Friday, June 18, 2004

Episode Eight...
(This, in my opinion, was one of the less interesting episodes. The next one will be better, I promise.)

“You guys gotta get out of there!” Darksoul called out to them from the bank on the other end of the marshes, as the large serpents began circling around Josie, Ryudo and Tidus, flexing their gaping jaws menacingly.

“Are these things what I think they are?” Tidus inquired pensively, ogling the massive serpents in disbelief.

“Midgar Zoloms? I suppose so,” Ryudo added. “But how? The original Zolom should’ve been dead years ago…”

“Well, whatever they are, they look hungry!” Josie said warily. “That Chocobo was the appetizer, and apparently we’re the main course!”

One of the Zoloms reared its head and struck Tidus with brute force, sending him flying backward into the mossy water. Ryudo’s eyes began to glow bright purple beneath his cloak, and a sphere of purple energy began to draw together in the palm of his bony hand. He almost instinctively aimed his palm at the Zolom, and a pulsating jet of energy shot out unexpectedly and came into collision with the its leathery hide. It roared with pain and disappeared beneath the water. Josie charged at the second, but her sword barely scarred its tough hide. Two more Zoloms appeared from behind them, except that these were much larger than the others.

Cloud and the others joined in the mêlée when a figure clad in green tore past the group, yelling out to them to stop fighting. They looked up in time to see an attractive lady with auburn hair and an angry disposition standing not to far from where they had been fighting. She whipped out what appeared to be a flute and began playing a distorted tune. The Zoloms ceased their battle with Ryudo and the others and circled around the strange lady, as though listening to the vague melody, and then one by one they disappeared beneath the dark water. At long last she ceased her tune and looked up at them, her green eyes ablaze with fury.

“What did you think you were doing?” she asked, outraged. “You could’ve killed one of the Zoloms!”

“Hey, they attacked us first!” Josie protested. “One of them even ate one of our Chocobo!”

“Calm down, Josie,” Ryudo said coolly, and he made sure to conceal his face beneath his cloak. The last thing he wanted right now was to scare the lady away.

“We’re new around these parts, and we had no idea that such a creature existed,” Ryudo continued. “We sincerely apologize. Right, Josie?”

“Sure,” Josie said, somewhat morosely.

“There’s no need to apologize,” the woman said sincerely. “It’s not your fault that you don’t know about the Zolom. It’s Shinra’s fault. He doesn’t care about any endangered species.”

“Shinra?” Tidus asked in surprise. “As in…Rufus Shinra?”

“Nope,” she explained. “Because of his deteriorating health, now his son has taken over Shinra Incorporated. Didn’t you know?”

“…Like we said, we’re not from around here,” Cloud explained. “How did Rufus survive Meteor anyway? Wasn’t Midgar destroyed?”

“No one knows for sure, but some say that it was his trusty robotic dog, Dark Nation, that managed to get him to the safety of a helicopter. Oh, how rude of me! I forgot to introduce myself. I am Lucia Greene, researcher at the Endangered Species Observatory.”

“An observatory? Cool! Where is it?” Darksoul inquired enthusiastically.

“It’s located at what was previously known as Fort Condor,” Lucia explained. “You folks should come by and take a look around.”

“I don’t know…” Wing said skeptically. “We’re in a hurry…”

“Oh, come on!” Lucia urged. “Besides, you haven’t introduced yourselves yet. Anyone up for lunch?”

“Brunch? As in…food?” Sakura asked hungrily. “In that case, I’m sure we could stop off at your observatory for a little while.”

The group, led by Lucia, made their way through the Mythril mines, occasionally braving inevitable battles with a few of the abominations that lurked within, much to Lucia’s dismay. They emerged minutes later, squinting their eyes against the mid-morning sun, and eventually arrived at the Endangered Species Observatory. It still retained some of its architecture from its days as Fort Condor, yet a sense of change lingered about the place.

“We refurbished a few years ago,” Lucia explained, leading them up the pathway and into a caged elevator. With a push of a button, it started a steady ascent, finally reaching the core of the observatory, which was much different than they had expected. Instead of the tunnel-like path, there were now well-built corridors, linking one room to the next. Lucia led them to the Conference room, where they were provided with a hearty meal of mizutaki, stewed chicken flavored with radish, scallions and other herbs. Accompanying this meal were tiny cups of steaming sake. Cloud took a sip and felt a comfortable warmth rise in his stomach.

When they were finally finished with their meal, a brunette clad in a lab coat entered the lab, smiling vibrantly.

“Well, everyone, I’d like you to meet Miss Christine Watts,” Lucia introduced the woman. “She is a senior researcher here at E.S.O.”

“Pleased to meet you all,” Christine said amiably, still smiling. “Now, I’ll take you on a tour of the observatory. Follow me!”

The tour purposely stretched on for hours, and they completely lost track of the time. Night finally came and the group decided to spend the night at the observatory. Lucia was only too happy to accommodate them. They retired to their respective rooms, with the exception of Ryudo, who opted to stay with Lucia.

“So, what do you think of the place?” Lucia asked him, tucking some hair behind one ear. “Isn’t it impressive?”

“Yeah, it is,” Ryudo agreed.

“So, where are you all headed from here?”

“I’m not really sure,” Ryudo admitted. “We’re not even from this world. Tifa had suggested that we go to the Promised Land, so I guess that’s where we’re headed.”

“The Promised Land? I see.” Lucia paused. “But why do you always wear a cloak? I can’t even see your face.”

She reached her hand up to raise the hood of his cloak, but he jerked away and leapt to his feet at the remembrance of his ghastly appearance. If he scared her away now, he would never be able to forgive himself.

“You…you can’t, Lucia,” Ryudo said firmly. “I…I’m not even human. At least not anymore.”

“Please, let me see,” Lucia pleaded.

Ryudo nodded unsurely, and Lucia slowly pulled his hood back, revealing his unique face. His eyes were a deep shade of purple, and his ears were elflike: long and pointed. His nose was relatively small and flat, and from a distance it seemed as though there were only two small slits in his face for his nostrils. His skin was smooth and flawless, except for one slash that ran from his brow to his left cheek, over his left eye.

“You haven’t looked in the mirror recently, have you?” she whispered softly. “You’re just... different.”

"Thanks, I guess."

“Well, you’d better get some sleep,” Lucia said awkwardly. “I just need to finish up some work. Good night.”

Ryudo pulled his hood over his face again. “Good night.”

Lucia watched Ryudo’s cloak-clad figure fad away into the shadows of the dimly lit hallway. Then she whipped out her cell phone from her pocket and dialed feverishly.

“What is it, Lucia?” the man on the other line answered. “Have they arrived?”

“They’re here,” she replied. “I identified our mystery man. Name: Ryudo. Race: non-human. Height: around five feet ten inches, or probably a bit taller. Identifying marks: a scar over his left eye.”

“And the Sephiroth clones?”

“One female, one male. They go by the aliases Josie and Wing. Currently their location is in rooms 5 and 3 respectively.”

“Well done. Prepare for Operation Lockdown.”

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