To returning readers- There have been some notable but still mostly minor changes to the earlier chapters- Tifa’s displacer is more obviously not ‘The Merchant’, Sunny Flare’s Weapon has been changed to a Shuriken like Cissnei's, and certain aspects of Tifa’s absorbed materia have changed (Notably that while merged materia aren’t terribly rare, combination one’s like hers are, and that's it).

-Party Load Out and Materia-

Tifa: Human (Displaced)

Metal Knuckle- Fire, Ice --- Upgraded Bangle - Time + Added Effect

Other: Enemy Skill+Mime (Absorbed), Rude’s Sunglasses

Rarity: Unicorn

Silken Dream- Restore, Esuna, Ice --- Mythril Armlet- Barrier, Lightning

Other: Enchanted, Reinforced (and Perfectly tailored) Suit

Half the group flinched back when the tentacle backed hound hit the window, dissolving back into pixelated particles.

“~She’s gonna break your recooord~”

“Oh shut up” Sunny grumbled at Rina’s teasing, though not taking her eyes off the show like the others.

Two more canine shaped holograms stuttered into sight in the simulated slums before a spark of mako flashed to give them substance. The new hounds rushed to join the others supporting the squad of virtual Troopers bearing down on the test’s buxom participant.

“Keep the arm up…” the group’s bald member muttered just before the butt of a trooper’s rifle crashed across the fighter’s face.

“Three targets dealt with only to drop it on the forth,” Sugarcoat added “she has sloppy focus.”

Tifa snarled, snapping back and turning the recovery into a brutal back hand. Rina let out a low whistle as the offending trooper flew across the area and crashed straight through one of the virtual scrap metal shacks.

“Geez, I’d hate to see this chick’s limit…”

“If she’s keeps going we just might” Rarity countered as they watched Tifa sprint toward the last two of three troopers, the third currently held off the ground before her to shield against their fire. They fell quickly under the fighter’s assault, a chime from the speakers signaling the last phase of the round. The low drone of propellers filled the fighter’s ears as a trio of large guns attached to a hovering central core materialized.

“Bet she wishes she carried a lightning materia now, huh?” Sunny quipped as the heli gunner drone spun in place and aimed its weapons at the seemingly unfazed Tifa. The woman snapped her fingers and the drone dropped like a stone, its propellers frozen in great blocks of ice. Sunny stared on, her brow high as Rina laughed.

“You were saying?” the red headed Turk shot back as the machine struggled to even turn itself over. After a few moments it simply shut down and dispersed back into pixels.

The tone chimed again and the system began to reset the location as the fighter readjusted and itched at the awkward goggles meant to further immersion. Her surroundings shifted to a grassy plain with large, rocky outcroppings jutting harshly out of the ground. Another hologram shuttered into view, stretching high above the ground before the mako current sparked through it.

“A dragon” Tifa muttered meekly “…wonderful.”

She began her rush as the beast roared, a torrent of flame erupting from its maw to meet her approach. Tifa flung her hands before her without breaking her stride, a freezing mist scattering the fire just enough for her to sprint through. The tactic however seemed to be coming up short as she was forced to stop just to keep the flames even close to tolerable, her focus so centered she missed the small tingling at the back of her mind as the heat surrounding her grew.

“A clever use of what she has available” Sugarcoat admitted “Though she wouldn’t have to if she didn’t overspecialize in hand to hand combat.”

“You can compensate with materia” Rude stated quietly.

“Not the way she uses it” she shot back just before the simulation shuttered. The gathered Turks all tensed slightly as the arena and dragon dispersed before Tifa gave a heavy sigh of relief “What’s happening?”

“Someone’s overriding the system from the upper booth…” the technician explained as he scoured over the controls. Rarity’s glanced up curiously through the resetting testing area to the reflective glass of the VIP observation room, seeing two vague silhouettes through the window’s glare as the tech spoke again “She’s being bumped up to level 12 by… Whoa…”

“Was that supposed to happen?” Tifa’s voice piped up in the empty chamber “Did I lose or something?”

“Stand by Miss Lockhart” the tech spoke through the microphone before turning back to the others “the override’s coming from a Level 7 executive code.”

“Oh holy crap” Rina muttered.

“President Celestia is watching?!” Rarity gasped as the environment constructed anew around the confused martial artist. She of course realized that Ms. Lockhart was now an important part of the company’s plans but for Celestia to come observe such a routine test herself… Maybe she was underestimating the true severity of the situation.

Tifa looked around as her surroundings built up into a Y shaped intersection of the city; one with a small kiosk style market, a café with outside seating and a generic sports bar surrounding her. She looked up to see the goggles filling in the city's skyline, the extent of the simulation impressing her. The level data in the corner of the goggles’ Heads Up Display updated, skipping straight to level 12 and indicating she was on phase 1 of 1 with 4 out of 4 enemies remaining.

Her head snapped to the quartet of figures materializing, her eye’s widening as she recognized the threat. While the each had a degree of personal customization, they all shared the similar enough indicators of their position; thick leather belts and suspenders, round metal pauldrons and knight like helmets obstructing most of their faces.

‘SOLDIER’

The two in light blue fatigues broke from the group in a pincer approach, the first with a masculine build wielding the traditional SOLDIER longsword while the other looked to be a female wearing a pair of pneumatic gauntlets. The buxom fighter leapt back as the sword cracked the pavement, dodging the lunging straight of the second and returning a quick elbow and a jab to her torso.

“That’s the one based off Canyon Crusher, isn’t it?” Rude stepped closer, now more focused on the exchange between the two hand to hand specialists. He made a slightly impressed grunt as he saw her keeping the gauntlet wearer between her and the swordsmen, relegating him to token assistance.

