings. Airships, planes, helicopters; If it could stay in the air then she knew all about it. So of course she did everything she could to be part of the Cloudsdale experiment. And then she taught me how to maintain such things, so my family and I didn’t have to leave our home.”

“That’s how you know so much about airships, how you knew how to fix the helicopter,” Pinkie concluded. Fluttershy nodded again.

“It was so exciting at first; Seeing the clouds drift by without leaving the porch, seeing weather teams out to ward off turbulence by manipulating the weather like our ancestors used to…” Fluttershy gave with a slight wistfulness. She seemed almost happy for a moment. Tifa frowned as the moment proved fleeting and the pegasus’s expression turned to a scowl “But then She showed up…”

“Um, excuse me” Fluttershy mumbled to the grey woman with her back to her. She had gotten lost on her way to one of the secondary pylons and somehow ended up in the main housing chamber of the huge gravity materia keeping the city afloat. “I um, I don’t think… I don’t think you should be doing that.”

The changeling didn’t seem to hear her as she continued to circle around the engine and interact with the varying terminals. Fluttershy could see the containment fields being recalibrated at the woman’s actions. She looked around for the guards but couldn’t seem to find any. It would explain how she managed to stumble in there uncontested but not where they could be. She winced and regarded the jagged horned woman again.

“E-Excuse me!” She repeated a bit louder, voice cracking slightly. The lab-coated female heard her that time. She turned to her with a mix of surprise and annoyance “I th-think you should leave!”

“You think I should leave? Little girl, do you have any idea who you’re speaking to?!” the changeling stormed up to the trembling girl “Professor Chrysalis Hojo! Future Head of Shinra’s entire Science Division! This stupid rock would have never made it off the ground without my help!”

“B-but then w-why are you changing the fields?” Fluttershy shrank away from the scientist “We just calibrated them this m-morning.”

“And an awful job you did of it too” Chrysalis sneered “It’s a miracle the whole thing didn’t explode.”

“B-but Rainbow did the third pass herself” the pegasus argued “She knows the fields almost as well as-”

“I think you should leave.” Hojo delivered menacingly, her face dangerously close to Fluttershy’s as she leaned in “And I’d suggest if you don’t want your little friend to be fired, you’ll let her save face by keeping this embarrassment of hers that I had to fix to yourself.”

Fluttershy stayed, transfixed and too terrified to move.

“GO!”

“Eep!” she scrambled back and ran from the room, leaving the changeling alone once more.

“Hojo had dismissed the guards, hacked into the engines and left that night. The next day the nexus overloaded and caused a massive demi spell to engulf the city and drag it, and everything on and near it, plummeting to the ground.”

She flapped as hard as she could, harder than she ever had in entire her life, trying to escape the crushing pressure dragging her down. A desperate glimmer of hope filled her as she managed to slowly rise away from the ground. Then the darkness expanded and the pressure increased tenfold, stealing her consciousness.

The sensation of feeling slowly returned to her, the pressure was gone. Everything hurt as she opened her eyes. She couldn’t move, it hurt too much to even try turning her head. After what seemed like an eternity, a blurry shadow crossed into her view of the sky. She squinted and the figure came into focus.

“Hello little girl…”

“I don’t know how I survived, how anyone could have survived. She found me in the wreckage. I nearly passed out from the pain when her robots moved me, but I saw others collecting more bodies.” Fluttershy’s tone grew more angry, her hands clenched into fists as she began to shake “She needed Test Subjects. She dragged a city from the sky, killed countless people, destroyed my home!- ...because she wanted more guinea pigs for her experiments without anyone questioning where they went.”

The party sat aghast. Stunned into literal silence, they could only stare at the woman shaking with rage. Honestly Tifa was impressed Fluttershy was controlling herself as well as she was. Although she was still kind of reeling from the fact she was opening up at all.

“Gods…” Rarity gasped, almost uncomprehending “I knew Hojo was a monster, but to go so far. It’s... unthinkable.”

