While in the Seventh Heaven bar, Alex didn't even notice how quickly several hours had flown by and the sun had finally disappeared beyond the horizon. All this time he had to try with all his might to pretend that he completely failed to notice Yuffie's intent gaze. The restless kunoichi had literally glued herself to him, moving to the neighboring stool so that with her entire demeanor she could show: she too desperately wanted to go with him and Jessie that night.
Trying to ignore Yuffie, who resorted to any tricks for attention, Alex attempted to calmly converse with Aerith. However, the conversation was difficult for her — she was barely holding back laughter. Every time Yuffie climbed onto the bar counter with her feet, trying to look Alex straight in the eyes, Aerith nearly sprayed with the comicality of what was happening, and Tifa had to drive the girl back onto the stool time and again.
Having failed, Yuffie returned to her place, offendedly puffed out her lips, and crossed her arms over her chest. But after a couple of minutes everything repeated in a circle the moment she again intended to force Alex to take her with him. Tenderly patting the persistent Yuffie on the head, Alex turned and noticed that Jessie was half-heartedly talking about something with Claudia.
Catching Alex's gaze, Jessie coquettishly winked at him and continued the conversation. Smirking at this playfulness and once again carefully pushing away Yuffie's face, who had again forgotten about personal boundaries, Alex took out his pocket watch. Time was inexorably approaching, and he still needed to drop by and warn Dean about where he was planning to go that night. Putting the watch into his pocket, Alex rose from the stool, affectionately stroked Aerith on the head, and loudly announced that he would step out on business for a couple of hours.
"Be careful. And please don't get into any trouble," Tifa asked in a cautioning tone before Alex managed to step toward the door.
"Don't worry so much, I'm just going to pick up a package on the Plate. I'll be back in a couple of hours," Alex responded in a lazy tone, slightly waving goodbye to her.
"Have you managed to order something again? And with delivery right to the Plate on top of that?" Barret inquired, leaning on the bar counter with a mug of beer in his hand.
"Yep. My personal transport," Alex tossed out briefly before closing the establishment's door behind him.
Hearing Alex's words, those present merely nodded understandingly. Everyone remembered perfectly well that that morning he, together with Aerith and Dean, had been in the Upper City. Considering the astronomical sum they and Dean had grabbed from the storerooms of the dead Don Corneo, no one was surprised in the slightest that Alex had decided to order himself personal transport. Literally a couple of minutes later Jessie also decided to wash her hands of the bar, declaring that she had urgent business to deal with, which Claudia would help her with.
Not giving the others time to ask questions, Jessie dragged the heavily sighing Claudia after her; on the latter's face it was clearly readable that she was once again being forced to work practically for free. Observing how Jessie was hauling Claudia away, Biggs narrowed his eyes suspiciously and noticeably elbowed Wedge in the side. Attracting his friend's attention, Biggs expressively nodded toward the doors, hinting that they too had suddenly developed urgent business.
Wedge at first completely failed to understand the maneuver until Biggs with a stricter gaze made it clear to him: arguing right now was not worth it. Not waiting for Wedge's full comprehension of the situation, Biggs simply grabbed his friend by the scruff of the neck and dragged him toward the exit. Observing how everyone was scattering from the establishment at full speed, Yuffie could no longer sit still.
She was literally shaking from the realization that something was being hidden from her, and this damnably wounded her pride. When she was already seriously intending to dash after the others, a palm gently settled on her shoulder. Turning her head, Yuffie met Aerith's warm green eyes, who was looking at her with a tender smile.
"You go too. Who knows, maybe you'll get lucky and see something really fun?" Aerith said with a gentle smile, pointing a finger at the door.
"From this very moment you're my best friend!" Yuffie cried with a wide smirk and hugged Aerith with all her heart.
"Just don't forget to tell Alex later that I was the one who allowed you," Aerith added with a light chuckle, patting the overexcited kunoichi on the back.
"Okay!" Yuffie shouted, immediately jumping down from the stool, and shot out of the bar like a bullet.
The moment the bar had practically emptied, Tifa couldn't hold back and asked Aerith where exactly she had sent the hyperactive Yuffie. In response Aerith merely smiled softly and honestly admitted that she had let the restless one follow Alex, since she wanted it so badly. At those words Tifa expressed slight concern.
