westerncontinent | Starfighter AU

Starfighter AU

[Space. A frontier of infinite possibility and resources, desired by Gaia's governments and businesses both. Shinra especially, lodged deep within several countries' energy and military production, was gung-ho about the possibilities of mining in space from the start, and with their money and sometimes expertise, the people of Gaia reached their moon, and beyond.

Space isn't just full of opportunities, however, as they soon found out. No one had actually thought aliens existed, but they did.

Attempts at communication didn't work, and initially, fighting seemed impossible too, the aliens capable of shape shifting and wreaking havoc on the human side. It was, however, slowly dealt with. Methods to find the aliens were found, so infiltration attempts could no longer be easily and even less successfully enacted.

It was then a matter of making sure their planet was safe, and create a buffer zone.

(You want to do what? This is---

It'll go in our ships you buffoon, not the soldiers, though that would undoubtedly be far more successful. Well?

... All right.)

Shinra's technology proved to be the most effective, and they were not sharing their secrets, assuring them great income from various governments and other businesses wanting to protect their assets (and the planet). Few noticed there might be something odd - it was only practical the ships had two crew, one pilot/navigator and one gunner. It was only great luck that sometimes, a pair here and there seemed capable of much greater destruction than those two-man fighters ought to be capable of.

It worked, what did anything else matter?

Cloud Strife has attempted to join West Continent Allied Defense as a gunner for years, ever since he was first allowed to enter the preparatory academy at fifteen (they did not allow you into ships until seventeen at the earliest). He knows he can do it, that he would be good at it.

It seems no one else agrees, because he's consistently put as a navigator in all assessments.

Cloud Strife is deeply, burningly frustrated over this, but he does have a plan. It hasn't gone very well so far - he's has two gunners in four months - but he just needs to prove he can be even better as a gunner than a navigator. He knows he can.]

Navigator Strife, meet your new gunner, Zack Fair. Gunner Fair, this is Cloud Strife. [Commander Lazard stares at them over his raised screen, and Cloud does not glare sullenly at him, just stares with detached annoyance at the wall behind and to the side of Lazard's head. He can feel the disapproving look.] I'm sure you'll get along. Assigned quarters are F376, Deck C. Dismissed.

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[ He's sure they'll get along, he says.

Commander Lazard's stare over his glasses is just about as reassuring as the look he sees his new navigator give the wall next to him. Maybe not a look at him. But he's not sure what's worse. If he had or if he hadn't.

As it stands though, Zack takes a deep breath. Lets it out long and slow. Then musters up a smile as soon as they get out of the office and start down the hallway as his mouth then musters up a conversation. ] So... How long you been in for? I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've ever seen you around here.

[ Not that people don't socialize around the barracks. That's probably the most interesting part of this all. Because he's seen plenty of people. Knows a lot of them or at least of them, but Cloud's... Cloud's new. ]

[Cloud grunts, not at all in the mood to make friends (except for the fact that friends is what he's wanted his whole damn life), and makes the mistake of glancing sideways, up at this Zack Fair. Right into that smile.

Which, maybe it looks a little strained and awkward, but even so it's more genuine than Cloud's mostly seen.]

Four months.

[The answer spills out of him without entirely intending to, and Cloud's half of a mind not to answer - he doesn't actually need to be friends with his gunner, even if that's the whole point of the pairings as they do not rotate and you simply don't fly when one half is incapacitated or sick, but what he wants is Zack's position, and that's why he doesn't want to answer. Because Zack Fair, from just a glance, is basically everything Cloud would like to be.]

... I was stationed, on WCAD Odin before.

Odin, huh. [ He repeats it automatically before he actually seems to think on it. His eyes widen a little in surprise and he suddenly pipes up with a: ] Wait, Odin on the west continent? No kidding! I was there before! At least to start.

[ A small base. A backwater base, really. But it'd been the most convenient one... He shakes his head with a grin less uncertain. ] Where's your hometown then? I know it's not Gongaga.

[Blinking in startled surprise when Zack doesn't just recognize it - and not to make fun of its size, in which case Cloud would definitely have grumpily defended it with that the ship attached to the base wasn't that small - but to say he's been there.]