At least until a lightning bolt shattered the street lamp above her. The Canyon Crusher copy took the opening to land solid blow across Tifa’s face as the burning glass rained around them, the second rushing past with an upward swipe. Tifa threw herself back while trying to turn away from the blade, only to still feel the sharp pain lance into her shoulder.

A quick flash of fire erupted between Tifa and the SOLDIER, throwing them all back. Tifa quickly flipped and landed with a splash in an unseen puddle, skidding slightly at she looked back to her opponents. They weren’t pushed back nearly as much as she hoped, her face falling as she saw they were barely fazed at all by her quick spell.

‘Of course they’re resistant to magic, their SOLDIER… Come on Tifa, Think!’ she either needed a way through that resistance or force them to stick to physical combat. She rose clutching her shoulder as she worked her jaw, the simulation greatly muted most actual damage but it still felt real. With water dripping from her form she realized the puddle was the only one present in the simulation, having come from her melted defense against the dragon. Meaning it wasn’t supposed to be there.

Her thoughts broke as the pair closed again, forcing her to drop into a defensive ready stance. A spike of ice shattered against the metal of her gloves, freezing the droplets on her skin and accentuating the bite of the cold. She faltered several steps back as the two slowed, waiting to strike as the glow began fading from their materia when the thought struck her-

‘That’s an idea, a stupid idea but...’ she waited, hoping the simulation wouldn’t consider the variable and act in her favor. The sword wielder launched forward again, thrusting for center mass. The blade sailed past as she shifted and punched out, her retaliating fist easily avoided as it flew past his head. The other leapt at the vulnerable martial artists with her fist ready.

‘Please let this work!’ Tifa slammed her elbow back against the SOLDIER’s helmet as she kicked out his footing. She pivoted and spun them in place, swinging him straight into his comrade’s heavy strike. The other faltered as her gauntlet crumpled the swordsmen’s helmet, Tifa rolling over his back and bringing her heel down on her helmet as well. A quick kick off and she landed just at the edge of the puddle, an icy mist surrounding her hands.

“Well I’ll be damned” Rina grinned as the participant swept her hands up and the materia in her glove pulsed. The puddle rushed up the unbalanced, soaked pair, adding just enough to the spell to encase them.

A much taller figure stared down from the room above, her tone also a little impressed… if still a bit critical.

“Well… she certainly shows a lack of experience, but she’s still proven herself resourceful if nothing else.”

Tifa braced with a smirk while wiping the sweat from her brow and threw herself at the helpless pair when a shadow flared in her peripheral. A pair of curved blades came spinning at her, the winged 2nd Class SOLDIER still airborne in their strike. She only managed to catch one on the small plate on her glove, the other scoring a shallow hit along her forearm. With grunt the buxom fighter shoved back and threw the elite off, a quick orb launched from the Griffon SOLDIER as she flew. The ball of magic splashed over Tifa, leaving the simulation perplexed as it seemed had no effect.

‘Slow won’t work on me’ she internalized before the SOLDIER was on her again ‘but holy crap is this girl fast!’

Tifa barely dodged another pair of attacks before missing her counter as her opponent spun away with a flourish. A short yelp escaped the brunette as she stumbled back clutching her collarbone, another bright red line glowing under her hand.

‘Real or not these hits still hurt like a bitch!’

The dual wielder flew at her again to find the woman crashing into her, jerking up and rolling her over her shoulder as she found purchase. The winged fighter twisted and landed with ease but found herself quickly rolling to avoid the café table hurled at her a moment later. A loud cracking sound issued from the iced over pair as the dual wielder sprung back to her feet to see her opponent covered in an amber glow, the materia on her bangle shining bright.

“So you wanna play with time magic?” Tifa muttered as a temporal glyph appeared beneath her feet, the clock face within speeding up exponentially.

Before the SOLDIER trio could even finish recovering, a knee was driving itself into the 2nd classes’ gut. An uppercut snapping her straight up an instant later and setting her up for a one-two combo, then a three four and then several more numbers all delivered in the span of a few moments. A boot swept up and finished off what was left of the soldier’s helmet, knocking her off her feet. A steel grip latched onto her ankle and the dual blade wielder found herself crashing through the market kiosk. The others only just managed to free themselves when the brunette was on them as well but, unfortunately for Tifa, they were saved moments into their own assault.

Finally taking action, the last soldier was on her in an instant. Her hasted state let her manage to dodge the first swipe but not the follow up of the sword’s pommel slamming into her side. A static sensation spread across her form from the hit until the glow literally shattered off of her.

‘Aw crap’

She sprung away before he could follow up again, her focus entirely on the first class. A mistake she realized the hard way when twin lances of pain shot across her back, the second class passing to stand with the rest. Tifa stumbled back barely keeping her footing, completely spent from not only the attacks but also pouring the rest of her reserves into the haste spell.

‘How did they say I could forfeit again?’ she thought tiredly as the first class stood before her, sword held forward as a fiery blue aura engulfed him and the small bit of horn visible through his helmet began to glow ’Well, this is gonna hurt.’

Launching forward he delivered a rapid string of eight slashes, each more devastating than the last.

The spectators looked on, a few disappointed sighs released as they saw the test’s participant fall back. The victorious first class SOLDIER stood straighter while his second class compatriot stood behind to nurse a bent wing. The third classes, functional but more heavily injured, fell to a knee before they started to disperse with the rest of intersection as the simulation shut down. Mako filtered back into the power lines and the room turned back to its default state.

“Well, that was fun!” Rina said, jumping off her counter seat “Come on Rude, we’ve got all that wonderful paperwork to get back to.”