Despite the fact that she had known Yuffie for only half a day, it had already become clear to her: this girl was insanely noisy and incredibly problematic. Aerith, for her part, merely laughed tenderly and assured Tifa that everything would be completely fine — Alex would easily handle any problem that Yuffie was capable of creating. Tifa could only nod understandingly and shift the conversation to another topic.
Being the only representative of the stronger sex in the establishment, Barret reasoned that inserting himself into the conversations of Aerith and Tifa was a so-so idea, and headed outside in search of his little angel Marlene. Left alone, Aerith and Tifa continued enthusiastically chatting about everything under the sun, sharing personal stories and growing ever closer.
At the same time Alex had already reached the dormitory and deftly jumped straight onto the second floor, trying with all his might to avoid the attention of the landlady Marle, who a couple of hours ago had threatened him with cruel retribution. Approaching the door of his room, he heard Dean's loud laughter, accompanied by the characteristic sounds of a series being played.
Opening the door, Alex found a rather amusing picture: Dean was sprawled on the sofa and was watching The Boys at full volume in the company of Tonberry Steve, who with an imperturbable air was holding snacks and a bottle of beer in his paws. Steve himself, noticing the entering Alex, merely unhurriedly raised one of his paws and waved slightly to him. Hearing the sound of the opened door, Dean slightly tilted his head and looked at Alex.
"Looks like you and Steve are having a great time," Alex said with a smile, taking off his blue coat and taking out of his inventory a more inconspicuous thin dark-colored coat.
"Something like that. Did you know this little guy can drink beer? So I don't need you as a drinking buddy anymore," Dean delivered with a smirk, pointing a hand at Steve, who was unhurriedly taking a swig from the bottle.
"So you're not using your Pokémon as a stand, and this is really his personal beer?" Alex asked with interest, pulling a black cap and mask out of his inventory.
"Well yeah! Do you think I'm an idiot to use my little guy as a stand? Don't I have my own hands? And in general, where are you off to in such a hurry?" Dean answered in a tone as if he had just been asked the stupidest question in life.
"I'm going with Jessie to steal materials from Shinra. Want to come with us? You can air Steve out at the same time," Alex proposed with a chuckle, pulling on the cap and nodding his chin toward the lazy Tonberry.
"Nah. Let's do without me this time. You better tell me: when am I finally going to appear in this series?" Dean waved him off lazily, immediately shifting the topic to what concerned him most.
"In the third season," Alex answered, pulling the black mask onto his face.
"Got it. Cool! That's it, now get out of here, don't interrupt us finishing the episode. The Boys just rammed a whale with a boat. There's a fucking mess there!" Dean responded with a laugh and began energetically driving Alex out of the room.
Awarding Dean an absolutely empty gaze, Alex shifted his gaze to Steve, who at that moment tightly gripped the beer bottle with both paws and took a careful sip. Observing the feasting Tonberry, Alex mentally shuddered: it seemed that his restless little ones — GIR, MIMI, and Stitch — would very soon have a new companion in devouring snacks and raiding local shops.
Alex was one hundred percent certain that this mad trio would immediately convert Steve to their holy faith in the Emperor of Mankind and instill in him a sincere love for stealing chips. Trying not to think about such a catastrophic future, Alex lowered the mask onto his chin and slightly adjusted the black cap. Waving goodbye to Dean and Steve, he left the room.
Finding himself outside, Alex raised his gaze upward, examining the gigantic Plate hanging over him from the very moment of his arrival in this world. Lighting a cigarette, Alex silently jumped down from the second floor and unhurriedly headed toward the station, where he had arranged to meet Jessie. Passing through the district of the Slums plunging into darkness, Alex reached the already completely empty railway station.
The moment he approached closer to the platform, his eyes immediately latched onto a familiar silhouette — his motorcycle Fenrir was resting right by the platform. Not hiding a satisfied smile, Alex approached the bike and lazily leaned on the seat while waiting for Jessie. And the moment he settled more comfortably, the sound of approaching hurried footsteps rang out in the silence of the station.
"Hey, honey, did you wait long?.. Whoa! Where did such a handsome guy come from here?!" Jessie began with a bright smile, but immediately cut herself off, staring in astonishment at Alex's luxurious motorcycle.