... Really? You? [Because Zack just seems... like he fits in here, on this behemot of a ship. Still, Cloud soundlessly mouths 'Gongaga' with a certain sense of incredulity. That's a backwater name if he ever heard one.] It's Nibelheim.

[He's still... not particularly effusive, but Cloud's never really been. He's also clinging hard to his frustration of still not having convinced any relevant authority that he'd be better as a gunner, but none of that is really Zack's fault. But it's just not fair.]

[ Zack clicks his tongue at that answer. Swings a look Cloud's way before looking back ahead as he walks. ] Nibelheim? Sure explains some things.

[ Though what things, he doesn't detail. Just starts rubbing at the back of his neck as he thinks further. ] So, you were stationed there four months and then ended up here or have you been here a while?

What? [Instantly Cloud's hackles are up as he glares.] I bet you don't even know where it is.

[Admittedly, not like he knows where Gongaga is on the Western Continent. He's had geography as much as anyone else and poured over the old globe his mom had, but small towns were hardly marked on maps like that, aside from local ones. Scowling at the floor, Cloud's of a mind not to answer, but;]

... I asked to be transferred somewhere else.

[He'd needed somewhere larger, if not necessarily immediately off the bases and ships of the Western Continent, and he'd also kind of needed somewhere where people weren't immediately knowledgeable of his... behaviour. Even if it was in his file, as Lazard had proven. With his results (even if they weren't the ones he wanted) being as good as they were, he'd gotten what he wanted.]

[ There's enough of an edge to that tone for Zack to at least catch on that something's off. Or maybe it's still the lingering annoyance about Nibelheim. Either way, he finds himself shrugging as he decides to go and pocket his hands right then. ]

So, got sick of that tiny space, huh. I can't say I blame you. It drove me a little crazy back there, too.

[ Zack leaves it at that- for a little at least. Ends up moving his lips not long after though. Stopping. And then moving them again, consequences be damned. ] And I know where Nibelheim is. Sorta. Anyway, it's not hard to guess with someone as pale as you. I know you're definitely not from anywhere tropical.

[Well, not exactly, but Cloud shrugs in vague agreement. It's close enough to some sort of simpler version of the truth that it will serve. Zack's quiet, then, and Cloud's fine with that. Or, if not fine, it's just... he's used to it, and he's still bristling a little from that Nibelheim comment, which he doesn't get.]

Huh? [Looking up, Cloud stares at Zack. Realizes what he said, and then all his annoyance just... runs off of him, to his surprise and Cloud's startled to hear himself snicker.] Well, you clearly sound like someone from down south.

[Which would make sense with the bronze undertone still clinging to Zack's skin, even if it surely is paler right now than it would be if he still lived where he comes from (spending most of your time indoors on base and then on a ship in space tends to do that). Gongaga's clearly on the southern end, somewhere a lot more tropical than Nibelheim.]

[ The snicker's disarming. Enough for Zack to blink and stare. Almost feels like he misheard him. But... Cloud doesn't seem as angry or whatever now. At least for as far as he's aware. His head cants to the side though, his nose scrunching as he answers: ] Oh? And just what makes you say that?

[ He'd almost be offended if he hadn't already poked the bear first here. ]

[Zack had definitely been first, and Cloud just shrugs as he (reluctantly) stops and presses the button to call a lift for them. They're going to have to take two more to get to the right deck and the right area of the ship without having to have a whole workout for it.]

You still got an accent. Heard a lot of it at Odin.

[He'd missed it at first, admittedly. Otherwise he wouldn't have been surprised to find out Zack came from the Western Continent as well. Zack must have worked really hard to get rid of it as much as possible while speaking the trade language, which there honestly were plenty of reasons for to do. Cloud's already noticed them, and it makes him as sullen as it's an incentive to now stand out and be an outcast (again).]

Makes all of you sound like sun through the window way too early in the morning.

[Cloud shrugs, knowing he probably should've just kept his mouth shut, but he's both still annoyed... and it's not all a negative comparison (he would defend himself with). Loud, obnoxious, and with a certain bright lilt to the words, that was it.]

Yeah? And what's wrong with that? You make it sound like it's better to sound like some bitter old geezer or somethin'.