“Is there any chance Rainbow ended up like you?” Applejack offered “That she may still be out there somewhere?”

“No.” the gunner returned quietly “When I was finally able to escape, I ran across a terminal with some of Hojo’s files on it in the process. She had a list of everyone she took, to make sure their names were on the list of people who died. Dash’s name wasn’t on that list. It was on the memorial. She’s Dead. There’s no one left.”

“There’s Scootaloo, Damnit!” the cowgirl pounded the table as she rose, glaring at the woman “We just gotta tell her you’re not dead an-”

“The Fluttershy she knew is dead!” the thestral snapped back “She was stupid little girl too stubbon and naivie to accept just how cruel the world really is! Who let her home die because she was too afraid to stop or even report a madwoman! Telling her that girl’s corpse was turned into...” Flutteyshy looked over herself with disgust “THIS, wouldn’t be doing her any favors! She’s better off not knowing.”

Fluttershy turned back to the window, ignoring the woman still glaring daggers at her. The fists bracing the farmer on the table tightened, her scowl deeping.

“So uh, I found out I’m really good at pachinko!” Pinkie piped in suddenly, drawing befuddled looks all around “I could always get the balls to fall right where I wanted them to!”

“Um, cool?” Tifa offered before the pony frowned angrily at her. Her eyes darted to the farmer before shooting the brunette a very meaningful look. The purpose wasn’t lost on her a second time “So really? Always?”

“I know right? I didn’t understand it either!” the mare responded enthusiastically “But I used the GP I won to exchange for the spare materia for Moggy and the Time materia I used to help Spike keep up with-”

“Girls” Rarity interrupted softly, giving them a sympathetic smile “I sure everyone appreciates it, but… stop.”

The pair slummed dejectedly, ceasing their little act. Applejack was giving them a thoroughly unamused look while Fluttershy was still just staring out at the lake. Eventually though, a buzzing demanded the cowgirl’s attention. She finally tore her gaze away from the pair and fished out her phone.

“Moon got us a ride. Looks like the materia’s staying in Ponyville for a while though,” she said with a sigh “We should get ta bed. We got an early start tomorrow.”

Spike shot the two a shrug as they got up. At least it was worth a shot. And it did still sort of defuse the situation, even if it was more obvious than intended. And took an additional distraction to get all the way there...

‘Whatever works... right?’

Applejack hadn’t been kidding when she said they had an early start; the sun hadn’t even risen when she woke them up to catch their ride. Apparently they were being smuggled onto an airship and only had so much of a window while it refueled. Not that it meant they had to rush, as their somewhat casual pace through the dim streets signaled. They also couldn’t exactly dawdle much either though.

As they walked, Tifa kept glancing back to the pegasus once again trailing her usual distance behind the group. She insisted she was healed enough to not have to ride Kiwi anymore and seemed to be keeping pace, and distance, well enough to prove it. Despite her unprompted sharing the night before, and complete lack of concern for AJ’s irritation with her, she still seemed to not be eager to socialize. Tifa sucked the inside of her cheek before deciding to lag a bit herself.

“What?” Fluttershy grumbled as the buxom woman matched pace beside her.

“Well, it’s just… It’s really not that bad you know?” she started, earning an arched brow from the gunner “Your new... um, you that is. It’s just the way you looked at and talked about yourself last night, like you were disgusted… you shouldn’t be. I mean, actually you’re uh… still well, rather pretty... actually.”

The woman looked at her like she was out of her mind. However then a thought seemed to occur to her and her features twisted into a scowl.

“You don’t have to patronize me,” she growled.

“I’m not!” the martial artist cried. The altered pegasus huffed and rolled her eyes before stepping further away “Really, I’m not!”

Fluttershy ignored her, glaring ahead stubbornly. Tifa sighed and quickened her pace to rejoin the others, feeling the angry stare on her back.