Hearing Jessie's cry, Alex didn't even manage to properly raise his head before she was already right up against the motorcycle and with eyes full of childlike delight began examining Fenrir. Raising his gaze, Alex noticed with surprise that not only Jessie had come, but Claudia as well. He had thought that the Claudia would stay on the sidelines since he himself had taken on this task, but finding no reasons to object, he merely smiled and nodded to her in greeting. Claudia nodded slightly in response, not taking her intrigued eyes off the bike.
Jessie at that moment was completely ignoring everything happening around. In her life she had never seen such advanced transport — Fenrir looked not just mind-blowingly expensive, but also several times superior to the motorcycles used by the same Shinra guards. Even Claudia was showing clear interest in the gold-and-black beauty, even if she did not express emotions so stormily.
The moment Alex rose from the motorcycle, Jessie immediately jumped into the saddle with a mischievous laugh and began feeling the instrument panel and handlebars. While Jessie indulged in fantasies about how cool it would be to race on this thing through the night streets, Alex stepped aside and stood next to Claudia.
"I thought you couldn't be dragged into this adventure," Alex said with a smile, lighting another cigarette.
"Jessie offered good payment, so I agreed. I saw no reasons to refuse such easy money," Claudia answered with a smirk, turning to Alex.
"You could have just honestly admitted that you couldn't refuse your new friend. Instead of starting with this 'They pay me, I do… Bla-bla-bla,'" Alex needled her with a chuckle, slightly waving his hands and awarding Claudia a cheerful expression.
"Get lost, idiot. Better tell me where you even got such transport. Even Shinra doesn't have such advanced technologies," Claudia answered, rolling her eyes, playfully punching Alex in the shoulder with her fist and nodding her chin toward Fenrir.
"I love crafting various gadgets in my free time. So a free minute turned up — and that's how Fenrir appeared," Alex responded, stroking his chin, and pointed the smoldering cigarette at the bike.
"So his name is Fenrir? What a good boy! You'll give a beauty like me a ride with the wind, right?" Jessie sang in a cheerful tone, practically sprawling on the seat.
"Looks like we're not quite on time. And it seems Jessie has found herself a new favorite," Biggs's sarcastic voice suddenly rang out behind them.
Hearing Biggs's sarcastic voice from behind, Alex, Claudia, and Jessie simultaneously turned their heads. Biggs and Wedge were approaching them with satisfied smirks on their faces, rolling two simple-looking motorcycles alongside. At the sight of this pair showing up on the platform with their equipment, Alex first of all tensed and began intently examining the surroundings in search of Grey Whisperers, who could perfectly well have flown in to spoil his evening. However, after a brief survey of the area he noticed not a single canonical spirit.
Noticing how Alex had jerked and begun suspiciously looking around, Claudia slightly narrowed her eyes and also checked the perimeter, deciding whether someone from Shinra was watching them. The moment Biggs approached closer, Jessie immediately jumped down from Fenrir — she had completely not expected to see these two at such a late hour. Jessie sincerely believed that the help of Alex and Claudia would be more than enough for her plan, since they were assigned only the role of a diversionary maneuver while she dealt with her own affairs.
"Guys, what are you even doing here?" Jessie inquired, leaning on the back of Fenrir and crossing her arms over her chest.
"We thought you'd be late for the last train as always. So we dragged these two beauties to give you a lift to the Plate. Although I see you've already acquired much cooler transport… Damn, what a luxurious bike!" Biggs answered with a chuckle, rolling his motorcycle closer to the platform.
"How did you even guess?!" Jessie asked in shock, certain that she had flawlessly hidden her intentions.
"Oh, it was the simplest thing! You always say one thing, and your eyes say something completely different. And you always get that particular look when you're about to go you-know-where," Wedge began explaining with an important air, as if from the very beginning he had figured out her plan without outside help.
"So you immediately understood that I planned this?! Did I let something slip somewhere? You were eavesdropping on me!" Jessie exclaimed in shock, immediately clenching her fist and playfully stepping toward Biggs and Wedge, swinging for intimidation.
"Hey-hey, don't look at us like that! We just immediately guessed that you want to visit your parents. That's all," Biggs said with a chuckle, stepping back a step just in case before he got hit.