The bald headed man gave a small, noncommittal grunt as he and the other Turks left the room while Rarity went to check on her charge. Above, the two figures continued to watch as the medic team carted the woman to the recovery area.

“Even if it was by exploiting an extra variable; she temporarily disables two third class SOLDIER, harries a second class and may have even given Armor’s duplicate a small bit trouble had she been given the chance…” the Shinra CEO mumbled, whether her tone was awed or just confused it was hard to say; they were just simulations after all “How could this woman have stayed under our notice for so long?”

“We’ve been trying to figure that out since her name came up during the materia search” Sweetie Drops answered, looking through the dossier “Her strength alone should have tripped some kind of flag but we can’t find a single hint of her beyond six months ago. We’ve sent a request to our foreign contacts regarding any possible immigration but the earliest record we have is that ledger from the inn.”

“I suppose I’ll get the chance to ask in person…” she began when her phone buzzed. She gave a small sigh before ignoring the call and continuing. There was something so… familiar about the girl and how she fought, but she just couldn’t put her finger on it “Keep searching, but first let us go have a talk with our new hire before you-know-who starts panicking that I’m behind schedule again.”

Tifa blinked through a haze as she felt herself being moved from one bright white room to another bright white room. What felt like a healing spell washed over her but it held a bit less substance. The lingering sensations of the simulated wounds faded away, replaced by a headache as she tried to stand.

“Easy now darling, just because the simulation’s wounds aren’t entirely real doesn’t mean they’re exactly fake either” Rarity cooed as one of the medics put a hand on her shoulder, guiding her back down. A second wave of the lighter magic washed over her before the Turk moved to help her to her feet “There we are now, feeling better?”

“Yeah… thanks” Tifa blushed, still exhausted but not in as much pain. She was grateful when the door opened to save her from any bumbling, at least until she saw who walked through; A very well known figure with both wings and a horn towering over any in the room, flanked by the Turk Director.

“That was an impressive display to say the least Miss Lockhart. I hope you haven’t suffered any lasting damage” the Shinra president complimented as she offered her hand. Tifa nervously took it, her mouth fumbling for words as she looked up to the alicorn.

‘I wasn’t expecting her to be so tall…’

“Thank you ma’am, I’m fine ma’am” Tifa delivered stiffly, the alicorn woman giggling in response.

“Relax Miss Lockhart, before you sprain something” she delivered in good humor. Tifa tried to force herself to calm down as the president continued “My apologies for any confusion from the sudden stage skip. I’m afraid my schedule wouldn’t allow me to observe the entirety of the tests and I felt the SOLDIER program would be a more expedient gauge of your abilities… and I must say, you did not disappoint.”

Tifa found herself fumbling for words as the president complimented her.

“Eh, I- uh- It was just luck really. If that puddle hadn’t been there I’m not sure I could have even lasted against the first two. It was still a pretty solid loss even with it anyway…”

“You nearly matched two third class SOLDIER and notably ruffled a second class just after. Simulations or not, that requires a bit more than just luck Miss Lockhart. Don’t denounce your accomplishment or-” Celestia countered until one of her aides walked in, a phone in their hand and a consoling look on her face.

“I’m terribly sorry to interrupt Ma’am but she’s being even more insistent than usual.” they gave the phone to the alicorn woman now rolling her eyes with an amused smile “You might have better luck calming her down.”

“~Hello~ Yes, I know- Please, calm down- Then I’ll just have to have the pilot fly twelve minutes faster, won’t I?” the president put the phone to her shoulder with a sigh and flashed Tifa a warm smile “And here I thought I’d get away with at least a few minutes. My apologies again Miss Lockhart, but I must cut this even shorter. Let me just thank you for all your cooperation, and say; ‘Welcome to Shinra’.”

“Thank you Princess!” Tifa managed to blurt out before the leader and her aides left the room. All present paused and shot the woman befuddled looks. An amused and confused Celestia spoke first.

“P-Princess?” the president repeated with a small chuckle “I’m flattered Miss Lockhart, but I don’t think my position is quite that prestigious.”

“Did I say- I didn’t mean- ugh…” the brunette fumbled out, forcing an awkward smile “Sorry, I must have been hit harder than I thought.”

“Not at all Miss Lockhart, I could always use a laugh. Have a nice day now” Celestia smiled and turned to leave with her aide. Once on the other side of the door she hesitated and glanced back, a look far more pensive now on her features. She however shook her head and dismissed the thought, continuing on to the hanger.

Back in the recovery room Tifa was busy burying her very red face in her hands as her Turk acquaintance suppressed a giggle of her own. Their attention snapped back as the senior Turk that stayed behind spoke up.

“With the unorthodox progression of the test, the analysis may take a bit longer than usual. Once we know what level of equipment you’re deemed fit enough to use though, we’ll let you know” Sweetie Drops explained “Until then please feel free to use any of the Turk level facilities; Agent Belle, she’s in your charge.”

“Of course Ma’am” Rarity replied as the Turk leader was already walking out of the room “So then Miss Lockhart, allow me to show you to the specialist wing.”

“Agent Belle?” the brunette asked as they navigated the halls toward the elevators.

“The company requests a second name in the records for simplicity’s sake. It’s not necessary but it can help keep things better organized” the Turk answered “So instead of awkwardly trying to split my name I just use my younger sister's. Not only does it brighten my day when it reminds me of her but I will also admit, Rarity Belle does have a certain ring to it.”

