Strife in the Deep

[Cloud Strife]

With the sensation of falling, and his stomach dropping, Cloud found himself greeted by a cool, breeze. The smell of salt water filled his nostrils as ho took in a large breath. Looking around, the blonde noticed that the scenery had changed. What was once a blank canvas, empty of colour and life, had become a bustling coastal city. The new scenery was a welcomed change, if he'd stayed in that place he might have, over time, gone crazy.

'I wonder what they call this place.' Cloud pondered as he began moving through the large crowds that filled the street. You'd think that a man walking around with a huge sword on his back would draw a lot of attention, but it didn't.

'Is wielding huge weapons normal here?' the young man asked himself. Unsure of why he was going unnoticed

'No, not really.' A peculiar voice spoke out from below him. A small man in a dirty green cloak had stopped in front of him. Cloud wasn't tall, but this man was much shorter than he is. 'That being said, a lot of empire soldiers carry weapons around. So people try not to stare and look suspicious.' the small man smiled as he motioned for the blonde to follow him into an alley. He seemed a little odd and rather untrustworthy, if he'd had any Gil on him he would have checked to see if was still there. But it wasn't like he had any other option to chose.

'The name's Street Rat.' He spoke as he pulled the hood of his cloak back 'Well, that's not really my name, but that's what they call me.' He laughed. The man was bald, and had a rather large nose. His eyes where a very faded brown and sunk into his face. A set of very thick, bushy, eyebrows sat about a centimetre above his eyes. His smile revealed two abnormally large front teeth, they almost dwarfed the others in comparison.

'Street Rat huh... Aptly descriptive.' Cloud thought as he stared at the small man with a rather sceptical look on his face.

'Hey!' Street Rat exclaimed with a shrill, nasal, voice 'What's that look for?' he finished, poking the blonde's stomach aggressively.

'Oh nothing, it's nothing.' he coughed, looking around the alleyway to avoid eye contact.

'No matter. We should leave.' The cloaked man spoke anxiously as he looked at his wrist. He had a watch strapped to it, the glass was cracked slightly, but it still worked. 'They'll be here soon and I'd rather leave before then.'

'What do you mean?' Cloud asked as he watched the tiny man lift a man-hole covering up and over to the side, revealing a ladder.

'The empire's navy-men.' he spoke as he began to descend below the street. Cloud watched as he disappeared into the darkness. Cloud sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, Street Rat raised a hand from the darkness and gestured for the man to follow him into the sewers. Cloud walked over to the man-hole and peered into it. His rat-like friend had lit a torch and was standing off to the site, waiting for him to follow. After letting out another sigh, the blonde followed his new acquaintance, pulling the cover back over the hole as he did so.

'Hey, did you see him!?' A muffled voice called out from above the two.

'Nah. He's not here.' another voice replied, this one seemed to come from further down the alleyway.

'Damn, missed him again. They told us he'd pulled someone into the alley with him. A man with a big blade on his back.' They spoke as the sound of footsteps passing over them acted as background noise as they passed through the tunnel.

'So, what do they want with you?' Cloud queried as they trudged through the wet sewer systems.
'They tried to conscript me and I refused. They wouldn't back down and tried to force me so a escaped. Accidentally killed two marines in the process...' he answered quickly, 'Been after me ever since.'

the spiky haired man nodded as they turned a corner, and came to a hole in the brick walls. It was a roughly made hole, broken pieces of stone brick sat on the ground in puddles of mud and sludge. Just beyond the hole was a cave-like hole that led upwards, The blonde examined the walls as he was guided by is companion. The walls had large claw marks in them, as if dug by a giant animal. He wasn't a stranger to huge animals but he hadn't seen any on the way here, so it was a little puzzling.

'Up here.' Street Rat spoke as he motioned for cloud to climb up yet another ladder. This one led to a wooden hatch. Dim lanterns lit the small room that greeted them. A small table covered in scratches and sheets of paper sat in the corner, two chairs accompanied it. A bed sat opposite it, the sheets were clean and seemed oddly new, compared to the rest of this place. There was a cupboard and a sink at the back of the apartment and a boarded up door and windows at the front.

'Nice... place you've got.' Cloud mumbled as the smell began to make him feel a little sick. Street Rat nodded and replied with a grumble as he pulled a piece of bread from the cupboard and sat at the table. And turned to the man.

'So, new to the Omniverse?' he asked as the blonde took a seat at the table with him. He nodded as a piece of bread was slid over to him.

'Primes don't need to eat. Bet you haven't really thought about it this whole time, but now that you have, you wouldn't mind some food.' he spoke, sounding rather annoyed and jealous.

