Act Two
Round One (The Game is On!)
“You don’t know who Sephiroth is? What dark hole have been living in for the last decade?” Jamie asked as he pulled on a shirt.
It was morning, and Squad Lambda was preparing for their first day of training.
“What? Is he supposed to be famous or something?” Hannah asked as she combed her shoulder-length hair.
“Duh!!! Most people who are in SOLDIER now idolized him while they were still candidates for the Academy…he’s been my hero since before I can remember,” Robbie said, his eyes looking a little dreamy in admiration.
“…Why? What’s so amazing about him?”
“It’s said that he made Third Class in only a month, then skipped immediately to First at the next Ranking Test. No one had done that before, and no one’s done it since. He aces every assignment like it’s nothing, and wields a wicked-awesome sword and some cool Materia to boot.”
“Yeah. The rumor is he’s the most powerful person in the world,” Ivan added.
Hannah gave a skeptical laugh. “That silver-haired princess? Gimme a break…”
“Watch it, Hannah. He’s killed those that have crossed him before…my grandson was one of them,” Mitch said.
The whole squad turned to their oldest member, who they already saw as their uncle.
“What happened?” Ash inquired.
Mitch stared off into space, collecting his thoughts, then began, “It was the day after my grandson made Third…When you make Third, they assign you a First Classman to serve under. He just happened to get paired with Sephiroth, who was famous even then. Thing is though, very few people ever saw him, so virtually no one knew what he looked like…”
Mitch cleared his throat and continued. “After they met, my grandson wasn’t happy with his assignment. He couldn’t stand taking orders from someone younger than him, and he told Sephiroth that. Sephiroth told him to get over it. My grandson, being who he was, just got angrier. The two of them got into an argument…I’ve had to piece together what happened from people who saw it happen, which was hard because everyone saw and heard something different. All I can tell for sure is that, at some point, my grandson insulted him somehow. After that, Sephiroth beheaded him without a word..”
The room was quiet as everybody thought about this, and then Jiro pointed something out.
“You don’t seem too sad about it, Mitch.”
Mitch smiled. “It happened ten years ago, and I’ve had time to forgive, forget, and get over it. Besides, old men can‘t hold grudges.”
“…Ten years? Mitch, how old was your grandson when he died?” Kosuke asked.
The question went unanswered; a bugle blared a reverie, signaling that it was time to get out to the training field.
“Time to go…” Hannah said.
- - - - -
When all of the cadets met on the training field, they could tell that many of them had left during the night.
“Well, now ain’t this sumthin’,” the Commander said mockingly. “Only seventy-four left. The stakes are a lot higher now.”
As the Commander was saying this, a disheveled-looking cadet came running out onto the field.
“My bad. Seventy-five…” The Commander turned on the new arrival. “Why the hell are you so late, dumbass?!”
“I overslept, sir!”
The Commander glared for a moment, then said, “What squad you in, kid?”
“B-beta, sir.”
“Is that so?” The Commander turned toward the line of cadets. “Beta Squad, attention!”
The other members of Squad Beta stepped forward from the line, saying “Sir!” as they did, and they stood at attention.
“Tell me…Why did none of you bother to wake him up?”
“Because, sir, we’re not his babysitters,” their Squad Leader said.
“…’because you’re not his babysitters’…” The Commander slowly shook his head, then said, “Alla ya, every member of every squad, drop an’ gimme fifty.”
All of the cadets stared at their Commander confusedly.
“NOW!”
Instantly, everyone dropped to the ground and began doing the push-ups.
The Commander began pacing up and down the line again. “You useless pack of ingrates missed the big picture! And, until you get it, I will work your sorry asses to the bone!”
The leader of Squad Omega looked down the line at Hannah and snickered, “Don’t be doin’ them girl push-ups, now!”