“You tried, Darling” Rarity offered softly as she reached them. Tifa returned an appreciative, if defeated smile before hanging her head. She almost bumped into Applejack when the group stopped, forcing her to look back up to see them before a freight elevator. As AJ began talking to the man operating it, she looked up to see the bottom of an airship cast in the shadow of another above that she couldn’t see.

The gate to the lift opened, the man hurried them onboard and hit the switch to send them up.

“I don’t think she saw it” Pinkie beamed mischievously.

“No, her head was down” Rarity answered with a smirk of her own. She then looked sideways to the Apple farmer “You didn’t tell her, right?”

“And ruin the surprise? Nuh-uh” the cowgirl returned smuggly.

“What are you guys talking about?” Tifa felt thoroughly left out all of a sudden.

“Oh you’ll see soon enough Darling” the former seamstress teased while Pinkie and Spike snickered. The brunette frowned, she couldn’t see much at the moment; The steel girders and sheet metal of the lift blocked their view to the outside. Though given how high they were going that may be intentional. The lift stopped and opened to an enclosed bridge that reminded her of an airport ramp. A woman waited for them at the other end.

“About time!” the woman gave sourly then brightened with a smirk “How you been Orchard?”

“Hang’n in there. Don’t think we need the code names though” the farmer returned with a chuckle. The woman shrugged and stepped aside to let them through the loading bay doors, waggling her eyebrows at the brunette as she passed. Tifa frowned; she was familiar but she couldn’t place from where. She looked around quizzically for any clue. She unfortunately only found stacks of crates surrounding them, though she supposed she should have expected that from a loading bay.

“Oh and who are you?” the familiar woman cooed as Kiwi was led on board, meeting the bird with affectionate glee “Oh we’ll have to make sure you get set up nice and comfy in the stables.”

“You have stables on board?” the brunette asked surprised.

“Well, duh. We’re the best team in Equestria.” she stated like it stupid just to ask. Then again, she shifted back to friendly “The Mako Sharks don’t travel cheap.”

“Wait What?!” she exclaimed before the sound of running steps closing in rapidly prompted her to turn just in time to be tackled by a blur of pink. She hit the ground with a thud and the sound of laughter and music too loud for their head phones reached past the mane of bright green hair filling her vision.

“ZEST?!” the giggling body on top of her pushed itself up, flipping its hair out of the way to reveal the grinning face of her best friend.

“Hey girl” Lemon smirked.

“HOLY SHIT!” Tifa cried and snatched the girl in a hug. She heard the athlete laugh again as she returned the embrace and squeezed a little tighter, trying to blink away the sudden wetness in her eyes “Holy shit…”

“I missed you too Tif” Zest gave before extracting herself from the hug and helping her friend to her feet. She waited with a smile while the brunette wiped her eyes… before promptly giving her a solid punch in the arm.

“OWww!” Tifa whined and rubbed the appendage. That hurt, even with her bangel that actually hurt a decent bit “What was that for?!”

“You said you’d stay safe!” Lemon scolded with a stern scowl.

“I have!”

“Oh yeah; getting caught at Condor, Picking a fight with the Turks in the middle of Junon, falling into Corel Prison?” the blitzball player listed off “~Soooooo safe!”

“Well it hasn’t been for lack of trying Zest...” the martial artist defended. The music lover held her stare, though it soon started to break under the stress of a grin. The sound of someone clearing their throat cut in, drawing Tifa from the moment and back to the group waiting right there “Oh! Uh yeah, sorry. I guess I should introduce you to the group, yeah? You remember Rarity right?”

“Lovely you see you again Darling”

“You too,” Zest nodded.

“And that’s Pinkie and Spike,”

“Hiya!”
“Hey.”

“They talk!” the green haired girl blinked in surprise.

“We do,” Spike smirked.

“Cool!”

“This is Applejack,”

“Ah, the fabled Orchard unit leader” Zest gave, shaking the farmer’s hand.