"And since we ourselves don't have a family, we'll gladly temporarily be yours! And share this family happiness together," Wedge added with a silly but sincere smile, raising two thumbs up and nearly dropping his motorcycle onto the concrete in the process.
"Oh, Biggs, Wedge… You guys are something else! Fine, you're invited too," Jessie surrendered with a chuckle, covering her eyes with her palm.
"And since our gang is growing, it's time for the great kunoichi — Yuffie Kisaragi — to take the stage! Because where real fun is planned, I absolutely must be!" Yuffie's cheerful shout unexpectedly rang out from above.
Turning their heads toward the shout, Alex and Claudia saw Yuffie proudly standing on the very roof of the platform: one hand she planted on her hip, and the other she victoriously thrust toward the sky. Rubbing his forehead, Alex mentally resigned himself — it wasn't so bad after all that Yuffie had also decided to join their company. However, he remembered perfectly well that this restless kunoichi was a real magnet for trouble, in no way inferior to himself.
Before Yuffie managed to deliver yet another pompous tirade, Alex raised his hand, intending to stop her and ask what she was even doing here. But he didn't manage to utter a single word before Jessie easily laughed and cheerfully invited Yuffie into the team. Hearing the long-awaited invitation, Yuffie joyfully squealed and jumped high into the air. Performing a couple of deft somersaults in flight, Yuffie gracefully landed right on Alex's outstretched palm and immediately assumed yet another "incredibly cool," in her own opinion, pose.
Feeling her weight on his hand, Alex measured Yuffie with an extremely weary gaze. In response the ninja merely cheerfully showed him the peace sign and deftly jumped down onto the concrete of the platform. Feeling how a headache was starting again from this circus, Alex felt a light pat on the shoulder. Turning, he met Claudia's green eyes — she looked as if she too was having a hard time being in the company of someone as noisy as Yuffie.
While Alex and Claudia were mentally sighing heavily, Yuffie had already managed to bounce over to Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge, giving each a ringing high-five. But being incredibly hyperactive, Yuffie immediately switched her attention to Alex's motorcycle. Completely without asking permission, she jumped into the saddle and began chaotically pressing everything in a row on the instrument panel while simultaneously yanking the handlebars. Completely tired of this arbitrariness, Alex approached Fenrir and simply lifted Yuffie by the scruff of the neck like a naughty kitten before she managed to poke where she definitely shouldn't.
"Hey! I'm not a cat, stop treating me like that! I just want to press the buttons. Everyone loves pressing buttons! Especially this one! And what does this button do?" Yuffie began wriggling, desperately stretching her hands toward a bright key on the console.
"It opens the weapons compartment. Watch," Alex sighed wearily and himself pressed the indicated button on the display.
The moment Alex pressed the button on Fenrir's instrument panel, a loud click sounded, and two compartments smoothly slid open on the sides of the motorcycle. As soon as the arsenal opened, those around could with their own eyes assess what weapons Alex was transporting. Fortunately, he, as always, had shown foresight and in advance stocked the storages of his bike with his favorite guns and blades.
Inside rested a purple Chainsword created for him by his little princess Jinx, next to it the hilt of the Holy Moonlight Sword neatly stuck out, and a little farther several Demon Slayer katanas were carefully laid. And while the others with open mouths examined this tiny part of his collection, Alex's eyes fell on the hilt of a massive black pistol lying separately next to a white one.
Slightly narrowing his eyes, Alex carefully took the weapon into his hands and immediately widened his eyes in amazement: he had completely not expected that the immortal wife Alucard would decide to give him her legendary pistol "Jackal"! When Alex was pulling the heavy "Jackal" out of the niche, he didn't even notice how a folded note silently slid onto the concrete of the platform. Tenderly stroking the slide, Alex ran a finger over the engraved inscription: "Jesus Christ is in Heaven now."
Standing nearby, Claudia showed restrained interest in the arsenal and immediately understood why during their recent conversation Alex had mentioned that he willingly accepted payment in rare weapons. Her attention was literally riveted by the hilt of the Holy Moonlight Sword, which seemed to her the most deadly and beautiful blade of all presented. While Jessie, Yuffie, and Wedge were examining the swords sticking out of the slots in fascination, Biggs's gaze stuck dead to the giant pistol in Alex's hands.