“Ha ha” Tifa returned in good humor, which ‘Agent Belle’ seemed to appreciate. They stepped through the doors and in a moment after they heard the elevator’s hum, Tifa offered an apology “Sorry you got stuck with babysitting duty again”

“Oh don’t fret dear. True, ‘babysitting duty’ can be a rather dreadful assignment when you’re guarding some eccentric scientist or fussy debutant but other than that unpleasantness in the sewers, you’ve actually been quite the pleasant charge” Rarity smiled at her “and the fact I don’t have to try so hard to protect you is very nice as well. If anything, after that performance I think you might end up protecting me as much as I do you. Ah, here we are then.”

The pair stepped off the elevator and Tifa stood a little uneasy as Rarity gestured about the spacious halls.

“There’s a small gym down to right in case your little workout wasn’t enough. The café is across the hall while the breakroom proper is the big area on the left here and-”

“You guys get an entire floor as a break room?” Tifa asked incredulously “All to yourselves?”

“Oh no, there are actually a few floors like this open to all employees” Rarity explained “Though I’d be lying if this one didn’t see mostly Turks and SOLDIER, seeing as our primary offices are on the surrounding floors.”

“Hm” Tifa grunted absently as Rarity continued leading her to the left. About halfway to the next set of doors she spoke again, a bit more hesitantly.

“Not to judge your tactics Miss Lockhart, but if I may ask…” she began “Why didn’t you use your limit? Surely the simulation’s previous levels offered enough to get you there, didn’t they?”

‘Wait, Limit breaks are real?!’ Tifa’s mind exclaimed, brow furrowed as she searched for an answer. She knew people could pull out some crazy stuff like what the SOLDIER did when he handed her own ass to her, but she always figured they were just advanced techniques or magic. She’d never been pushed far enough by her few altercations in this world to have anything like a limit break happen. In fact, the simulations and the sewer incident had been the biggest test of her abilities to date.

“I uh… well, I’ve never actually used mine… I don’t know how” She fumbled into the incomplete truth. Rarity actually stopped to stare back at the brunette. Wide eyes blinked at her as the Turk seemed to have trouble processing the information, making the fighter wonder if she just revealed too much.

“You’ve… Never broken your limit? But with how well you fight and how strong you are, then surely… it’s something most manage pretty early, even if it’s just the most basic boost…” Rarity finally began processing, until a small smile broke through her confusion and severely eased the worry on Tifa’s mind “You really are an odd one, aren’t you dear?”

“You can say that again…” Tifa muttered, earning a slight chuckle.

“Well, here you are now,” the unicorn announced as she led her into an open room. A large screen dominated one wall as some couches and a few tables filled the rest of the space “I’ll be off to wrap up a few things and see what I can do about getting your results faster. As the director said, the odd progression may have complicated their evaluation. You have my number if you need anything.”

With that the well-groomed woman turned on a heel and strode off, leaving Tifa to meander over to one of the couches toward the back of the room and promptly fall into it face first. Rolling over, she ignored the curious glances it earned her from a few of the room’s occupants and heard a small chuckle from a pair at a nearby table. She glanced up to see Rina and Rude sifting through a sizable stack of folders unenthusiastically, the former shooting her a quick smirk.

“You earned it girly” was all the messy haired Turk said before going back to their forms. Tifa draped her arm over her eyes and found herself falling fast asleep.

“Well that was an entertaining diversion…”

“Oh yeah, a real blast! Especially that part where I got my ass handed to me.”

“Oh I don’t know. I think it went pretty well, all things considered.”

“I guess I did get further than I- wait… wh-”

“-Your phone’s ringing.”

The brunette jerked awake, trying to blink away the sudden blindness caused by the inset lighting above as something vibrated against her chest. She fished the offender from her shirt and her brow peeked at the listing.

“Hey Zest” she answered tiredly, but still with a small smile.

“Hey girl, you pass your test thing?” the familiar voice of the brunette’s neighbor chirped through.

“In a matter of speaking. Did decent up until I got my ass kicked by some SOLDIER.”

“Well that’s kind of their whole deal isn’t it?” Zest consoled “Anything else exciting?”

“I got to meet the president, which was… interesting.”

“Oh yeah? Didn’t I tell you she was even prettier in person?”

“Yeah, though I was more surprised with just how tall she was” Tifa delivered as she sat up and started to wake up proper, searching for a clock to see how long she’d been out. Rina and Rude were gone and there were only a couple employees still around.

“Oh I know right?! I first met her at this fancy event my parents were involved in. You think she seemed tall? Imaging seeing her as a five year old!” Zest laughed “I actually hid behind my mom she was so intimidating. That didn’t last of course, but still…”

Tifa grinned at the imagery. She couldn’t help picturing the miniature Zest fiddling with a pair of headphones far too big for her as she sheepishly peered from behind her mom’s legs to greet the much taller woman.

“That sounds adorable!”

“Shut up!” Zest shot back halfheartedly, Tifa was about to push the teasing further when a tone chimed above, she would have ignored it like the few others she heard that day but it seemed this one was for her.

“Would ‘Tifa Lockhart’ please report to the specialist armory? Miss Lockhart to the specialist armory” a smooth voice announced softly as her phone beeped in her hand, a quick glance showed a text notification from Rarity just received.

“Sorry Zest; seems like they're ready for me to jump through more hoops. Catch you up later?”

“You better!” Lemon warned jokingly “Have a good one girl, stay safe.”

“You too” Tifa stood as she hung up and stretched, not realizing she was doing her digital counterpart’s infamous ‘victory pose’. She checked the text from her designated Turk as she rubbed a bit more sand from her eyes.

- In a briefing sry. Go up 4 flrs to reach the armory. Your picture’s been given to security so just follow any instructions if asked for clearance and you should be fine. We’ll meet back up soon! ;) -

‘Holy hell I’ve been asleep for hours!’ she realized, noting the phone’s clock as she read the text. She made her way back to the elevators and hit up. The elevator stopped briefly halfway there as the camera in the corner whirred lightly as it focused. A few more moments passed before the elevator began moving again.