“Don’t know ‘bout ‘fabled’, but we do alright” AJ shrugged “Nice ta meet’cha.”

“And this is Fluttershy.”

“Hey,” Lemon held out her hand. The pegasus looked down at the offered appendage, then to the brunette before finally up to the owner.

“...Hi.” she gave plainly before walking away. The music lover pressed her lips together, retracting the limb into an awkward thumbs up.

“I’m guessing she’s the broody type?” she turned to her friend.

“She’s... been through a lot. Don’t worry about it” the pugilist ran a hand through her once more blonde hair.

“Those colors gonna hold up for a bit?” Zest asked, gesturing to the disguise.

“They should,” the buxom fighter answered “For the next few hours at least.”

“Well, with the rest of the team still asleep and most of the crew already in the group, I’d say it’d be safe to take at least you up for a bit” she smiled at the blonde “Want a tour?”

“Oh um,” Tifa looked to the party.

“Oh don’t worry about us dear!” Rarity shooed her gently “You go catch up. We’re not going anywhere.”

“Well then, lead the way” Tifa gave just before a mass of feathers connected to a cracked beak filled her face with nuzzles “Oh... yes, how could I forget? This is Kiwi.”

“Come on ya big lug” AJ took the chocobo’s harness and pulled the bird from the retreating pair “Ah know ya taken a shine to her, but she’ll be back.”

“You did say you wanted to meet a Chocobo properly” Zest chuckled as they reached the stairs “Surprised it took so long.”

“Well I have only been here a-OH! Oh yeah, you don’t-” the pugilist realized “Yeah, I uh… I guess I got some stuff to tell you huh?”

The group watched the pair ascend the stairs and out of sight.

“Well that was Heartwarming” the other player gave “Name’s Sour Sweet by the way. Come on, the stables and break room are back this way.”

“Any updates ya can give us Sweets?” Applejack asked as the athlete led them through the bowels of the airship.

“Depends how much you’re caught up on” Sour returned “You know about the moles right?”

“Y’all know that ain’t our area down there” AJ countered “Someone get outed?”

“Shit you are out of the loop” the freckled player sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose “No, nearly all our high ranked moles on the plate have gone dark.”

Applejack stopped in her tracks, staring at her comrade in shock

“ALL of them?!”

“Almost” Sweet frowned “Don’t know if they’re dead, outed or just laying low. The few left and the lower placed don’t have any answers either. What they Have told us though is that there’s more than a few rumors that something big’s going on; That the board’s been making a lot of moves behind the president’s back.”

“Such as?” Rarity posed. The blitzballer shrugged.

“That would have been info from the ones that went dark. They’re up to something though, and if it’s intentionally without the President’s consent, then it’s not any kind of good.”

“No” AJ lamented “No, it ain’t…”

“Thaaaat… does answer some questions” Zest gave slowly “And brought up a whole lot more.”

“Too weird?” Tifa asked dejectedly. Lemon scoffed.

“Tif you passed ‘Too Weird’ a long time ago” she shot her friend reassuring a grin “And I’m sure there’s still plenty of even crazier shit in this world than you.”

“Thanks Zest…” the martial artist returned quietly. She really meant it too. The player’s arm landed across her shoulders.

“Got nothing to worry about with me, girl. I’m in too deep for something like that to make me bail on ya now” Lemon gave the current blonde a squeeze before giving her a more scrutinizing glance “You’ve mellowed a bit, huh?”

“Have I?”

“Yeah. Back in Midgar you were a little more feisty but also pretty tightly wound without letting any of it slack. Like you were just angry inside. This is better” the music lover analized “I do miss your hint of cockyness though.”

“I guess having a Second Class SOLDIER beat the ever living crap out of me without even trying really drove home the fact that I’m not as tough as I thought I was…” Tifa mumbled with a frown.