'Unfortunately, I'm not a prime. I can't revive at the fountain if I'm killed. If the navy catches me, I'd be dead within 24 hours.' he spoke. Cloud wondered why he was telling him this, it was good information, knowing that he couldn't die permanently was good information, but he didn't really see where this one-sided conversation was going.

'So I need you to be my bodyguard. Just for a few weeks, until I can get a boat and get off this island.' the baldy suggested. Cloud finally realised why he'd been approached. The man mulled it over for a second, resting his elbow on the table and his chin on his palm.

'Pay me.' Cloud grinned.

[Cloud Strife]

His proposition had caused a moment of silence. Still grinning, Cloud stared at Street Rat as he considered the idea of paying for protection. Ums and ahs came out of the tiny man as he weighed up his options, the blonde and his oversized weapon waiting for an answer. He groaned as he turned his head towards the cupboard and then back to the man. He could tell that his new acquaintance valued his life more than his money.

'Fine. I can give you this.' Street rat groaned as he reached went over to the cupboard, pulled out a small bag and tossed it onto the table. The sound of coins jingling emanated from the bag as it landed. Cloud took the bag and opened it, finding a clump of cold coins.

'Fifty gold coins. Take it, it's all I've got.' the cloaked individual spoke, irritation in his voice. Cloud nodded, attached the bag to his waist and then stood up, the coins jingling slightly as he did so. Before he had a chance to speak, a barrage of knocks came from the boarded up door. A look of confusion, followed by worry spread across Street Rat's face, he clearly wasn't expecting visitors.

'Open up, we know someone's in there!' A gruff voice exclaimed. There was a moment's pause, whoever it was was waiting for them to open the door.

'We should go.' The rat-like man gestured as the hammering on the door continued. He'd moved towards the trap door they had used earlier, but the blonde wasn't that stupid.

'Stop. We don't have enough time to cover our tracks, they'll just follow us down there.' Cloud stated as he began un-clipping his blade. He was right, just as he'd finished speaking, the door flew open. A dozen navy soldiers led by a man with a rather embellished jacket stood outside the building.

'Well, do your job, protect me!' Street Rat ordered as the man stepped into the room.

'Protect him? So you're part of his uprising as well.' The captain queried, Cloud recognised a second chance when he saw one.

'No, he just pulled me off the street and paid me to protect him. Money is Money.' He shrugged, the Captain looking him over as he spoke.

'Well, you can keep his money, he won't need it where he's going. But you'd better leave.' The gruff-looking man spoke as he strode past the blonde. He wore a white button up shirt and pants combo with black boots. The man nodded and headed out into the street. The soldiers moved out of the way, allowing him to pass through, before moving back to the door. Cloud heard the sounds of fighting before a loud screeching noise filled the street. Cloud turned to see the officer fly backwards out of the building and into a wall across the street. A giant, rat-like, beast burst through the front of the house and into the street, knocking the soldiers over. 

'So that's why his name is Street Rat. I get it now.' The man spoke as he over to the officer. 

'I can handle this for you... But you'll have to pay me.' Cloud spoke.

'Extortion huh... A mercenary then?' the man asked as he began moving bricks off of his body. Cloud nodded as he watched the fifteen foot tall rat creature rip through navy officers like butter.

'What did he pay you?' He coughed.

'Fifty.' Cloud responded.

'Will one hundred do?.' the navy captain offered.

'I'll need a boat as well.' he added, the officer growled as he watched his men go down one after the other. 

'Done. Now stop this thing before this becomes an even bigger mess.' He ordered. 

Cloud didn't like being ordered around, but he wasn't in a position to argue right at this moment. The former SOLDIER nodded and then turned to the beast, un-clipping his buster sword and pulling it from his back. It had been a while since he'd felt it's weight. He swung it a few times, gauging the way it felt, before wielding it with both hands in front of him. Cloud faced the beast, holding his blade out in front of him. It shone in the sunlight, catching the animal's eye. 

'So, he's offered you more money then?' Street Rat growled, his voice now deep and animalistic. The blonde nodded in reply to it's question.

'Guess I'll just take my money back then!' the beast roared as it charged towards him.

