| GCB Fanfics: The Fanfiction Project |
August 20th, 2003"Bowser, Aeris and Cloud: The Rescue"Part V: "Trivial Pursuits" August 16th, 7:00 PM Cloud seemed to carry an unwelcome, antisocial aura with him as the clock ticked down the time to his match... and Aeris's match. Even Mario and Sonic seemed to be steering clear of him. All of his leads had played out, and they all led back to the same place. Bowser. He had searched everyone he could imagine, but his goal was still up in the air. Things had to force their way to a conclusion soon. Bowser knew Cloud was after him, and had to be relishing the chance to confront him in his own lair. But the Koopa King had been nearly as hard to find as Aeris, only rarely appearing out of nowhere for a match and disappearing just as elusively... like the enormous reptile was capable of vanishing into thin air. Mario had even closed down his shop to devote more time to assisting Cloud. The remaining fighters had enough of their own weaponry and abilities to make the shop a moot point anyway... but Cloud appreciated the gesture. He just hoped the plumber wouldn't come to regret his decision. Bowser had a lot of scores to settle, and Mario was numero uno on that list. He knew that for a fact, Sonic had spotted a list of "scores to settle" inside Bowser's ghostly hideout. Sadly, that had been about all they had gotten out of that excursion... with the exception of the blueprints for the doom ship, and even that would only help them if they could actually get on board. Cloud swung open the doors to the Hero's Haunt with one blow from his fist. He stepped through as the door ricocheted off its hinges and slammed shut. The inhabitants of the Hero's Haunt glanced up at him briefly, then quickly averted their gaze. Cloud had already been here before. He had been everywhere it seemed, covering the same territory again and again, hoping to spot any sign of Bowser. His eyes wandered quickly around the room... Vercetti was absent, doubtlessly still recovering from his injuries. Snake's cold eyes were focused on him, and Samus had her visor tilted in his direction. If push came to shove, Cloud hoped he could have some friends here to count on... but again, without being able to reach Bowser, he was helpless to do anything. A solitary figure in one corner caught his gaze... a tall man with blue hair and a red cape was seated on one stool. His eyes were closed and his two palms outstretched, like he was meditating upon something... or simply absorbing ambient energy from his surroundings. Cloud remembered the man's name. Magus. He had defeated and killed Ganondorf... perhaps he might be of some help. But as he began approaching Magus the wizard's eyes flashed open, and his arms crossed in a hostile pose. Cloud halted, several stools away from the man. Their negative auras seemed to overlap... bitterness and loss evident on both their visages. They were two men most knew to avoid. The unstoppable force against the immovable object... but Cloud was not about to give up. He had to find Aeris, no matter what. He took a seat beside Magus. The bartender glanced in his direction, but Cloud shook his head. The bartender shrugged, and went away to serve some of his other customers. Cloud turned to Magus, and about to speak, when his thoughts were cut off. "I know why you're here. You're wasting your time." "Oh really. Why do you say that?" "The one you seek is not your true enemy. Your true enemy lies in the shadows as always, manipulating events to his advantage. Just like he always has. And yet you still are eager for any chance your quarry would give you to confront him, on whatever terms he lays out. You're begging for the chance to be set up." Cloud seethed inwardly as the wizard's cold tones faded away. He could feel the eyes of the entire bar resting on him. "And just what would you suggest I do? Give up?" Magus snorted softly. "For now, yes. There is nothing you can do." Cloud raised one hand behind his back to grasp his sword... then relaxed his grip as he thought about Aeris. I can't fly off the handle like this... I have to stay calm. "I'm never going to stop trying, wizard. If he wants me, he can have me. Maybe you can be satisfied with letting the world go on without you, but I intend to keep fighting and searching until the last." Cloud felt a murmur of agreement waft through the bar. Cloud felt vaguely heroic for a moment... but that soon faded away as Magus rose to his feet, his countenance even darker than before. The magicians voice steadily grew as his eyes flashed warning signals, leaking out