"That's one cool gun! Where the hell did you get a toy like that?" Biggs inquired sincerely, examining the "Jackal."
"Bullets with a pure consecrated Macedonian silver jacket and a mercury core. Marvells NNA9 powder. Length thirty-nine centimeters, sixteen kilograms total weight, thirteen-millimeter explosive armor-piercing rounds… The Jackal pistol! It's magnificent, WALTER!" Alex began speaking in an absolutely fanatical tone, and with every word spoken his smile became wider and madder.
Listening to the fanatical descriptions of the pistol, Biggs felt an icy shiver run down his spine. He himself could not understand why, but at that moment he experienced genuine fear of Alex. Biggs immediately instinctively took several steps back, nearly knocking over Wedge who was standing with his back to him. Alex's fanatical tone also brought the others out of their stupor.
Jessie looked at the giant gun in bewilderment, sincerely not understanding how one could rejoice so much over some weapon. Yuffie, on the contrary, bounced right up to Alex, trying with all her might to reach the "Jackal" — the inner sense of a treasure hunter told her that this was an unrealistically cool and deadly thing. Seeing Yuffie's undisguised interest, Alex calmly handed the pistol to her.
Feeling the colossal weight of sixteen kilograms, Yuffie nearly dropped the gun right onto her feet. Shaking his head, Alex quickly took the "Jackal" from her hands before she managed to bruise her legs and begin complaining about the injury for the entire platform to hear. Putting the "Jackal" into a holster, Alex took the second pistol — "Casull" — from the weapons compartment and secured it next to it.
Looking at Alex offendedly for having the toy taken away, Yuffie annoyedly kicked the floor and felt her foot catch on something. Lowering her eyes, she noticed a folded piece of paper lying on the concrete. Showing curiosity, Yuffie picked up the note and immediately without any restraint began reading it aloud.
"'Now this is your toy, my love. Have fun…' Oh, and there's some kind of mark here! It's from lipstick! Hmm… it smells of roses and wine!" Yuffie read and with particular zeal sniffed the scarlet imprint.
"Give it here. Stop touching everything in a row! Why are you acting like a child? Have you turned into a five-year-old?" Alex said in a weary tone, taking the note from Yuffie's hands and putting it into his coat pocket.
"I'm not five, I'm nineteen! And in general, who sends you such notes?!" Yuffie muttered, wrinkling her nose, and playfully kicked Alex in the leg.
"Guess… All right, enough wasting time. It's time to go," Alex cut off, closing Fenrir's weapons compartment and confidently sitting in the motorcycle's saddle.
Seeing how masterfully Alex was avoiding the topic of the mysterious note, Jessie narrowed her eyes suspiciously. She became insanely curious who this special person was who gifts such monstrous weapons and leaves such messages. But Alex imperturbably ignored the gazes directed at him, merely hurrying everyone so as not to lose precious time. Dreaming of riding such a cool motorcycle, Yuffie was already ready to jump into the saddle after Alex.
But she didn't even manage to react before Jessie nimbly settled behind him and with a victorious air stuck her tongue out at her. Beginning to complain about the blatant injustice for the entire platform to hear, Yuffie tried to drag Jessie off the motorcycle in order to sit herself. Instead of yielding the seat to the restless Yuffie, Jessie gripped Alex in a death hold, wrapping both her arms and legs around him. Feeling how he together with Jessie was being pulled backward, Alex first looked at Biggs and Wedge in search of support.
The two comrades merely smirked cheerfully in response and amicably climbed onto one of their motorcycles. Understanding that no help was to be expected from them, Alex looked at Claudia, practically begging her to stop this circus. Seeing that desperate gaze, Claudia smiled slightly. Approaching the bike, she simply grabbed Yuffie by the scruff of the neck and without difficulty unhooked her from Jessie.
Seating the indignant and still arguing Yuffie on the neighboring motorcycle, Claudia herself sat behind the wheel, habitually holding the massive Buster Sword in one hand. Exhaling with relief, Alex started Fenrir's powerful engine and lightly patted Jessie on the palm, hinting that she should hold on tighter.
"Floor it, honey! Give the girl a ride with the wind!" Jessie cried cheerfully, trying to drown out the growing roar of the engine.