“Hey, you’ve made all this way and are still standing. You’ve crossed a damn continent, by land! You gotta be pretty tough to do that” Zest countered and then gave a winning smirk “Why you may even be tough enough to be a Blitzer!”

“Not really the strongest swimmer” Tifa quipped back, smile finally returning “Almost drowned from that sewer asshole’s attack even.”

“You didn’t tell me that…” Zest’s expression fell to genuine concern.

“I didn’t want you to worry” the martial artist tried to shrug off “I mean, I still made it out.”

“Not the most blessed ignorance to leave me with Tif. Well… shit, here” the athlete took her arm away to fuss with her own bangle, popping out a purple materia and pressing it into a spare slot in Tifa’s own “Underwater Materia: Protection from horrible drowning guaranteed!”

“Zest you don’t have to do that. Besides, aren’t these kind of expensive?”

“Pfft!” Lemon immediately waved off “You any idea how often those split for us playing this game? I got a damn shoebox full of the things from just my highschool days somewhere, so don’t worry about me missing one to keep my friend safer.”

“Thanks” Tifa repeated “Sorry.”

“Still too hard on yourself though I see” Lemon sighed before pulling the woman into a side hug “Don’t worry though, we’ll get some of that confidence of yours back yet!”

“Maybe” the still blonde relented “So you’re offically AVALANCHE now?”

“I don’t know how official AVALANCHE gets but yeah, as much as you are I guess” Zest shrugged “Sour caught me bean balling that trooper looking to ambush you guys in Junon and-”

“That was You?!” the pugilist interrupted, Zest puffing her chest out in response.

“Yep! Nailed him right in the head too!”

“Honestly in the state I was in I wasn’t even sure that it was real” Tifa marveled “Weren’t you like, way above the city by then?”

“I’m very good at this Tif” she stated matter-of-factly. A beat passed when her head snapped to the other girl’s with a frown “Have you not seen any of my games?!”

“Oh! Uh, well… No, actually. I haven’t exactly gotten the chance...” the martial artist gave timidly, scratching at her cheek. The athlete’s eyes narrowed at her dangerously.

“You know I’d be pissed if I didn’t know that was true” she gave sternly before brightening again “Guess I’ll just have to make sure you see us in Wutai.”

“Speaking of, how do you know?” Tifa asked, brow furrowed at her friend “Even Applejack didn’t know about the prison.”

“It’s what we do in this cell: we gather intel from the other groups, or sometimes on our own, and then pass it on where it needs to go. Us bouncing from place to place for games gives us the perfect cover for it.” The green hair girl explained “Though admittedly we didn’t put the whole coral prison and you stealing Dio’s safe together till after you brought Orchard the materia.”

“So I don’t have to worry about you going on raids or the like?” Tifa asked hopefully.

“Not unless something massive goes down, which you’d almost certainly be there for too” Zest concluded “So no, you don’t have to worry about me nearly as much as I worry about you.”

“Eh, I’ll be fine.”

“See?” Lemon smirked and gave her friend a wink “Told you we’d get some of that confidence back.”

It took less than a day for the airship to cross the small sea to the Wutai islands. It was too bad the Sharks couldn’t take them all the way to the city but with them having a game it would have been too risky to try smuggling them off the ship with the certainty of the press presence. Instead they were being dropped off a little ways south of the main city and would rendezvous away from the cameras.

“You sure Kiwi staying won’t raise too many questions?” Pinkie asked as the hatch began to open.

“Nah,” Sour answered, dismissing the concern with a wave “Everyone’s used to me making big impulse buys, they won’t even blink at the idea that I bought a Chocobo.”

“Don’t take too long” Zest gave Tifa a bump “We’re finally gonna get a chance to see how that Wutai place you liked stands up to the real deal and it’ll be more fun together.”

“We’ll try not to keep you waiting” they shared one last hug before the party descended the ramp to the edge of a forest. They watched the ship rise into the night sky and disappear past the leaves. An air of melancholy descended onto some of them, but they pushed on into the trees and to set up camp for the night.