While the rest of his squad and a few others were howling with laughter, Hannah locked eyes with Omega’s Squad Leader. Then, not blinking or breaking the glare in any way, she lowered herself to the ground, put one arm behind her back, and raised herself up again. She began doing one-arm push-ups twice as fast as anyone else was doing the normal ones.
There was a silence, followed by a group,”…Daaaaaaaaaamn…”
“Way to go, Hannah!” Ash whispered from his position to her left.
“Yeah, you show ‘em, Squad Leader!” Kosuke whispered from her right.
Hannah smirked. Maybe earning their respect wouldn’t be so hard after all…
She was the first one done. “May I recover, sir?” she asked when the Commander passed by her.
He glared down at her and said, “After that stunt you pulled last night? Hell no. Give me a hundred more. And add on another fifty for disobeying me about the cots.”
Hannah rolled her eyes and went back to her push-ups. Maybe forcefully taking the extra cots from the other squads wasn’t the wisest decision, but it had helped her earn her place in Squad Lambda as their leader.
She lowered herself to the ground at seventy-five, switched arms, and continued. The other members of Lambda Squad looked concerned, but Hannah just smiled and shook her head. “I’ll be fine, guys. I kinda deserve it, after all…” she whispered to them.
Even with all of the extra ones she had to do, Hannah finished her push-ups at roughly the same time as everyone else. The seventy-five cadets were given permission to recover, and all of them stood up.
“Good. Now that that’s over, let’s get to the point of our little gathering. Some squads will be assigned sponsors,” the Commander said, still pacing. He stopped in the middle of the line and continued, “Squad sponsoring has been a tradition since the beginnings of SOLDIER. Groups of three First Classmen come and take a look at you slobs, and if they see any talent, they ‘claim’ you. It’s sorta like high school all over again; the seniors ‘own’ certain freshmen. Once your squad has been ‘claimed‘, there’s no turning back; no squad changes, no sponsor changes…no quitting.”
The Commander paused for effect, and then he started up again. “If your squad is being sponsored, you’ll see very little of my hideous mug until the Ranking Tests. Those three First Class SOLDIERS will be your commanding officers, your bosses, your babysitters, your gods. You don’t speak, eat, sleep, shit, or breathe unless they give you permission to. If you disobey them, they won’t think twice about killing you, and they have every right to.”
The cadets looked among themselves, murmuring to one another.
“I suppose that’s enough of the bad stuff. Now for the reasons you would want your squad to be sponsored. They will give you insider’s tips, secrets of the trade. They will train you harder than I am allowed to, so you will become stronger than you normally would. They will beat complex and powerful Materia combinations into your brain until using them becomes second nature, something you won’t find me doing because I can’t stand the stuff. They will, if they’re feeling nice, give you support and encouragement, another thing you‘ll never get from me. If you make it into SOLDIER, no matter what rank you become, they will pay half of your tuition, whereas the members of squads not sponsored will likely have to take another job and work for years to pay it off. ”
There was quite a bit of murmuring about this.
“Lastly, and best of all…” The Commander leaned in slightly. “All those who are currently First Class came from a sponsored squad themselves, with the exception of one. In other words, if your squad is ‘claimed’ today, you are much more likely to not only make it in, but to make it to the top.”
The murmurs and chattering grew to an exited roar.
“Hannah, did you hear that?! If we get picked, we might make it into First!” Robbie squealed excitedly.
Hannah’s expression darkened. There had to be a catch, besides the ones he said at first.
The Commander motioned for quiet and was given it. “Now hold on a minute. I never said all of you were getting sponsors. In fact, I never said any of you are getting sponsors. First off, they only sponsor you if they see some talent. Number two, only three squads could possibly get sponsors, since only nine First Class-men will come and prospect for talent I don’t think is here today. And for those of you still holding out hope, Alpha and Omega are usually the ones that get picked. If not them, Chi and Sigma. Those are the only squads that have ever been sponsored.”
The chatter started up again, this time intermingling with sighs of disappointment.
