Guilt’s Cost: Part XLVIII

Conference

Tseng found Angel and Reno in the main control room.

Angel noticed him first and upon seeing the pained look on his face grew afraid. "Uncle, are you all right? Is your heart bothering you?"

"No." Tseng shook his head, lying just a little. "I need to talk to you two in the conference room immediately."

The two of them looked at each other with concern. This was more urgency than they had seen from him in a long time. They followed him into the conference room; finding Zale, Morris, and Ericson already seated. Reno and Angel took their places.

Tseng paced before the long table, dreading what he was about to say. "Okay, we’ve got a couple of problems. One I have Tifa looking into right now, and until she can confirm or deny the reports I’ve received from Mideel, I’m going to put that one aside for the time being. Unfortunately, I just got a call from Quigley in Midgar."

A hushed gasp went through the room. They all knew how rarely that particular agent checked in.

He acknowledged their surprise with a nod. "He told me something that cannot leave this room for now. As you know, when Ms. Lockheart arrived here, she told us that Cloud Strife had taken his own life. You also know that his body was not found. Apparently, she was mistaken about his death, for Quigley has told me that he is in fact alive."

Another mummer from the crowd, and Angel covered her mouth with her hands.

"Shocking, I know." He sighed as much to himself as those present. "According to Quigley, he’s living in the Shin Ra lab of what appears to be his own will."

Reno stood up and hit the table before him. "Then Quigley must be fucking wrong!"

Tseng raised his hand, causing Reno to sink back into his seat. "I have no reason to doubt what he has said. Quigley has never misled me before, and I don’t think he is now."

"So he’s actually seen him there, then?" Ericson asked from his place in the other end of the room.

"Yes." Tseng made his way toward his seat at the head of the table. "He had indeed seen him as well as heard him talk. Apparently Hojo has gained his cooperation by promising to bring back Aeris if he allows himself to be subjected to some studies."

"But she’s been dead for seven years!" Reno got up again. "Even if he managed to find a Phoenix Down it would be too late to bring her back!"

Tseng raised his eyebrows as he looked over to Reno. "We all are aware of that, Reno. But if Cloud was disturbed enough to try to take his own life, then who’s to say that he wouldn’t be fooled by Hojo’s promises? Besides, even if he did have a way to bring her back, I think we all know that Hojo is not a man of his word, and he wouldn’t do it anyway."

Angel reached up and pulled Reno back into his seat again. His tendency to have outbursts during meetings was something that she had become accustomed to. "Uncle, what do you propose we do?"

Tseng finally reached his own chair and fell back into it. "We have to get him out of there, plain and simple."

"How are we going to force someone as powerful as Cloud to come with us if he doesn’t want to?" Angel asked.

Tseng hung his head. He had already put some thought into this and had only come up with one answer; an answer he didn’t like. "We will have to take Ms. Lockheart with us. Maybe she can get through to him. After all, she is his wife."

Angel’s heart was shocked by this. "But what about Tifa? How is she going to feel about this? Have you told her? What… what about my father?"

Tseng sunk even further into his seat. "Angel, I don’t know what else to do. We just cannot allow Hojo to have Cloud, no matter what the consequences are for Tifa or Vincent."

The greater good of the mission escaped Angel’s grasp. She was too emotionally involved in both Tifa and Vincent to agree. "But we can’t do that to them!"

Tseng rose from his chair and made his way to Angel. He placed his hands on her shoulders and spoke into her ear. "I am sorry, Angel, but I am going to have to dismiss you from this operation. I think your feelings are going to get in the way."

Angel shot up from her seat with tears in her eyes. She spun around to face Tseng. "The Hell with Cloud! I can’t believe you are going to put Tifa through this!"

"Angel, I know this hurts. I understand your concerns, and I’m not going to lie to you and tell you that this isn’t killing me as well, but there is no other alternative. So again I must ask you to leave this room." He said staring into her eyes. The pain he saw within her stung him back but he couldn’t let his emotions for Tifa and his brother get in the way.

Angel ran from the room, slamming the door behind her. She ran all the way back to her quarters, her eyes stung by bitter tears of resentment for her uncle’s choice of action.

Reno looked over at Tseng with blatant anger on his face. "Good job, Tseng. Now I’m gonna have to deal with that shit."

"Shut up, Reno." He bent down to be on his level. "You know as well as I do that there are certain risks in our business and that we can’t always do what our feelings say we should. We can’t risk Hojo making Cloud into some new Sephiroth. If that means that there are going to be some hard times for Tifa and Vincent, then so be it."

Reno backed down, sensing that Tseng was not in the mood to argue. He crossed his arms over his chest and put his feet up onto the table.

"Thank you." Tseng straightened back up. "Now, for my other point of concern. As much as I hate to do this, we need to get Quigley out of Midgar."

"But Sir!" Zale started, "He’s our best plant in Shin Ra!"

"Yes, but if we proceed with him still in Midgar they will realize that he is an agent. I can’t chance him getting killed. Quigley has served us too well to not save him." Tseng had a genuine liking for him. "Reno, I want you to retrieve him tomorrow."

He rolled his eyes, knowing that this was going to be a boring trip. "Fine."

"We’ll have the helicopter drop you off in Kalm. From there, I want you to drive into Midgar, wait for Quigley to show up at his apartment then bring him home." Tseng narrowed his eyes at Reno. "Do you think you can handle that?"

Reno scoffed. "Sure."