Rebirth

Chapter 32 - Mideel

Cid's new ship, Sierra, arrived at the canyon a while later. They loaded the vehicles and
headed for Mideel. Barret found a spare t-shirt that he gave to Tifa. She wore it now,
returning the sweater to its owner. The t-shirt hung loosely on her to her knees. "At least
it fits my middle," she thought, looking down at her changing body. She sat in a seat in
front of Cid and ran her hands over her stomach with a small smile on her lips. Cloud
watched her from across the room. He thought she had never looked so beautiful . . . or
more fragile. He could see that her nerves were shattered; she jumped at every sharp
sound and her eyes at times became wild when he was out of her sight even for a
moment. "If we don't get her help soon . . ." he didn't want to finish the thought.

They traveled for several hours as the ship floating above the ground, crossing what used
to be verdant forests and crystal clear lakes, but which were now just barren wasteland
and huge craters where the ShinRa cannons had been. They approached what used to be
Mideel. The twisted skyscrapers and refineries broke the horizon ahead of them. They
could see the remaining citizens of the devastated town had done what they could to
rebuild their lives by erecting shacks in the desert surrounding the city walls. They flew
over row upon row of shanty buildings, held together with nothing more than corrugated
tin and mud. Children ran below the ship as it passed over them, racing to see who could
stay within the shadow it cast on the ground at their feet.

Tifa stood on the bridge of the ship gazing down through the clear hull at the ruined city
below. She scanned the horizon and searched her memory for a familiar landmark. It
was so long ago . . .

"There," she said, pointing to what used to be a sprawling complex of buildings. It was
now just a bombed out shell with not a soul in sight. "I think that's it."

"Ok, let me find someplace to put this baby down, then I guess it's a search and destroy
mission for us. Well search anyway," he grinned at Cloud.

True to his word, Cid found a suitable place to land the craft and they offloaded the
vehicles. Cloud turned to Tifa. He was struggling to know what was best for her; to
leave her at the ship or to keep her with him. "Last time I left her . . . ," he thought to
himself. Reading his thoughts, Vincent said "Tifa, come with us in the SUV."

Tifa let herself be led to the vehicle looking over her shoulder at Cloud. He smiled and
winked at her and said "You'll be safe with them, baby. I'll be right behind you." He
walked over to Fenrir and mounted it again. It felt good to be on the bike and doing
something proactive for a change. He flicked open the weapon compartments in the
faring, withdrew his swords, and slid them into the scabbards on his back. He was ready.

He led the small convoy towards the old hospital building, driving through the bombed
out streets. As they approached, they saw the building was completely uninhabitable;
much of the roof had gone and many of the stairs where collapsed. Cloud parked the bike
and walked to the SUV. "Vincent, come with me. The rest of you stay here with Tifa."
Barret smiled despite himself. He wasn't used to being told what to do, but this Cloud
was sounding like the old Cloud. It was good to hear.

Tifa watched from the truck as Vincent and Cloud walked into what was left of the
building. She fought a growing feeling of panic as she watched them disappear from
view. Red saw her reaction and sat down close to her, his warm fur against her arm.

Cloud and Vincent walked slowly through the unlit hallways of the old hospital. His
memories of the place were vague and confused. "The place must look very different
from how it looked back then," he told himself. They searched the building, moving from
floor to floor, finding the same thing everywhere they looked; empty rooms and more
dark hallways. They had started back down towards the truck when they heard
something off in the distance. Cloud stopped and glanced at Vincent. He heard it too
and drew his pistols. Cloud pulled his sword quietly out of his scabbard as they crept
towards the sound.

They slowly and silently approached the end of the hallway where they thought the sound
came from and peeked around the corner. In a room off the hall they saw a short, slight,
bespeckled man wearing a white lab coat who seemed to be rummaging through some old
file cabinets, muttering to himself. He carried a small torch clenched in his teeth so he
could see the contents of the files he was looking for.

"It's got to be here somewhere. It has to be," he muttered to himself around the torch.
Cloud looked at Vincent. He looked harmless enough and didn't appear to be armed.
Cloud stepped out into the hallway behind the strange man. "What are you looking for,
old man?" he asked in a clear loud voice. Startled, the man dropped the flashlight in his
mouth and spun around to face both men. The flashlight hit the ground and rolled away
from him towards Cloud. He squeaked, "Please don't hurt me. I don't have any gil. I'm
just looking for some old files. I can't hurt you."