She stepped out into a small, relatively simple seating area in front of a reinforced wall. Several posters and notices of policies and safety procedures peppered the rest of the room save for the full length window looking over the city all lit up under the night sky. Next to a metal door was a gated opening over a counter, similar to what one might see in a bank or pawn shop. A friendly looking man waved her over.

“Miss Lockhart?” Tifa nodded as she approached, seeing isles and isles of equipment behind the counter. The rapid clacking of typing keys echoed as the clerk looked through his files. She caught a glimpse of another clerk escorting what looked like a first class SOLDIER though the expansive armory shelves just before the first spoke up again “Ah yes, sorry it took a bit but it seems you’ve been cleared for Grade C Specialist equipment with limited access to Grade B on an item by item clearance.”

“Uhhh… Neat?” the fighter quipped, earning a muted chortle from the clerk.

“Specialist equipment is what the Turks and SOLDIER use; Graded C through S” he explained “Trust me, even at Grade C there’s some pretty nice stuff available, and you even have a list of recommendations from some that have seen you test recordings… Once one of our clerks is free they’ll show you though your options. It shouldn’t be too long if want to just take a seat until then.”

Flashing a half-hearted thumbs-up she retreated to the seats, snagging one of the complementary bottles of water on the table. After a few moments of playing with her phone the elevator pinged again and opened to a young unicorn woman in a lab coat and carrying a tablet atop an overstuffed clipboard. She strode to the counter with an air of purpose, not necessarily confidence but certainly with a goal.

“Ah! Our esteemed treasurer! Let’s see here then…” the clerk warmly greeted the horned woman, who fidgeted slightly at the exuberant welcome. After another bout of rapid typing later, a small frown found him “well it seems it’s still not quite ready yet; it looks like they had a bit of trouble implementing the extra slots due to the… ‘unorthodox’ nature of the… tool. I can go see how much longer it’ll be or what they may be stuck on.”

The purple haired unicorn sighed before glancing at her watch, one of her heels tapping slightly with either impatience or annoyance.

‘Probably both’

“Uhg, fine” the woman grumbled and turned to the seats. She immediately perked up at the sight of the brunette though “Oh! Miss Lockhart! How fortuitous you’re still here!”

The lavender skinned woman quickly moved and took the seat across from her, scrolling through her tablet while the papers shuffled on their own within a purple haze. She smiled slightly as the papers stopped and reattached to the clipboard as it floated over to Tifa.

“I was going to just delegate this but since you’re here we can get this out of the way and sorted nice and quick. So if you’ll just sign here-here-aaaand here,” little magical pointers actually appeared over each line her stylus pointed to “And if can get your thumb print on my tablet here… and we’re done! You should be receiving your first week’s pay iiiinnnn…”

Tifa’s phone rang a quick notification.

“Now!” the unicorn woman smiled with pride.

“Just like that?” Tifa asked confused and not a little surprised “No ‘Next pay cycle’ wait?”

“Pfft” the young woman scoffed “Those are just excuses for disorganized companies.”

“Well cool then” Tifa smiled and checked her phone as she took a sip from the water, and then nearly sprayed it all over the treasurer. Coughing over the impeded spit take, she rasped out “That’s for just a WEEK?!”

“Well actually if you see here,” she turned the tablet back to her, a small list with number amounts next to them on the screen “The standard weekly freelance salary isn’t actually that high, but there’s also the mission commission, and I even managed to get you a partial percent of the bonus we usually award troopers for sewer sweeps and an extermination bounty for that odd creature detailed in the reports as well; that last one’s the bulk of it actually. I figured you could use a little boost after your… ‘involuntary’ employment.”

“Geez, no wonder you Shinra types are such good tippers” Tifa quipped, earning a giggle. Rarity hadn’t been kidding that her financial situation would improve; even without the bounty it was still well above her wage at Hops’.

“We Shinra types Miss Lockhart” she corrected with a smile and a small hint of pride.

“Miss Lockhart? We’re ready for you” the clerk announced, prompting her to stand. The unicorn woman also stood with her, apparently not willing to wait for her ‘tool’, whatever it was.

“Well thank you for your time Miss Lockhart, you've helped me recover a good bit of my schedule without even trying” she smiled as the martial artist passed before turning to her tablet a moment, rearranging the list to fit her gained time.

“Glad I could help” Tifa returned. She glanced to window as she moved to the counter, she didn’t really like heights but it was a pretty nice view of the plate. She stopped however when she saw something glide up into view, something big.

’Oh it’s an airship… really close and right outside… and turning a very large cylinder toward-’

The horned woman gave a sharp cry as the fighter suddenly tackled her from behind, the whole window shattering an instant later as a massive hooked javelin crashed straight though the space the pair occupied a scant second before.

“Wh-wha?” was all the treasurer beneath her managed before heavy metal panels slammed down over the armory wall and the hooked anchor caught with a deep trench through the floor. Tifa leapt to her feet and quickly wrenched the girl beneath her to hers, looking out to see armed figures now running across the grapple’s barrel thick tether.

“We should move” she said urgently, noting the bright red warning light over the elevator.

“The stairs are this way! Quick!” the other woman shouted and barreled through the rooms only other door. Tifa caught up and saw the familiar dedicated room for wide unconnected stair cases. However once they entered they could hear it; the sounds of gunfire and combat echoed from both above and below. The treasurer however held resolute and called “We need to get to the security buffer on sixty, we should be safe ther-”

She was cut off as she ran straight into a masked figure at the top of the first flight, the startled intruder rounding with his weapon raised as soon as he recovered. The purple female was shoved aside, the sharp scream that followed sounded even over the rifle’s report.