“Aw, damn! Why the hell did he get our hopes up like that?!” Ivan said dejectedly.
“Well, they should start getting here soon…” the Commander said to himself, turning toward the gate. “…Perhaps that’s them.”
The gates were opening to let a car into the area. While the other cadets continued talking amongst themselves, Hannah watched the car. It was plain and gray, but she recognized it quickly.
…A Junon ‘Company’ Taxi…Shin-Ra only…Must be a group of First Classmen. I wonder who they are.
The car pulled up to the Commander and three men got out. After they thanked the driver, the vehicle pulled off, revealing the identity of the three First Class SOLDIERS.
The chatter and murmuring died immediately.
“No fuckin’ way…” Jiro said, his voice barely above a whisper.
“What? Who is it?” Natori asked, also whispering.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Jiro whispered.
Even the Commander seemed startled for a moment or two. Then he cleared his throat.
“Well…I never expected you guys to sponsor…”
“We just wanted to get down here and lay a claim on the promising ones,” said Aki.
“Yeah, we actually saw some potential yesterday,” Jethro explained.
The Commander nodded. “So, what squad you guys want? Alpha? Omega?”
Sephiroth narrowed his eyes into a glare at Hannah, who recognized him and matched it. Then he said, “Lambda.”
There was a gasp of shock from the cadets. Some people looked ill, a few of the members of the named squad even looked ready to faint. But the Commander was the most shocked of all.
“B--...but Sephiroth, why?!”
Aki looked over at the members of Lambda Squad. “They may not look like much…but there’s more potential in the thirteen of them than in all the other cadets combined.”
“Plus, wouldn’t it be great if the underdog came up to bite everyone on the ass later?” Jethro added.
“Besides…” Sephiroth said coldly, “There’s nothing wrong with me wanting to sponsor my home squad.” He continued to glare at Hannah, who was trying her hardest not to run up there and punch him. “…even if some of its members aren’t what one would call agreeable working material.”
“Yeah? Well you, Mister High-And-Mighty, can kiss my ass,” Hannah said while flipping him the bird.
Sephiroth looked ready to kill her when Jethro put a hand on his shoulder. He turned toward him, and his comrade shook his head.
“It ain’t worth it, Seph…”
After a moment, he calmed down. He then glared at Hannah again and said, “You’re right. It would be a waste of soap to wash her blood out of my clothes.” He turned and began to walk away.
Hannah let out a cry of rage and lunged for him, only to have her entire squad leap on her to hold her back.
“Hey, where the hell do you think you’re going?! Goddammit, get your candy-ass back here and fight, you fucking pansy!!!” she screamed at Sephiroth.
Either he didn’t hear her or chose to ignore her and kept walking.
“Yeah, keep walking, chicken shit!!!” she screamed, struggling to get free. “Leggo a me, dammit!!!”
Jamie, the one doing the majority of the work holding her back, said, “Jesus, Hannah, calm down! You’re our Squad Leader for heaven’s sake, so act like it!”
The Commander rolled his eyes in disgust and turned to the two remaining First Classmen. “So, do you still want Squad Lambda?”
Aki laughed. “Are you kidding? We want them even more now! Not only do the members have untapped potential, their Squad Leader has the guts to pick a fight with Seph! These guys are goin’ to the top for sure!”
“Bravery is one of the seven traits of a true member of SOLDIER. And, believe me, that woman has more balls than all the men in Junon. I’m sure she also shows the other six characteristics when she isn’t pissed.”
The Commander shrugged. “If you say so…”
The two of them nodded, and then turned and followed Sephiroth off the training field.
As soon as they were out of earshot, the members of Lambda Squad released their squad leader. Once freed, she roared in rage and began letting off a string of obscenities and curses directed at Sephiroth. After a few minutes of this, she calmed down somewhat, and she and the rest of her squad returned to their positions in line, with Hannah still fuming.
