"Stupid boats," she muttered, cursing under her breath. She used the wall to pull herself unsteadily to her feet. She was relatively sure there was nothing left to throw up.
She looked over at her friends, all watching her. "I'm okay now, I think," Yuffie acknowledged. She bobbed her head a little to emphasize the point, but stopped in mid-nod because it made her sicker.
"We're almost there..." Tifa offered, shrugging a little.
"Yeah," Yuffie managed, "I sure hope so."
"Although Yuffie's condition is most unfortunate," Red said, "We should decide exactly where we're going to check in Junon before we arrive."
Cloud nodded. "Yeah... So far, we've got the airport and the area around the old Shinra elevator. Anything else?"
Cait Sith stretched out on the mog. "And we could just have a general look around. You know, ask a few questions, look 'er over... Maybe we can come up with something that way."
"Sounds good," said Cloud, "What's everyone want to do?"
"Get off the ship," Yuffie moaned, sitting back down.
"I meant after we get off the ship," Cloud ammended.
"After?" Yuffie asked, "After we get off, I'll do anything."
Shaking his head, Cloud asked, "Okay... what does everyone else want to do?"
"I can ask around," offered Red, "Try and find something out."
"I'll check out the airport," Cait Sith suggested.
"That'll work," Tifa nodded, "And you'd better take Yuffie with you. Cloud and I can check out the elevator. Unless," she added, "You want someone with you, Red."
"No," Red said, "That's alright. I'll be fine."
"Good," Cloud said, "As soon as we-"
The intercom interrupted, then. "Docking in Junon in five minutes," the voice announced, and Yuffie let out a sigh of relief.
During the remaining five minutes, the chocobos decided who they would go with. Amy was staying with Red, Seth and Kari with Cait Sith and Yuffie, and Quaza was going with Cloud and Tifa.
They left the boat shortly after. Yuffie's immediate reaction was to fall to her hands and knees and begin kissing the ground. They all watched her with a mixture of disgust and amusement. Finally, Seth brought her back to the situation at hand by pecking her sharply in the butt.
The young ninja was on her feet in a second, letting out an ear-spitting yowl. She drew in a breath to snap at the chocobo, but Cloud interrupted.
"Yuffie," he said, "Let it wait. For now, let's just do what we need to."
Wishing each other the best of luck, the nine of them went their seperate ways.
Cloud and Tifa had arrived at the elevator to find that it had been rusted shut. It clearly hadn't been used in a long while. They searched for clues, but it quickly became clear that there was nothing to find.
The only thing strange that Cait Sith and Yuffie discovered was the absence of the Highwind, which wasn't that strange at all, since they'd all agreed to let Cid have it. The airport lacked both planes and people, and they hadn't found anything any hints.
Red, on the other hand, had heard a few interesting rumors. People were whispering about heavy construction in the forest by Junon, real secretive work. It had been going on for some time, and the area was sealed off; only employees got in and out and, according to several townsfolk who needed jobs, whoever owned the area wasn't hiring.
"Well," Tifa said, "I think we've got an obvious start. We should take a look at that area of the forest."
"That's what I was thinking," Red agreed, "But supposedly, security's very high."
Yuffie scowled as she looked at them. "Hey!" she said, "Are you all forgetting what I do, er, used to do?" The last was added to ease Cloud's glare a little. "Hel-loo! You think I can't get past a little fence and a few alarms? Shows what you know!"
They all stopped for a moment, looked at the young ninja. Shrugging, Cait Sith nodded. "Sounds good to me," he said. "But I think the chocobos should stay here, just in case there really is a fence. I don't think they could get over."
Kari bobbed her green head in agreement. "That's a good idea," she said.
"Well..." said Tifa, "Unless there's anything else, we should get started."
No one could think of anything else, so the chocobos agreed to wait in front of the bar until everyone got back. The walk to the part of the forest that the construction had been seen in wasn't far; they arrived at the spot in about ten minutes.
A chain link fence about ten feet tall surrounded the area. Generous loops of barbed wire rimmed the upper half of the fence. Sensors ran the length of the barrier, acting as alarms in case anyone attempted to tamper with the fence.
Yuffie looked the fence up and down. "Hmph!" she muttered. Then she turned and smiled at the others. "Piece of cake," she announced, waving a hand nonchalantly towards the security.
Yuffie walked along the length of the fence, peering intently at the chain. She stopped when she came to one of the support bars. The young ninja pulled a small, sharp knife from the place it was hidden in her belt and jambed it into a small box attached to the metal.
"The sensor," she explained, "Well, one of them. Whoever designs security systems must be an idiot. The sensors are programed to go off if the fence is tampered with, but you can take out the alarm itself without any problems at all. It's like, they think thieves are stupid!" She flashed them all a daring grin. "I suppose I should be thankful, though. It just makes it easier!"
Cloud started to protest, but then just shook his head. "Fine," he said eventually, "Can we get in now?"
"Sure!" Yuffie said, and stepped aside, letting Cloud take the lead again as she re-hid her knife.
"Over?" Cait Sith asked hesitantly, pointedly eying the barbed wire.
"Yup," Cloud replied, estimating how hard it would be to get over.
Tifa glanced at the wire hesitantly. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" she asked him.