[ Admittedly, the heat in his voice trips himself up. And there's that last twang that comes out by the end of it. He frowns at himself. Mutters something indistinct under his breath and then crosses his arms as they step into the first lift. There's a pointed distance he makes to them now, but at least he doesn't get off at the next stop. ]

Edited 2020-01-19 00:35 (UTC)

Not what I meant.

[But he hadn't meant it as entirely positive either, and Cloud knows it. So he's fine with the pointed distance, leaning against the wall on the other side of the elevator from Zack as they ride up to where they need to get off.

Tries not to stare at him from under his bangs and lashes, but he can't help it. It really is unfair, because Zack is tall and broad-shouldered and what he remembers of his smile earlier, it's bright and really nice. He probably looks like he doesn't just fit the gunner uniform, but that it belongs on him. Pressing his lips together, Cloud looks away. It would belong on him too, if he could just make the right people see that.]

[ Zack stays quiet for the rest of that first lift's ride up. And the next one, too, for that matter. The only hint of any indication he's still even remotely remembering that Cloud is there is given in the little glances here and there.

It's only when they finally step in front of their shared room that he... rubs at the back of his neck and looks Cloud's way. ]

You... wouldn't happen to remember the passkey, would you?

[ He weakly points to the keypad with a thin, awkward smile on his lips. ]

[Better this way, probably. For both of them. Cloud knows he shouldn't try to antagonize Zack; all of the problems Cloud has aren't Zack's fault. He's just... representative of them.

So he stares at the floor of each elevator while trying not to stare at Zack, and stares at the floor of the corridors they walk between the elevators until they're where they need to be and...]

Um... yeah.

[Looking up, he blinks. Glances from Zack to the door and then back and shrugs. Zack should have the passkey somewhere in the file he got as much as he did, but Zack might not have his reader with him. He, compared to Zack, has been here for longer after all.

And it's not as if it matters why Zack's forgotten it, unless this is the first play in some prank or a way to humiliate Cloud but... it's not like Zack knows him (well, didn't know him until they started talking), so unless he literally doesn't want to get along with any potential navigator he might have ended up with, it seems too weird even for Cloud to imagine that Zack really is out to make fun of him.

The door slides open obediently after he enters the key, and nothing happens when he steps in. The inside of the cabin looks exactly as it should - a bunk bed that can be rearranged into a single larger one on the floor if they should... well, get to that point, since that sort of thing is hardly discouraged for them. Not necessary, but not discouraged as it might be in other parts of the military.]

Least this doesn't look, any different.

[It's a mumble he says without thinking about it as he wanders in and dumps the bag he's been carrying on the floor.]

Everything's.. pretty standard, after all.

[ He can say that pretty easily at least, even as he pokes his head in next. Notes the bunk beds, closet, and spare few furniture otherwise. The door that leads off to the bathroom which makes him sigh a little in relief, too. ]

Kinda nice in a way to only share a room with one other person, too, you know. I've heard some bases they just cram a bunch of gunners in one room and navigators in the other. I don't really get the point.

[ Aren't they supposed to sync better by living together? How are they going to do that if they see each other a lot less and are stressed out in the meantime by overcrowded rooms and huge, shared bathrooms? He thinks it's weird at least as he hefts his back up on the top bunk in pointed claim. ]

... No, me either. [He shakes his head, because yeah. As little as he likes being where he is, in the position he is in, it's only a matter of wanting the other one more.] Kinda defeats the actual point.

Doesn't one of the bases and its ship have like... only one bed?

[Cloud clears his throat, kicking his bag under the bottom bunk. He's fine with sleeping there and is definitely glad this place defaults to an arrangement that means there can be one bed, but doesn't force it. That seems about as stressful to him as being stuck in rooms with several roommates and not your own pair and shared bathrooms.]

With complimentary condoms, lube, and chocolate? Yeah, something like that.

[ Whether Zack's being serious or hiding a little, impish grin with his back turned to Cloud is anyone's guess. Still, he shrugs shortly after before finally glancing back, a pair of boxers and change of uniform already in hand. ]

I'm kidding, by the way.

What?!

[Cloud is furiously embarrassed to hear his voice crack while heat floods his face. He throws an incredulous, narrowed stare up at Zack, and then just blushes even darken when Zack says he's kidding.]