"More precisely, hold on tighter. The ride will be fun," Alex answered and twisted the accelerator grip.
"He-he-he! Guys, you haven't forgotten your super-duper new IDs, have you?" Jessie asked with a smirk, turning her head toward Biggs and Wedge.
"All in place, ma'am!" Biggs and Wedge answered in one voice, saluting with thumbs raised upward.
"Then forward! Next stop — the residential district of Sector 7 on the Plate!" Jessie announced in a commanding tone, rising behind Alex's back and victoriously pointing a finger toward the tunnel.
Laughing at Jessie's commanding tone, Alex sharply twisted the accelerator grip and shot off, putting the heavy Fenrir on its rear wheel. Instead of being frightened, Jessie merely laughed loudly, gripping Alex more tightly from such a powerful surge. Dashing off the platform, Alex spun the bike on a dime, added gas, and flew into the dark tunnel.
Seeing how Alex jumped off the platform, Claudia merely smirked boldly — she definitely had no intention of losing in such a show. Repeating his maneuver, Claudia flew off the platform under Yuffie's delighted squeal behind her back. The last to start were Biggs and Wedge, who preferred less extreme driving. Racing through the tunnel, Alex listened to Jessie on the move.
She finally revealed her true plan to him: in addition to visiting her parents, she intended to infiltrate a Shinra warehouse where the resources she needed were stored. Jessie admitted that after his words in the tunnel after the destruction of the Mako Reactor she had decided to make less powerful but directed charges with which fortified metal doors could easily be blown out. Having listened to her, Alex smiled slightly and immediately offered his help in engineering and assembling such bombs. At his words Jessie spread into a happy smile and leaned a little closer.
"Since we're going to drop by my parents' place anyway… Don't you want to stop by and meet my mom? She'll be very happy to have a new guest," Jessie proposed in a cheerful tone, resting her chin on Alex's shoulder.
"Already inviting me to meet the parents? Aren't you accelerating a bit too fast?" Alex inquired with a slight chuckle, slightly turning the handlebars to smoothly avoid an obstacle on the railway tracks.
"Maybe it is fast… Although, perhaps I should bring you over as a guest when this noisy crowd isn't with us. What do you think, honey?" Jessie said thoughtfully, playfully poking a finger into Alex's cheek.
"Why not? Just need to free up some time," Alex slightly shrugged, seeing no reasons to refuse.
"What a cold person you are, ugh… And yes, be careful — we're approaching the control scanners. Our fake IDs will definitely work the first time, but I'm not so sure about the second," Jessie said, clapping a palm on Alex's shoulder and pointing at the flickering frames ahead.
"ID scanners? And what the hell is that?" Yuffie's sincerely bewildered voice rang out from the side.
"You don't have a fake ID card?!" Jessie asked in shock, turning her head toward the motorcycle on which Claudia and Yuffie were riding.
Hearing Jessie's cry, Yuffie merely spread her arms in bewilderment and shook her head. She sincerely did not understand what these IDs of yours were and why some scanner was needed at all. Seeing her reaction, Jessie immediately realized: they were in deep shit. But before she managed to shout that they urgently needed to brake, the entire group at enormous speed had already raced through the orange holographic wall.
The barrier immediately flared scarlet-red, and a deafening alarm siren began howling throughout the tunnel. Understanding what this signal meant, Alex sighed heavily and mentally cursed himself for his relaxation. Because of the pile of piled-up affairs it had simply flown out of his head to prepare fake IDs for all members of Avalanche, including the newly joined Yuffie.
But the problem had already arrived, which meant it needed to be solved promptly. Adding gas, Alex waved a hand to the others, showing that they needed to squeeze the maximum and break away from the inevitable pursuit. Seeing his gesture, Claudia and Wedge also twisted the accelerator grips before the Grunt patrols could corner them.
Flying through the tunnel at breakneck speed, Alex out of the corner of his eye managed to notice how they passed a side compartment where heavy gates were slowly rising. On the other side Grunts were already revving their combat motorcycles. Irritably clicking his tongue, Alex took the heavy "Jackal" out from under his coat, gripping Fenrir's handlebars with one hand. Noticing his movement, Jessie turned and saw that an entire cavalcade of pursuers was already racing after them at full speed.