It had been uneventful, allowing them a decent night's sleep, even if not as comfortable as the one the day before. They were a few hours into the forest when they figured they were almost through based on what they saw from the air. They didn’t even have to fight too many monsters; just a couple bizarre bugs and a few living weeds. They got a little nervous when a large Adamantaimai lumbered up to them but it just walked past on its way back to the beach, not caring about their presence. All things considered, it was a nice change of pace.

So of course that’s right when a smoke bomb erupted in their midst.

The blur of a brown cloaked figure darted into the haze and around the disoriented party. A few shouted at it though their coughs but could only stumble after. Tifa felt a light brush against her arm followed by a hard tug on her wrist, nearly pulling her off balance and to the edges of the cloud. A faint memory sparked and she quickly looked to where her materia should be… all she had left were time and ice.

‘Oh they did not just steal the materia Zest gave me!’ the brunette burst from the cloud, watering eyes darting about. She caught the briefest glimpse of the thief’s cloak flutter into the branches and took off in pursuit. She snapped off a quick casting, covering the hooded figure’s next branch in ice. A huge, 4-pointed shuriken flipped out from beneath the cloak and caught another branch, letting them swing right over the obstacle and keep going. The brief sweeping of the moggle themed cloak flared and revealed a lithe, female form beneath.

‘Whoever this chick is, she fast’ Tifa noted as she was quickly falling behind.

‘Too bad she didn’t take our first materia then, huh?’

With another flash the pugilist was covered in the golden sheen of haste and stormed ahead, quickly regaining the distance. The nibble pickpocket yelped as a flurry of needles and ice spells exploded all around her, yet managed to avoid them all the same. The edge of the tree line came into view and the thief shifted her direction.

Or tried to before a booming shot rang out and the branch beneath her exploded. She landed on her feet but was quickly set upon by the red smear rushing towards her. With her other escape blocked by the angry martial artist, she was forced to flee into the open. She didn’t get far before another shot grazed the hem of her hood.

“OKAY! OKAY! I’M SORRY!” the girl stopped and cowered in a crouch, shouting in a muffled yet shockingly familiar voice. With her hands still over her head, she tossed out the sack of materia as the pair approached “Here, that’s all of it! Wowie-zowie you guys are quick…”

‘Wowie-Zo… What in the hell?!’ Tifa slowed her pace as they neared. The girl’s moogle themed cloak hid her whole upper half from view but the voice left the brunette confused. Fluttershy scooped up the bag as the others caught up.

“So um…” the girl rose cautiously “I know it’s maybe not my place after robbing you and all, but I GOTTA ask…”

She pulled down her hood, releasing a wild mane of poofy pink curls over a pair of bright blue eyes staring at them perplexed.

“...What’s with the tiny horse version of me?”

With slack jaws and utter befuddlement, the party slowly turned to the Equine still perched on Spike’s back.

“Oh my, heh heh… well, heh... this is awkward...” the pony scratched a hoof on the back of her head. A shaky smile accompanied the nervous laughter as beads of sweat formed on the small quadruped’s forehead. Her eyes darted worrying between the rest…

Before she promptly leapt off and darted back into the forest.

Author's Note

Come on now, who saw THAT coming? :trollestia:

But alas, we now reach the end of the pre-written chapters so the they'll be a bit slower to release now. Like I said before, I'll be Aiming for at least one chapter every couple weeks, though I've learned better than to make promises. Still, I do fully intent to try. Who knows? Maybe I'll manage even more. Though I do also want to write more for my other planned story, Parasite Eve: Fuse, so all those chapters may not be for Locked Heart. (Sorry Maze fans, afraid I've still haven't overcome the wall I ran into in Equestria Gear yet... :fluttershysad: ).

Until the next one though, as always: Thanks for reading, and Have a good one! :twilightsmile: