I Am Who I Am! (Tseng, Veld)

Tseng was glad to have gotten back to Gaia in one piece. The mission to get back here was successful and it was a massive relief. He was glad to be back on his home turf once more. Here he could get all the information he needed. All those other worlds he had to go in completely blind and he did not enjoy that feeling in the slightest. He had been lucky to run into Strife, Lockhart, and Marlene. They had truly filled him in on the on goings of things and filled in a lot of holes that he didn't realize needed to be filled.

The Director now had knowledge that he felt he should fill Veld in with. He would report back to ShinRa after seeing the former Director in person. After all, Veld was looking for his daughter. Tseng couldn't hinder that for him. He had promised to share any information that he had gathered and the information he had gathered was a lot to soak in. It was not something that could be explained over the phone. Anyone other than Veld would probably think Tseng had finally snapped if they heard all this. It was quite crazy to believe. A young boy was fighting yellow eyes shadows that wanted to consume hearts with a metal overgrown key? He had shape shifted and was breathing underwater as a mermaid. Then he and Elena had turned into creatures that one would dress for Halloween as. Meaning, Tseng had actually been a vampire for all of an hour. That Fuhito was back from the dead and he'd lost him because pirates were bombing the shoreline of a magical place where children never grow? Yeah, Tseng must have finally lost it.

The current Director had called Veld to meet him where Sector 8, in the plate district, of Edge. It was amusing how he still thought of Edge as if it was still the old Midgar. Tseng knew the new names of the streets and areas. However, sometimes it made him feel more reminiscent of when ShinRa actually held more power than it did now. He had chosen this section due to the fact that it had a lot of up and coming new businesses. Some that he figured could do with some surveillance. Just to be sure there was nothing nefarious behind the scenes. It would work out well. He would have an excuse to have been here if and when Rufus found out he didn't reports straight back to HQ.

Tseng chose Cat's Cradle as the meeting place only because it was in the newer section. He could scout the place while getting a look at almost every business up the street. The Director had come in plain clothing to avoid being spotted quite as easily in the crowd. It worked better in the past to stand out. But, with the newer world order, he tried to blend in when having a more secure meeting.

As Tseng stepped through the door, an off voice spoke up from behind the counter. It was quite young from what he could tell. But it wasn't till the small cat cleared the counter that he felt a bit of confusion hit his face. The cat had a striking resemblance to Cait Sith. However, the faux fur coloring was different as was the attire. Had Reeve created another prototype? He wasn't even aware that the head of the WRO still had time to tinker with his AI technology with how hard he was working to handle policing the area. The WRO had practically taken over as the police and immediate response teams. It helped a lot as ShinRa lost a lot of employees and Soldier. They wouldn't be able to handle as much as the WRO could. It gave them the ability to concentrate their focus on their current goals rather than arresting petty criminals.

The Director stood paused in the doorway for a moment before he spoke up. "Sure, a coffee would be fine...." He replied as he watched the cat to try and get a feel on it's movements. It was very lifelike, quite similar to Cait Sith. It had to be one of Reeve's. But, he'd watch and see. He knew Reeve enjoyed playing games once in a while. So he probably wouldn't be very forthcoming.

At least Veld understood the seriousness of the situation. If Fuhito was alive, then there was no telling who else would be. Sephiroth? Kadaj? Hojo? ShinRa Senior? But also, maybe Aerith? Zack? Tseng hadn't thought of that possibility till now. If people were returning from the lifestream, maybe it wasn't going to just be the villains of their story. There could truly be some good to come of this situation. He had done so much evil in his life, but their lives were the only two things he regretted. If he had only been a bit faster in getting the information. A bit faster in getting there. Able to evade Sephiroth in the Temple of the Ancients. But, he couldn't change the past. He could only work to prevent those same mistakes in the future.

The Director shook his head at Veld's comment about the coffee and listened to his response before the cat-bot appeared. His eyes watching the creature as it spoke about making the assumption it had. The suspicion was poorly veiled across his face as the cat spoke and retreated to make the breakfast. Tseng didn't trust it's words. It was only logical that it was Reeve's creation. Though, nineteen years? He was unsure that Reeve had been working on the technology that far back. Then again, maybe he had created the technology that far back and that's when it felt it was 'born'. But it surely wasn't put into a skin till recently. Right? Reeve had to be behind this. It must have been his way of scouting out the new area. It was smart and he certainly wouldn't want anyone finding out about it. That would explain his denying any knowledge.

Once the cat left, Tseng continued where he left off, answering Veld's questions and requests. "It's hard to believe. I lived through it and I am still denying that it happened. I'm not mad quite yet..." He let out a soft sigh before taking another sip of coffee to start. "The first world was similar to the Northern Cavern. Mountains as far as the eye could see with frigid temperatures. I simply presumed we'd crashed in the Northern Continent at the time. The next world..." Tseng paused for a moment, discomfort pulling across his expression. This was the part that would be the most unbelievable. He had lost his legs in exchange for a fin and gills.

"The second was underwater. This world seemed to change myself as well as another being I encounter who admitted she was not human. I had my feet replaced with a physical fin and was able to breath through gils. I'm not sure how that occurred unless it's a mechanism of the world. Strife explained it to me, but I don't truly understand how it was possible." Magic was not something that he believed in. Their magic was through the use of materia, crystallized lifestream. The concept simply perplexed him. Then again, there was an ailment of their world which turned humans to toads. Maybe it was not all that far fetched.

"The third was Neverland where I encountered a talking shadow, called a heartless. It was made of a world where no one ages. Adults seem to be shunned as the island was inhabited by children that never aged while being attacked by the adults... who all seemed to be pirates." That world he experienced the lease amount of time. He was far too focused on Fuhito to truly explore or investigate that world. He was furious when he allowed the former terrorist to escape his grasp. There was no telling what sort of trouble that man was going to cause. Anything that happened from that moment on would be Tseng's responsibility as he failed to exterminate him when he had the chance.

"I believe, Halloween Town, was Elena's favorite as she seemed to find it quite amusing. It was another world that changed your appearance. It seems I was a Vampire and Elena was similar to Frankenstein. I must take her word on my appearance because I was not able to see my reflection. Though, I could feel the fangs. So I'm sure she was not lying to me. There were talking Skeletons and werewolves, almost straight out of a horror movie. Yet, they acted like normal civilians." He took another drink of his coffee as he watched the cat preparing the meal in the background. It was quite focused on it's purpose as it worked. Tseng working to keep his voice low to avoid interlopers in their conversation. Yet, he was mistaken in believing that the machine wasn't able to hear them.

"The last world we discovered before I spoke with Strife was almost of a children's book. The colors of the scenery were vivid, far brighter than the Golden Saucer if you could believe it. I don't believe I've ever seen a tree as green. We encountered being that appeared... stuffed? I thought they were automated until Elena explained her thoughts and reasoning. But, I can't confirm it either way. If we're able to interfere in their worlds. My thought goes to what sort of beings are going to make themselves known here. As for transportation? I am almost disappointed knowing they ended the Space Program years before. It looks like that's one program we should have invested in." He let out a slight sigh, his fingers moving to rub the bridge of his nose before letting his eyes shift to meet Veld's again. The current Director was sure if the roles were reversed that he wouldn't believe Veld. He'd of presumed that the man was getting old and losing his mind. But, experiencing it? Tseng would probably believe almost anything.

That's when the cat interrupted.

The Director's eyes transitioned from Veld to Haru. He listened intently as it inserted itself into their conversation. It was annoying, but if it was Reeve, this was his way of helping without revealing himself. Why the man wouldn't simply admit it to them, Tseng didn't know. "I was in the Mythril Mines around that time myself. I didn't see what you're describing..." He didn't correct the cat on it's calling the heartless shadows. It wasn't something that he needed to know.