“…Lambda Squad, you are dismissed. Good luck, and may whatever god you worship have mercy on your souls; Sephiroth won’t,” the Commander said.
The thirteen of them saluted the Commander one last time, then turned and left the field, making their way back to their barracks.
Hannah was still furious, and was mumbling to herself the entire way there. “So my blood isn’t worth soap, huh?! I’ll show that faggot! When I’m done with him, he’ll be begging for death!”
Suddenly something clicked within her.
…Soap……I’ve got it!
A perfect plan for revenge formed in her mind then. It wouldn’t take much--just a few gil to cover ‘supplies’, a short trip into town, a little bit of internet research, and extreme stealth skills and courage. And the courage and stealth, Hannah had in excess.
While the rest of Squad Lambda relaxed back at the barrack, Hannah grabbed her wallet and made her way into the business section of town.
It didn’t take her long to find an internet café, her first stop. She went inside, ordered a cappuccino, and looked for an open computer that was far away from the others. She found it (the one in the far back on the right-hand side from the door, where there was no way she would be disturbed by either the staff or other customers), and sat down to get to work.
Once her research was complete and her cappuccino gone, she left the café and headed to her next destination, putting the information she had copied down on a napkin into her pocket. She quickly found the Junon Beauty Supply and went in. After browsing the shelves for a minute or two, she found what she wanted and purchased it.
Next, she made way to a tool store, and, after that, an ‘alternative’ clothing store. After putting all of her purchases in one bag, she decided to head back to the barracks, whistling a cheerful tune while she walked. Now all she had to do was wait for nightfall.
- - - - -
All was silent in the training camp. Hannah, in full ninja garb (her ‘alternative clothing’ purchase), quietly stole out of her squad’s barracks and slunk off down the street, blending into the darkness.
Maybe the ninja garb was a bit extreme, but, if she got caught, it’d be the end of more than her days as a SOLDIER cadet. Besides, maybe if she got caught wearing this, they would blame it on her being insane, and let it slide.
She pulled out the napkin from the internet café, and read the information she had written on it. In her neat print was written, ‘Apartment #313, Building 7’. Under this was a sketch of Building 7, a three-floored apartment complex reserved for Officers and First Classmen. According to the sketch, 313 was on the third floor, and the bathroom window faced the alley between Building 7 and Building 8, which was reserved for Shin-Ra managers, Shin-Ra Department heads (or, as Hannah called them, ‘the suits’), and the Shin-Ra Manufacturing Department in Administrative Research, if they happened to be in town. It also made note of the fact the occupant kept their window unlocked.
She put the napkin back into her left pocket, then continued down the street. After she counted seven apartment buildings, she found the alley between the seventh and eighth buildings and tiptoed into it. After referring to the sketch once more, she moved beneath the specified window and started to climb the brick wall, making sure to avoid other windows so as not to be seen.
And her parents had told her that her almost-freakish ability to climb walls was a useless skill. If only they could see her now…
She finally made it to the window she wanted, grabbing onto the windowsill to keep from falling. Carefully, she used one hand to reach into her back pocket while the other held on to the windowsill. She found the crowbar she had brought with her (her purchase from the tool shop), which she transferred to her mouth. Then she hoisted herself up until she was balanced on the windowsill without having to use her hands to hold on. Working as quickly and silently as she could, she pried the window open with the crowbar (since there was no way to open it from the outside, even if it was unlocked) and slipped inside.
The bathroom was clean and smelled slightly of soap, and the walls, ceiling, and floor were white.
She knew that this was 313 from the white (the internet had shown pictures). Now to see if the correct occupant lived there.
Hannah crept out of the bathroom and wondered what to do. She didn’t want to check the bedroom; it would be suicidal if she was right and rather foolish if she was wrong. Instead, she made her way to the living room.
She scanned the sparsely furnished room and quickly saw the proof she needed--a sword longer than she was tall was lying near the door in its scabbard.
Yup…This is the right place. The almighty internet has proved to be correct yet again.
