Final Fantasy VII: Lifestream - Book 2: Aftermath

THIRTY-NINE

The Shinra Building loomed high overhead, just as tall and ugly as I remembered. Biggs, Wedge, Lena, and I had made it here without any problems, just as I'd hoped. But the real challenge was about to begin. I took a breath to steady myself, then led the others to the front doors as we all tried to relax and act as casually as we could, just another group of employees going to work for the day.

I was carrying a purse with me, hanging down from one shoulder, and carefully hidden inside it amidst an assortment of keys, cosmetics, tissues, loose change, and other items was Lena's gun, loaded and ready to go along with my tablet. Biggs had a briefcase, too, and inside it, he'd stored two guns, one for him and one for Lena. Hopefully we wouldn't have to use them, but I knew it'd be better to have them with us, just in case. And Shinra's security was as lax as I'd hoped—no metal detectors even after Cloud and the others had escaped.

The two soldiers outside glanced at us for a moment but didn't get in our way as we went inside. The lobby was still a bit banged up from when Cloud and the others had broken out almost two weeks ago. The rows of handlebars that normally hung from the ceiling were still gone along with the lamps they'd supported. Cait Sith had managed to send them crashing onto my father's men to give my friends a chance to get out. I knew it had been him who'd helped them, but I hadn't told them yet since I wasn't sure if he wanted them to know.

A pair of wide, sweeping staircases with long, soft purple rugs rose up on either side from the black marble floor, and just past the broken glass sign, an assortment of new cars and trucks sat parked on display. It didn't look like Shinra had replaced the one Tifa had stolen yet, and I found that oddly amusing and pretty satisfying. Black marble columns stood along both sides of the lobby, and as we looked up, we could see the interior balconies of the first fifty-nine floors rising far above us in row after row, metal railings shining brightly.

Biggs let out a low whistle. "Damn. Never thought I'd set foot here in the lion's den. Gotta admit, it's impressive."

"Yeah, but keep it down," I quietly warned him. "We're supposed to work here, remember? Gotta act normal. So just listen to the stage girl and follow my lead. We see this all the time."

"So where's the elevator?" Wedge whispered.

I led them toward the stairs. "This way. And walk casual. We're just on our way to the office, if anyone asks. You all know your parts, so do you best to sell them and play the role."

Lena nodded. "Got it. Ready when you are."

We headed to the second floor, my heart pounding the whole time as we climbed up the stairs, but no one stopped us or gave us a second glance. The elevators were right across from the top, and after swiping my Shinra ID through the scanner, the glass door opened and we went into the short hall. Two other people were there, just ordinary workers like we were supposed to be, and Biggs gave them a little nod while he pressed the button to call one of the lifts.

It came a moment later, the doors opening with a soft chime, and I walked inside, the others just behind me. So did the two Shinra people, a man and a woman, and while I pressed the button for the 57th floor, the man—he looked vaguely familiar with his dark hair and burgundy suit—touched the one for the 50th floor. Then I barely hid my surprise as I remembered. He was the Shinra manager I'd saved from a slug-ray on the train during the Reactor 5 mission. As the elevator started to go up, he glanced curiously at me for a moment.

"Excuse me, miss, but... have we met before?" he asked. "You look a little familiar. What division are you in?"

I shook my head. "No, sorry. Urban Development."

He returned it. "Ah, I see. My mistake."

"It's alright," I told him.

I hoped he wouldn't make the connection, or that the others and I would be long gone from here when he did. And at first, it seemed like that would be the case. But when we stopped at the 50th floor a minute later and the doors slid open, he paused halfway out of the elevator and looked back at me while the woman left.