But, instead of an answer, Cloud took several steps back and ran towards the fence. He used the speed to boost himself to the top of the barrier and, once up, sqautted at the top, balancing. Then he jumped to the ground on the other side, propelling himself outward so that he would miss the wire.
He landed safely and turned to face the others. "Come on, you guys," he prompted.
Red crouched, tensed, and jumped. He hit the fence almost at the top and managed to scramble over, catching his foot on the wire. It cut him a little, but when Cloud asked, Red denied that he even felt it.
Reluctantly, Cait Sith instructed the mog to leave him and go back to Junon. He really doubted its hands were well-formed enough to grasp the links and climb over, and there was no way it could make the jump. He would be better off without it for now. The small cat scrambled nimbly up the fence and then climbed back down the other, ducking and twisting to avoid the barbed wire.
Yuffie climbed it easily, as though she knew what she was doing. She dropped to the ground without so much as catching her clothes on the wire.
Tifa had a slightly harder time, since she was wearing her gloves. Once she got to the top, however, she had no trouble getting down.
They began to look around, each covering a section of the area. It was, however, a part of the forest located directly by the mountains. The section that the construction was supposedly taking place on was surprisingly small, and it ended just beyond the place where the woods met the mountains. The only thing a little strange was the fact that, although the rocks around it were relatively rough, the face of the mountain within the fence was smooth and flat. Not, completely; it could have easily been caused by some geographic fluke, but it was the only thing even a little out of place.
After looking about for a moment, Yuffie realized something. "Hey," she said, "Anyone notice something missing?"
They all glanced around, feeling something missing, but not able to place it.
"The buildings," Yuffie said, "If this has been going on for so long, where is everything?"
They began to look around, but were interrupted when Red sat up on his hind legs, ears pricked forward. "Shh!" he commanded. "Someone's coming!"
They scrambled quickly into hiding, ducking behind a few of the larger trees. From the hiding places, they could make out figures through the trees. Two were struggling to carry a long, rectangular crate. One stood in front of them, using some electronic device to open the gate.
As they went inside and came closer, voices could be heard. One, a man's, swore loudly and continually. Another, a woman's, was harsh and impatient.
Cloud peered around the side of the tree. Somehow, he wasn't surprised to discover that he recognized the people. Reno and Elena carried the crate and Rude walked ahead of them, unhindered by the extra weight. As they reached the mountain face, Reno dropped his end with a loud thunk and Elena set her side down with a little more care.
She glared at Reno. "Damn it, Reno!" she snapped, and Cloud reflected that, although he didn't know much about Elena, he was relatively sure she didn't usually act the way she was acting now. Apparently, tension was running high between her and Reno. "Why can't you ever take orders seriously?! Scarlet said she wanted it in one piece this time!"
Reno met Elena's eyes with an even gaze. "I'm getting real sick of Scarlet," he said.
Elena's expression darkened considerably. "Well, that doesn't mean you have to-"
"Enough," said Rude, silencing them both. He glanced around, checking for people, and Cloud slipped back behind the tree to avoid being spotted. When Rude turned back to the mountain, he touched the controls on the device. Slowly, a grinding noise filled the air, and Reno and Elena bent down to pick up the crate again. Cloud heard Tifa gasp quietly as she saw what was happening. The entire side of the mountain was folding up on itself, revealing a cavern that was completely uncut, save the floor, which had been neatly leveled and tiled.
Rude disappered quickly into the room, and Reno and Elena followed, carrying the crate. The noise of footsteps climbing a set of stairs could be heard. Slow seconds ticked by, then the mountain-door slowly began to grind closed. Cloud waited as long as he dared, then slowly crept towards the door. Just before it closed, he slipped his sword flat under the door, holding onto the handle.
Several moments of silence passed before they deemed it safe. Carefully then, Cloud pulled up on the handle. As the sword moved into a slanting position, the door was forced slowly open. It was hard work, though, and Cloud soon realized that he couldn't open it even halfway.
"Glancing at the space below the door, Cloud grunted, "Crawl under."
Yuffie didn't need to be asked twice. She scrambled under quickly, almost laying on her stomach to fit. Cait Sith only had to duck as he walked under. Tifa almost got stuck as she pulled herself through; Cloud's grip was slowly slipping. Red wriggled through on his belly, having to press himself completely flat to make it.
After they were all through, Cloud cursed softly. How, he wondered, was he supposed to get in? His question was answered momentarily when the door ground slowly open, then stopped at a place a little higher than it had been before.
Gratefully, Cloud tossed his sword under, then lay flat on his stomach. Halfway through, he thought he was stuck, but all it took was a tug from Tifa to pull him through.
Once inside, Cloud climbed to his feet and looked around after resheathing his sword. It was a cave-like room, grey and dull, but the floor had been flatened and carved to look like tile. Electronical equiptment was positioned in a corner opposite a set of stairs. Yuffie stood by the equiptment, assumably trying to close the door. It responded quickly, grinding to a close.
They waited a few moments longer, just to be safe, then climbed the stairs leading of of the cave. As they rose above the floor, they could see the room above.
The floor was dark blue tile, the walls white. A black desk, currently unattended, was centered towards the back of the room. Neat, cylinder elevators lined the walls. Several potted plants decorated the space between several tables and chairs.
It looked like the lobby of a normal office building, save the fact that there were no windows. The only thing strange at all was the sign above the desk. It read: Shinra, Inc.