She moved unseen back to the bathroom. Once there, she put the crowbar back in her back pocket and pulled her beauty store purchase out of her right pocket.
It was a small, brightly colored bottle with a colorful label. The label read, in large, bold letters, “SCRUB-IN”. In smaller letters under this, it read, “The color you simply scrub in like shampoo! Results in as little as five minutes! Guaranteed to last at least 30 days, even with daily washing!”
Hannah smirked as she turned the bottle around to read the instructions, which, like the label, were easy to read in the dark because of the bright colors.
Lesse here…’Simply mix with your regular shampoo, wash your hair like you normally would, and rinse. Towel dry. Color will appear in as little as five minutes.’…Sounds easy enough…
She found a half empty bottle of shampoo in the shower. She grabbed it, unscrewed the top, and set it down on the edge of the sink. Then she opened the bottle of Scrub-In, and began the task she had set out to do.
She poured the whole bottle of dye into the shampoo, screwed the top back on, and began to shake it vigorously to mix it.
There was a heart-stopping moment when she thought she heard movement from another room. After a few moments of nothing, she quietly sighed with relief.
Phew…Guess he just tosses and turns…I better finish up and get outta here before he has to use the toilet or something…
When she thought the shampoo and the dye were thoroughly mixed, she pocketed the empty bottle of Scrub-In and put the shampoo back where she found it.
Then, being careful not to make a peep, she went back out onto the windowsill. She closed the window behind her, then leapt down to the ground. After a graceful and silent landing, she moved quietly back to her squad’s barracks. Unfortunately…
“Kosuke! What’re you doing up so late?” she asked as casually as she could when she walked in and saw him sitting on his bed staring at the door (and now her).
“…What’s with the get-up?”
“Huh?”
She had forgotten she was wearing the ninja garb.
“Oh, this? I was just, uh…well, it’s after curfew, and I wanted to take a walk, so…”
“’Take a walk’, my ass.” He held up some small slips of paper. “I found these receipts in that bag you brought back from town. It says you bought ninja garb, a crowbar, a cappuccino at an internet café, and some hair dye. You’re up to something, Hannah, and I know it.”
“Why were you snooping around in my stuff, anyway?”
“I was worried you might be out there exacting a revenge that could get us all in deep shit. And, from what I can gather, I had a right to worry. Hannah, please don’t tell me you did something stupid…”
Hannah smiled.
“You’ll see in the morning.”
- - - - -
Sephiroth slowly opened his eyes and saw blurry darkness. He blinked a few times to make his eyes focus and glanced at the clock. It read 4:29 A.M.
After stopping the alarm before it went off, he sat up and stretched.
Let’s see…Today’s Friday…Normally, today would be a free day…Guess not anymore, now that I’m a squad sponsor…
He got up and walked across the hall to the bathroom. He turned on the shower, adjusted the temperature of the water, stripped, and got in.
Nothing like a nice, semi-cold shower to wake up.
He washed his hair, which was no small feat considering he had so much of it.
Why don’t I just get a buzz cut like everyone else around here? he asked himself as he scrubbed. Then he answered himself.
Because then I’d be like everyone else. Not that I haven’t always been different, anyway…Oh, well, no point in getting depressed. I don’t need to give myself a headache; I’m sure Miss Squad Leader will gladly do that for me, he thought bitterly. It’s too bad she’s such a bitch…She has so much promise…
When he was done rinsing, he turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. After getting a towel out of the closet, be began to dry himself. Once that was done, he opened the mirrored medicine cabinet and got out a comb to set about the monumental task of drying and combing his hair.
It was while he was doing this that he found something was horribly wrong.
He held some of his hair in his hand, not believing what he was seeing. He quickly closed the medicine cabinet to use the mirror, to make sure his eyes weren’t tricking him. He stared in numb shock.
Every inch of every strand of his long, flowing hair was a violent shade of pink.