Cloud picked up the flashlight and put up his hand, trying to calm him. "We're looking
for something too or someone actually. Perhaps you can help us."

At the sound of Cloud's voice, the strange man stood up straight with a quizzical
expression on his face. "Do I know you?"

Cloud was sure he had never met the man before. "I don't know, do you?" he asked.

The little man took a few tentative steps towards Cloud, peering at him through his thick
glasses. "Yeessss, it was a number of years ago now, but I remember. A young woman
brought you here. You were very sick, very sick . . ." his voice trailed off as the memory
came back to him.

"No, I don't know you, I'm sure of it," he said, this time with a tinge of fear in his voice.
He backed away from Cloud and Vincent, looking wildly behind him for a way out of the
room. Cloud dropped the flashlight, took three quick strides to him, and grabbed the
front of his shirt. "Perhaps this will refresh your memory," he said, his face inches from
the other man's.

"I don't want any trouble with ShinRa," squeaked the man. "Please, I'm an old man. I
can't hurt anyone. Tell them I'm not going to talk to anyone, please"

Cloud and Vincent glanced at each other. This was the man they were looking for! His
stroke of luck at finding him here made Cloud suspicious. He twisted the man's shirt
tighter in his hand and pulled him closer to his face. "Who told you we were coming
here?" he asked through gritted teeth.

"No one, no one," said the man, obviously confused now. Cloud let the man go and
stood back from him. "You do know me, don't you? Don't lie."

The man looked from Cloud to Vincent and suddenly dropped his shoulders and sighed.
"He's not going to let me out of here," he thought to himself. "I might as well tell the
truth." "Yes, yes, I know you. You're a ShinRa SOLDIER. You were brought here by a
young woman and put in my care," he said. "I should have stayed home sick that day,"
he muttered to himself.

Cloud smiled despite himself and said, "I'm glad you didn't. I believe you saved my
life.." He sheathed his sword. "What were you looking for?" he asked.

The man had obviously forgotten his errand and was a bit nonplussed by the question.
"Looking for? . . . . Oh yes!! Well I was just trying to find some files I had left here
some time ago, nothing important you know. By the way, my name is Dr. Tendo. I used
to work here . . oh, but then you know that don't you."

"And you worked for ShinRa, too, didn't you?" asked Vincent. He had stood in the
background, watching the exchange between the two. He had recognized the man from
the ShinRa laboratories.

"Why, yes, I did. But that was a long time ago, and I'm afraid my tenure with them was
not very long or very pleasant. Er . . . do I know you too, sir?"

"No," replied Vincent, stepping back into the shadows. Cloud looked at Vincent with a
puzzled expression. "What is he hiding," he asked himself.

He turned back to the other man and said, "Dr. Tendo, you're coming with us,"

"I am? Oh no, no I couldn't possibly do that. I'm expected at home soon, you know,"
Dr. Tendo answered with growing fear in his voice.

"It's not a request," said Cloud as he grabbed the older man's arm and walked him out of
the building with Vincent bringing up the rear.

Cloud forced the old man to sit behind him on Fenrir and drove back to Sierra. He didn't
want him to sit in the SUV with Vincent, knowing somehow that his friend didn't want
Dr. Tendo to see his face, at least not yet. They loaded the vehicles back on the craft and
reassembled in the crew quarters below the bridge. Dr. Tendo's eyes flew wide open
when he saw Tifa walk into the room. Forgetting his fear for the moment, he stood and
walked over to her.

"Do you remember me, my dear?" he asked, taking her hand. She winced as his fingers
explored her broken knuckles.

"Yes, it's Dr. Tendo, right? I remember you helped us when Cloud was sick a few years
back, before Meteor," she answered tentatively.

"Dr. Tendo, this is your new patient," said Cloud, walking up behind Tifa and placing an
arm around her waist, pulling her to him. Tendo looked from Tifa to Cloud.

"Ah, I see. So you are about to become parents. That's nice," he said. Tifa blushed
under his gaze and looked at Cloud with a small smile on her lips. She moved her hand
across her belly as the baby kicked inside her.

"But, young man, I am not an Obstetrician and this young lady obviously needs one."

"Sit down, Dr. Tendo, we have something to tell you," said Red.

Tendo jumped when he heard Red's voice and looked at Cloud with an obvious question
on his face.

"Yes, sit down and have a cup of coffee. There's a lot we have to tell you," said Cloud,
passing the confused man a cup of fresh brew.