“MOTHER FUCKER!” was heard just before the assailant smashed into the far wall, another more irritated yelp sounding just after. The horned treasurer leapt to her feet to help the martial artist that was now holding a bleeding hole through her bicep “Why did I do that?!”

‘Note to self: Don’t punch with an arm that was just shot.’

The sound of a much closer burst of gunfire from below prevented any kind of answer and spurred them to climb faster. The quick glimpses each floor afforded them shown that not every floor was under siege but it still sure sounded like it. Several more floors and another close call later they stumbled through the doors of the 60th floor, immediately coming face to face with whole different threat.

Two heavy cannons snapped straight at the pair, attached to a four legged automaton towering over them with its long tail arching over from its rear. Several Troopers behind the guard scorpion leveled their rifles at the sudden guests as well.

“Aw crap…”

Several floors down, Rarity flinched as a round shattered against the cover an inch from her face. Sweetie Drops emptied her handgun in return before ducking back down and flashing the defending agents a quick series of gestures before reloading. Quick nods followed and they braced, waiting for the signal.

“Now!” the director shouted, the Turks breaking cover to lay down suppressing fire. Rina and Rude vaulted over obstacles as glittering, pointed panes of colored light flashed in front of them, Rarity’s horn glowing with the barrier marteria on her armlet. The pair made quick work of the small group of attackers once they managed to close the distance. The rest rose to join them over the fallen troops, Rarity fidgeting at a pair of new holes in her suit.

“You hurt?” Sweetie asked, Rarity sighing with a shake of her head in response.

“Oh no, the enchantments did their job. Just a little sore is all” she returned before muttering under her breath “I just made this…”

“Where the hell is SOLDIER?!” Rina complained, looking around the workstations and back at the few scientists still hiding along the back after their escape was cut off “Not that we can’t handle this but we can’t afford to lose the proxy.”

“There weren’t many here tonight, and those that are seem to be otherwise preoccupied or blocked off” The director delivered curtly. Rina was right though, they couldn’t afford to lose the element proxy or even the floor. It was the main materia lab and too valuable even if it wasn’t the resting place of the one crucial element they’d managed to secure for their mission so far “We can’t let them have the huge materia, even if we have to-”

The director couldn’t finish the sentiment before the wall to the stairway exploded, sending fire and deris flying right at the gathered defenders. Rude dragged a now unconscious Sugarcoat to safety as an injured Sunny fell back into cover, both having taken the brunt of the blast. The rest stood their ground for the attack’s follow through before quickly realizing the mistake. An exceptionally large, heavily armored man stepped forward with a masked squad following close, a massive cylinder slug on his back connected to a multi-barreled death machine in his hands. The Turks quickly leapt to join Sunny, putting as much as they could between them and the now revving up weapon.

“BARRIERS!!!” The director screamed, three layers of the translucent magic walls appearing before the consoles they were currently crouched behind. The rounds that didn’t still make their way through shattered and ricocheted everywhere, and when the defenders tried to pop up in an opening the man’s cohorts would suppress them with a burst from their own rifles.

“Two rifles and a magic support!” Rina tried to call out the opposition over not only the chain gun’s constant report but also the labs several alarms. Rarity sighed internally, not helping but think of all that work now being pulverized as the exceptionally large man’s weapon shredded the lab. She angled her gun while returning blind fire, using its polished blade to see the supporting pair trying to make their way to the reinforced cylinder of the chamber’s main station. The larger of the two returned her fire with a burst from what looked like a light machine gun rather than a rifle, hefted like it was no heavier than a carbine. She also realized the smaller of the two carried one too.

‘Geez these guys might be as strong as Tifa!’ she thought before they caught a lucky break, or rather their opponents caught an unlucky one.

“W-WOAH!” was heard as the heavy gunner was now slipping and twisting desperately to keep his balance atop the multitude of fallen materia now rolling beneath his feet. Unfortunately for both sides the bullet hose was still firing, now keeping friend and foe alike stuck in cover as his flailing sent rounds flying everywhere.

“SHOES WATCH OU-!” the magic support shouted before the giant man crashed right into her and sent both tumbling down the stair way. The Turks moved to take the advantage when a whole new disaster reared its head; the main containment module pulsed erratically as its alarm blared, a deep crack in the materia's form behind a cluster of clean holes in its clear tube.

“YOU LOT! RUDE! WITH ME!” the director shouted as the two agents made for an immediate beeline for the chamber’s control station with the left behind science team, leaving Rarity and Rina to deal with the remaining pair now moving to cut them off. They quickly dove in close to make it more difficult for the pair to use their long barreled weapons properly, the less refined Turk choosing the larger male of the group. Even if not as large as the minigunner, Rarity noted that he still had significant height and bulk beyond the average man and easily out classed them physically.

Before she could worry about Rina’s chances, her own opponent forced her to reconsider her own. An expertly placed kick was only just barely avoided, the reprieve short as the machine gun’s stock swung at her face. Catching it roughly against the side of her gunblade she finally had a second to take stock of her opponent; a female with a few inches on her and while the mask and body armor hid much she could still tell this woman was in exceptional shape. A fact only enforced by her brute forcing past the block and the following shoulder shove driving her back a few paces alone.

“HIT THE RELEASE! NOW!” the director screamed behind them, the remaining scientists scrambling between consoles before the chamber’s heavy safety shutters fell in place over the clear tube “LAUNCH IT!”

The emergency protocols completed and the destabilizing materia was rocketed through the building and high into the night sky, but unfortunately not before a massive burst of magic flared from within the chamber. Great ribbons of unstable magic spread forth, easily slicing through their reinforced confines and then the room and surrounding floors.