[Cloud Strife]

Despite his newly attained size, Street rat was still quite speedy. Cloud had been left with little time to completely dodge the rodent’s oncoming attack. He raised his weapon to eye level, putting it between himself and his foe in an attempt to deflect the creature’s razor sharp claws. The force of the rat’s attack forced his own blade to smack him in the face. Embarrassing, yes, but at least he was alive. With a slightly deflated ego, and an aching nose, cloud leapt backwards from the beast. Without leaving any time between his actions, he turned and dashed towards his opponent. wielding his buster sword with his right hand, the tip of his weapon sparking as it scraped the street as he moved. With a demonstration of strength, that did not match the rather sleek look of his body, the man swung his oversized weapon. A cacophony of cries came from Street Rat as the blonde’s blade sliced through its flesh like butter. To be honest, he was quite surprised. He’d not expected to be able to strike his foe so easily.

The rat began to make sounds that could only be likened to a very demented laugh as the newly created wound on it’s side began to sizzle and close up. Cloud sighed as he watched all of his hard work go to waste. What use was there in cutting into him if he was just going to heal it like that? He’d just have to try another approach. As soon as the creature’s wound healed up, it threw itself into another charge.

‘He’s much faster this time!’ Cloud gasped as he, once again, raised his weapon. ‘Not enough time to guard.’ he panicked as he desperately tried to defend himself from the beast’s gaping maw.

‘I don’t think so!’ A deep voice called out as a figure appeared in front of the blonde, wielding a katana that the mercenary hadn’t noticed before. The middle-aged man held the beast’s attack back long enough for Cloud to regain his composure.

‘Can’t let you outshine us.’ The marine squad captain grunted as he lifted the beast from the ground and tossed it backwards. Cloud sighed with relief, he’d thought he was a goner. He stepped forward, next to the captain, and gripped the handle of his blade with both hands.

‘Just back me up. This is my job and I intend on getting payed in full.’ Cloud spoke with an arrogantly inflection.

‘Don’t worry, you’ll get paid.’ The captain responded.

With one smooth motion, the blonde launched his weapon at the animal before transitioning into a sprint. The beast smirked and, with a flick of it’s tail, whipped the weapon back at the man. Relying on his reflexes, the man launched himself into the air. Using the flat side of the blade as a platform to further propel him towards his enemy.

‘Don’t forget about me!’ The marine shouted, catching the rodent off guard as he plunged his own weapon into the beast’s leg. Rather unfazed by this, Street Rat batted the man away with his tail. The creature then returned its attention to Cloud, blocking the blonde’s kick with its tail and throwing him back into the air.

‘How is he just getting stronger?’ The marine asked himself as he stumbled to his feet, catching himself on Cloud’s sword. ‘We have to end this, now.’ he spoke as he gripped the blade, it’s weight giving him some trouble.

‘How the hell does that kid wield this thing like he does?’ The man grunted as he hoisted the blade from the ground with all his strength. Transitioning into a full-body spin, he lobbed the blade into the air towards Cloud.

‘Hey kid, Catch!’ He called out as he watched the blade spin through the air towards Cloud.

Cloud caught his sword and smiled, now it was his turn to do some damage to something. The mercenary lifted the blade above his head, spinning it so that the flat edge of the blade was in front, as gravity did it’s thing.

‘Well, you know what they say. What goes up.’ Cloud called out as he began his descent towards his first opponent in this world.

‘M-Must come down?’ Street Rat responded as he placed his tail between himself and his young opponent.

‘Exactly!’ the blonde confirmed as he brought the massive weapon down onto his enemy’s tail. The force of the attack was too much to contend with and, like an ancient stone wall, the beast’s defences crumbled. The mercenary’s attack connected with the rodent’s skull, forcing it into the pavement below. The sound of bones cracking could be heard as the mercenary withdrew his blade.

‘If I can’t cut you, then I should just break you.’ Cloud spoke as he hoisted his blade above his head and down behind himself, clipping it to his back.

‘You know, you could make it far in the Marines, uh…’ The captain mumbled, realizing he’d not asked for a name before all of this.

‘Cloud.’ the blonde responded.

‘Well, Cloud, you should consider joining.’ the navy officer suggested as he sheathed his katana. He looked to his squadron of marines, a dozen battered and bruised men stood around another dozen of critically injured men. They were working desperately to stabilize them and keep them from bleeding out.

‘We need someone like yo-’

‘Not interested.’ Cloud interrupted, placing his hands in his pockets and turning towards the man.

‘B-But why?’ The marine questioned.

‘You have a good thing going on,’ the mercenary began ‘but it’s not for me.’ he finished, turning to the marine and giving him a rather worrying grin.

‘Now, about my payment.’ the blonde mentioned, shifting the subject quickly.

The marine captain sighed and looked down at the ground, mumbling something under his breath. He looked up at the blonde and then turned, giving the young man a hand gesture that told him to follow. Cloud, without hesitation, followed the marine. Eager to receive his payment.