dark power. "Oh really? You intend to keep trying forever? Tell me Cloud... how long have you searched for your precious ancient? A few days? A week? Have your efforts really been so troublesome for you, you have to go begging for help already? Have you searched this dimension so fully in that time, you need my assistance so soon? I wonder, just how hard have you tried? Have you scoured time and space searching for her? Have you crossed planes of existence, and battled dark forces beyond what any of these "heroes" here can comprehend in your quest for vengeance? Have you...!" Magus cut himself off, turning his head to one side and angrily brushing past Cloud, heading for the exit. Cloud was at a loss for words... the whole bar had grown quiet in the wake of their argument. Snake and Samus seemed frozen at their table, their cards forgotten in their hands. Magus spun around again as he reached the door, looking past the stunned onlookers and glaring straight at Cloud. "Don't ever speak to me of not trying hard enough, Cloud, and don't try to compare your loss to mine. Your search will have an end, if you truly wish it. You will find that which you seek... but the price may be too dear to pay." The doors swung open and slammed shut a second time. Cloud barely had a chance to see Magus vanish into the shadows. He must has a lot on his mind... Cloud glanced around the bar... the conversation was still muted, and would likely stay that way until he left as well. Cloud sighed, and slipped out of the Hero's Haunt as gracefully as he could. ---- Meanwhile, roughly a few thousand feet above the Hero's Haunt. Bowser chuckled to himself, polishing the instruments and controls in the cockpit of his ship with pride. The whole thing was a masterpiece... truly his magnum opus. It was a pity he only had Aeris to appreciate it at the moment. Maybe he should throw a party, invite Cloud and his friends over... Bowser chuckled to himself. Nah. The spiky yellow ape and the spiky blue hedgehog would just get in the way. Bowser glanced out his window, then down the maze-like corridor behind him, filled with his finest traps and as much dungeon as you could squeeze into in airship. "Gwa ha ha ha! Truly, an impenetrable fortress." He gloated to himself. "Yes, absolutely impenetrable." The unseen voice was soft, but filled with sinister intent. Bowser shivered involuntarily... it was the one being at the tournament he still feared. He clutched his chaos emerald like a shield and held it in front of him as he turned towards the unwelcome intruder. "Welcome aboard to you too, Sephiroth." Bowser sneered. Sephiroth's face remained perfectly expressionless. "How do you like my humble little boat?" "It is exactly as you say. Humble." Sephiroth walked forward, his sword clenched in his right hand. Bowser spotted a chaos emerald tucked into the blade, and shrunk backwards from Sephiroth's approach. "You really think this little machine will be able to stop Cloud and his allies?" Bowser grinned. "With a few finishing touches, trust me, it will." Bowser began to feel a little uncomfortable as Sephiroth began pacing around his control room. He scrambled over to where Sephiroth was inspecting a video monitor and shooed him away. "Hey, leave that alone, I don't need your help." "Oh really." Sephiroth turned to face him again, and Bowser immediately regretted his mistake. "Need I remind you that without my help, you wouldn't even be holding onto your captive? Need I remind you of our agreement?" Bowser growled to himself. "I know. I take care of Cloud, you deal with Mario." "As I will, whether you live up to your side of the bargain or not... and whether you live or not." Sephiroth took a glance at the corridor behind them derisively. "Please do not disappoint me again." "Oh, I won't. Gwa ha ha... you see, once Cloud reaches..." "And just how do you intend to get them up here?" Bowser faltered for a moment and mumbled something incoherent. "Enough. Do not worry... Cloud will do exactly what you want him to do, when the time is right. You have the bait, and he will not be able to resist falling into your trap here. See to it that he does not escape from it." Bowser blinked his eyes suddenly... disbelieving. Sephiroth just vanished in front of him, like a ghost... or like he had never been there at all. Bowser shook off his feeling of uneasiness and returned to steering the doom ship. It was rather liberating to flying there up above the clouds... Bowser smiled to himself. And in four day's time, there would be another Cloud joining him. To stay. Next Entry Back |