Rarity fell back as one of the glowing bands swept right between her and the masked attacker, a sharp scream still sounding even through all the chaos in the magic’s wake. She had little time to consider it however as a large section of the ceiling and floor collapsed.

Once the ground stopped shaking Rarity groggily pushed herself off the floor, her face and clothes caked with blood and dust. She managed to stand to see most of it wasn’t hers as a large trail of red started at where her attacker had been and led off down the stair way. She heard coughing behind her, looking back she could see the director and others suck on the other side of the debris and small fires.

“Rarity go!” Sweetie Drops called “Don’t let them escape!”

“Right!” the now less well coiffed Turk took off, keeping track of the blood trail and the large footsteps tracked through it. She landed heavily as she hit the landing a couple flights down, mindful not to slip in the slick redness and noted the sound of an airship from the other side of the door. She braced against its frame, renewed her barrier spell and took all of a second to breathe and focus.

She charged through the door and the roar of the flying machine filled the space from its position right outside the window, enough to even drown out the clatter of automatic fire now bouncing of the Turk’s magic defense. She had a perfect shot at the now unmasked pair that began round on her from the ships open hatch, the larger male carrying the female now cradling the bleeding stump of her forearm. The unicorn woman stood ready, ignoring the flashes of deflected rounds as lined up her sights, ready to fire when the woman’s eyes locked to hers.

And froze as bright green eyes under blonde locks stared into her.

“Applejack?!” Rarity gasped, disbelieving as her aim began to drop. The moment broke when not only the room, not even just the building, but when the entire city suddenly shuddered and shook violently. The huge magic materia now high, HIGH above it all after its ejection finally destabilized fully and erupted with enough force to make even the plate itself quake far below.

Once the vibrations finally stopped, Rarity warily pushed herself up. The tower remained standing and a quick glance outside confirmed the plate was in no danger, but the airship was gone. She stayed her ground even as a quick pounding of steps echoed from the stairway behind her and Sweetie Drops appeared in short order. Noting her subordinate’s relaxed pose she slowed her gait and holstered her sidearm as she approached.

“I’m sorry Ma’am, I’m afraid I let them get away” Rarity reported, her gaze still turned away toward the broken windows.

“Did you at least get and I.D.?”

Rarity tensed almost imperceptibly, hesitating a moment. She sighed and finally turned to the senior agent.

“No ma’am, they were still wearing their masks” she lied, conflicted and obviously distressed “The best I got was what may have been the AVALANCHE emblem on the inside of the airship.”

The director studied her for a moment. Rarity could almost feel her see through it, but then the director’s stance relaxed as she released a sigh of her own.

“Damn…”

“I’m sorry ma’am.”

“Don’t worry about it Priss, I’m sure you did all you could have” Sweetie Drops consoled her with a small, tired smile; the use of the ‘affectionate’ code name confirming the sentiment. She was disappointed but knew better than to deride one of her team, especially when she seemed just as disappointed. “Come on, the others still need us back in the lab.”

Tifa sat back against the wall with the other non-combatants tucked into a corner of the security floor, away from any open fire lanes. Not that such a thing was as much of a concern anymore; the fighting had all but stopped after that explosion that shook the building nearly a half hour before. They were just waiting for the all clear.

“Really Miss Crusher, to prioritize my safety over the others is not only unnecessary but rather irresponsible for a SOLDIER.” Her purple skinned accomplice complained to the second class once again standing nearby. Thankfully when they burst onto the floor right in front of the guard scorpion, the elite was quick to call it down and usher them aside so it could have a clear shot at any pursuers. They also learned they weren’t the only ones to think of seeking refuge here, though ‘SOLDIER Crusher’ still seemed to be keeping an eye on her specifically.

“I assure you Miss Sparkle, I can protect everyone from any remaining threat just fine from right here” The elite answered coolly, before adding with a playful tone “Besides, you’re not the one who’d have to answer to your brother if something happened to you.”

The treasurer huffed and refocused on the cure spell she was casting the Tifa’s bicep; sans any materia the martial artist couldn’t help but notice. That brought back up and compounded one of the first thoughts she had about the girl, and since they still seemed to be stuck there at the moment she figured she might as well ask.

“So Miss Sparkle, If I may ask,” the brunette questioned “why does a treasurer need to wear a lab coat and know how to cast unassisted magic?”

“Oh, well I… uh… I’m not actually the official treasurer. They retired a little while ago and I’ve just been filling in” the magically adept woman answered a bit clumsily “I used to lead one of the science teams, until… well, that position became a non-option for me. The president insisted I stay though, so I’ve just been helping out wherever I can ever since. I’m really good with organization, numbers and planning; so the treasury seemed like it’d be a nice fit until… whatever comes next… I also try to help President Celestia with her scheduling... not that she ever follows it...”

Tifa snickered as Miss Sparkle grumbled the last little bit, realizing it was probably her panicking over the phone earlier. Though the pauses and occasionally defeated tone of the answer only lead to a deeper suspicion of the girl’s circumstance. One made all the more evident by the scar running down almost the whole side of her neck that Tifa couldn’t help but notice as the treasurer turned away. The materia-less caster perked up however as she turned back.

“Though if I may now ask a question of you Miss Lockhart,” she began before reigning it in slightly.

"Shoot."

“Well I’m sorry if this is asking you to admit too much but my curiosity demands to know" she elaborated "Before the president skipped you ahead to the SOLDIER round, your strategy against the dragon seemed to be coming up short. With that option failing, how were you planning on beating it?”