Right. [Turning to his bunk and realizing he should actually pack up and not just leave things in the bag, Cloud yanks it out from under the bed, puts it on the bed, and starts yanking things out of it. Zack might not have pranked him while they got into the room, but this more than makes up for that. He's determined to ignore Zack, but...] ... Why would there be chocolate, too?

[He needs to know what Zack's reasoning was for adding that.]

[ The reaction he gets out of that is more than enough for him. Enough for him to grin like a fool if only for a moment. At least before he finally starts to head off towards the bathroom already. Sure, he could use this time to unpack and get himself situated, but he hasn't showered in what feels like forever and he knows he stinks.

~~Not that it'll matter soon after perhaps. He knows he's in for more training later that afternoon.~~

Still, Zack catches that last question right before he disappears into the other room and round on Cloud with wide eyes and a: ] Are you serious?

What?

[Annoyed, Cloud looks up from where he's reluctantly folding stuff, since the small closet sections are never particularly big as far as he's noticed, and he doubts that's different here?]

Why wouldn't I be? Candy's nice and all, but I don't see how it's got anything to do with the, um, rest.

[He can feel himself blush, just a hair, again, which honestly just makes Cloud more defensive, so he turns away from Zack, picks up his pile of uniforms and a couple civilian outfits and stomps over to the narrow closet. Yeah, that's about as large as he expected it to be and the two sections it's partitioned into divides the small space further.]

[ Zack just snorts in answer at that. Snorts and then disappears into the bathroom. Leave Cloud to get himself situated, he figures. Leave him to put his things where he feels comfortable putting them. Maybe things will feel a little less weird then.

Maybe.

He isn't really sure. But the water's good at least. Warm and comfortable and distracting as he likes it. Maybe a little too distracting when he comes out in just his boxers in the end, scrubbing his hair dry with his new uniform still hung over his shoulder. ]

[Glaring at the closed door, Cloud turns back to the closet. Tells himself he doesn't care and that it doesn't matter. If everything goes as he wants it to, he's not... If it does, it doesn't matter what his relationship with Zack ends up being because he won't be here for too long.

Hopefully.

Shoving the last clothes into place, Cloud smacks the sliding door for the closet closed, and it almost bounces off the magnetic lock, but gets sucked back into place with a click far too soft for his liking at the moment.

Crossing back to his bunk, he shoves the couple personal items in there around, contemplating putting them away. In the end, he leaves them in his bag and shoves it back under the bed, as some sort of reminder and attempted reassurance to himself.

When Zack comes back out, Cloud looks up reflexively, even when he'd told himself he wouldn't, and maybe he should have expected this. Lots of people don't care about near-nakedness around other people and they are supposed to live here. Together.]

Didn't you, bring a change of clothing, with you?

[Cloud looks away, cheeks hot (because Zack, much like he is when clothed, is practically a paragon of a gunner, and he is hot), grumbling. He distinctly remembers Zack bringing clothes with him into the bathroom. It is, in fact, hanging right off of Zack's shoulder. What was the point then?]

Edited 2020-01-20 22:35 (UTC)

I did, 'geal. Just didn't feel like- [ Zack starts offhanded and almost chipper with the way he makes a wild mess of his hair. Does so and then freezes as he looks that way and... slowly starts to lower the towel as he finishes awkwardly. ]

...changing yet.

[ He clearly his throat shortly after that. Then backpedals slowly back into the bathroom. Presumably to deal with said uniform. ]

[Staring at Zack, confused about the word(?) in the beginning that made so sense because Zack knows what his name is. It didn't sound like an insult or anything mocking, though... not with how relaxed and almost quite upbeat that Zack had sounded like.

Which makes the sudden drop in tone and demeanour startling, as is Zack's retreat. For it feels like a retreat. Cloud sits down on the bed, and he doesn't care. Really. When Zack comes back, though, he cocks his head, frowning.]

... You okay?

Huh? [ Zack cocks an eyebrow almost like he has not a clue in the world what Cloud speaks of. Kind of only maybe it's a little more sudden than it out to be. A little more forced before he shortly shrugs. ] Oh- yeah. Yeah, I'm good.

[ He shrugs again and makes his way in long, broad strides over to his own stuff, reaching up on tip toes to pull the zipper of his bag loudly wider. To start pulling the rest of his stuff out from there to make his own space known. He really ought to put his things away, after all. No matter how little space they get to share. ] You all settled in?

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