"Looks like we've got some fun company!" Jessie cried cheerfully, not taking her eyes off the pursuit.
"Is it really that fun for you?" Alex asked in a weary tone, slightly leaning to the side and deftly catching the handlebars with his foot in order to turn around and take aim at the pursuers.
"And how can one not have fun here?! A young couple pursued by villains intertwined in an embrace of a deadly race through the neon-sliced night!" Jessie recited enthusiastically, holding Alex's leg with all her might so that he wouldn't fly out of the saddle on the next turn.
"You should write books and perform in the theater… And look, don't drop me," Alex snorted, aiming the massive barrel of the "Jackal" right at the wheels of the Grunts' motorcycles rushing in pursuit.
Taking aim, Alex pressed the trigger. Immediately a thunderous shot sounded, and the bullet hit the front wheel precisely, completely tearing off the lower part of the combat motorcycle. The Grunt didn't even manage to understand what had happened before the wreckage of his bike was already sliding along the metal floor of the tunnel. Quickly directing the barrel at the next motorcycle, Alex made several more shots, repeating the practiced procedure of stopping the pursuit.
He principally had no intention of killing anyone so that Shinra would not have a single chance to accuse him and Avalanche of terrorism and mass murders. Seeing how quickly Alex had dealt with his part of the pursuers, Claudia smirked slightly and immediately blocked the automatic burst that rushed at them. Lowering the Buster Sword, she twisted the accelerator grip and in a matter of seconds caught up with the combat motorcycle that had jumped out of a side tunnel ahead.
Deciding to support the bloodless tactic, Claudia swung and struck the front part of the bike, filigree slicing it into two halves. Flying up by inertia after the transport fell apart, the Grunt felt a powerful push in the side and crashed into the soft padding of the tunnel wall. Drawing level with Claudia, Alex nodded to her slightly, showing that she had done everything perfectly. In response Claudia merely smoothly moved her head and held the massive Buster Sword in front of Alex's face, reliably covering him from yet another barrage of lead.
Seeing that this was her ideal chance to finally show off, Yuffie stood up to her full height on the motorcycle seat and took her huge four-pointed shuriken out from behind her back. Spinning in place, she swung and threw the giant blade right at the motorcycle moving behind. While the shuriken raced toward the target, Yuffie on the move began rapidly forming hand seals — the thrown weapon immediately accelerated, and a dense gust of wind swirled around.
The shuriken hit the rear wheel precisely, forcing the enemy bike to flip in the air. Having downed the pursuer, Yuffie easily pushed off Claudia's shoulder, jumped up, and deftly caught the returning weapon. Landing precisely back behind Claudia's back, the kunoichi victoriously showed Alex the peace sign. Alex in response merely raised a thumb upward, sincerely praising her skill.
"Three more ahead! Get ready!" Claudia warned, pointing the Buster Sword at three combat motorcycles that had jumped out of the tunnel right on course.
"Then let's stop them. This is our road, and we'll be the ones riding it!" Alex said with a smirk, briefly clamping the "Jackal" between his teeth and deftly reloading it with one hand.
"Oh yeah! After this we simply have to call ourselves the 'Road Demons'! Ugh, how cool that sounds!" Yuffie cried loudly, victoriously raising her shuriken above her head.
"I fully support! Let's form a racing gang!" Jessie responded with a laugh, peering out from behind Alex's shoulder to check the number of remaining pursuers.
To be continued...
(Of course, I wanted to fit the entire chase into one chapter. But then I would have had to sacrifice Roche's appearance, and he's a pretty great character who didn't deserve his sad end. Well, in the next chapter, the chase continues, and Alex will be pew-pewing with her new weapon. And don't forget, Alucard has become so powerful that she doesn't need a weapon at all; she can create them herself. And since her husband kept reaching for her pistols, she simply gave her pistol to Jackal. I think that's all I wanted to say. Hmmm... Oh, in answer to the possible question of why Dean doesn't do anything. And why would he? He simply understands that Alex will do most of the work, and he can be lazy until the situation requires his intervention. And now he can also say, "I can't do anything, I still need to walk Steve". Well, something like that. Hehe. I'll go eat. Peace, love, and when aiming a gun, carefully read the label.)
Early access to chapters on my patreon: p*treon.com/GreedHunter