Tifa leaned in a bit as if sharing a secret, but then very bluntly and honestly answered,

“I wasn’t.”

Miss Sparkle blinked at her a moment, perplexed until the implication hit her. She tried to stifle a laugh but didn’t hide it once the martial artist gave her an honest smirk.

“Well at least you know your limitations!” she managed as the laugh petered out. As the girl worked to finish the cure with a small grin Tifa noticed the SOLDIER glance back, an incredulous and slightly befuddled smile on their lips as their gaze shifted between the two. She then squinted slightly as she studied her, before shrugging and turning back to the door.

‘What was that about?’ she wondered before a two tone chime sounded and the lights shifted from the emergency lighting back to their normal settings. A series of radios about the room crackled, sounding the all clear and issuing instructions to the different security divisions. Miss Sparkle helped her stand with everyone else, the fighter smiling as she looked down to her arm.

“So doc, am I all good?”

“Well you'll probably be tender for a few days and a some more cure castings over the next couple definitely wouldn’t hurt, but as long you stay well hydrated and don’t over exert the muscle I’d say you’ll be just fine” she smiled back, before a voice called out to her patient.

“Tifa Darling! There you are!” the fighter’s ‘keeper’ crossed the floor to them, many notably moving aside for the suited female “Oh and Twilight dear! So very good to see you safe as well.”

“Hi Agent Rarity, y-you too” Twilight returned awkwardly “Well as much as I’d… love to stay and chat I should go and see what I can do to help organize the clean up until the President gets back. Have- well, try to have a good rest of the night.”

Twilight excused herself and began moving to the surprisingly still working elevators but stopped short and quickly looked back a little abashed.

“Oh and uh, thank you for, y’know… Saving me… twice” she quickly muttered and redoubled her pace. Rarity gave a sympathetic half smile at her back.

“Poor dear. She was never the most social but ever since the accident she’s never been quite the same...” the Turk trailed off before perking and refocusing “Anyway darling, you’ve been cleared to leave whenever you want. I doubt we could arrange a ride, I’m sure you can understand but did you need an escort back down stairs?”

“No I should be fine but no debriefing or anything?” Tifa cocked an eyebrow.

“Well how much do you know about the attack?” the Turk asked simply.

“…uhhhh, it… happened?”

“Exactly” she smirked back “Just don’t talk to the press and we can handle all that later.”

“Well alright then, if you’re sure” Tifa replied a little hesitantly “Good luck with all of this.”

“Thank you dear, enjoy the rest of your night.”

“Ehhh, I don’t know Tif…” Zest offered before taking another bite of her steak. She had surprised Tifa outside the tower, having been on the plate to see her parents and heading over when news of the attack broke “The whole thing?”

“No, just the front… probably.” Tifa clarified, her friend still looking pretty skeptical.

“…Is it moving?”

“Yes.”

“Well then no” Zest finally answered bluntly, the brunette looking a little insulted.

“Not even a ‘maybe’?”

“Well come on Tif, I know you’re like crazy scary strong and all that but a SUPLEX? Knocking it over or off the tracks? Sure. Stopping it? Maaaybe, if you’re not in front of it. But no, I don’t think you could suplex one.”

"Hmph..." Tifa slumped and pouted degectedly, resting her chin in her hand. Zest just rolled her eyes with a playful smile and turned her attention to the game currently all over the bar’s screens; a friend from her old team was playing and, according to her, was kicking ass. Tifa didn’t know much about the sport but the reminder of Lemon’s school days did bring up another thought.

“I don’t suppose you know a Twilight Sparkle do you?” Lemon Zest had known some of the Turks and Twilight seemed like the same age group and certainly the type to get into Shinra Prep. Tifa figured it was maybe a long shot but-

“Purple Smart? Oh sure, she was our classes’ valedictorian” Zest answered nonchalantly “Not the most friendly girl. Not that she was bitch or anything, especially compared to some of the other students. No she was nice and all but just pretty socially incompetent. Not surprising she ended up at Shinra though; she head of their science division or something?”

“She’s the treasurer at the moment. Though she did say she led one of the science teams but there were definitely hints that something happened that lost her that position; something bad and at least sort of recent…” Tifa explained “Still wore her lab coat even.”

“Oh she’s been wearing those forever” the pink woman waved off “Wait, so is she was the one you took a bullet for?”

“That would be her.”

“Sooo…” the music lover began with a somewhat amused curiosity “You not only tackled this girl out of the way of a giant harpoon but then, not even knowing her name yet, shoved her out of the way of a rifle and got shot in her place? For what was essentially a complete stranger?”

“I… I guess I did…” Tifa admitted. She really hadn’t thought much of it at all until it was phrased like that. Why did she risk herself so much for a stranger?

“Damn girl, I always knew you were a bit of a badass but I never knew you were so…” Zest offered not a little impressed as she looked for the right word “…Heroic.”

“Yeah,” the ‘heroic’ woman muttered “Me neither…”

‘When the hell did THAT happen?!’

Now she couldn’t be sure, as it could have just been someone at another table, but she swore she could hear an echo of someone giggling at the thought.

Author's Notes:

OH MY GOD I FINALLY DID IT! Uhg! Why is this story so much harder to write than my other one?!

ANYWAY- Sorry again for the exceptional wait readers, life has sucked pretty hard this past year. Still working an things but hopefully I can get my writing rolling a little easier from now on.

Not entirely satisfied with this chapter but I don’t hate it and now that it’s done I can finally try to keep going lol. So until next time readers, as always; Thanks for what I hope is still many of you reading and have a good one!

Oh and P.S. for a slight spoiler: No that second voice in Tifa's head isn't Liv, for any jumping to that conclusion. But please, feel free to speculate