Chapter 13
The next morning found the two siblings huddled together near the south entrance of the city. The weather was milder in Junon than winters were in Gongaga, but the wind blowing in off the ocean had a bitter bite to it, especially as it was still the middle of winter. Luckily, they didn't have to wait long. The man eyed them curiously when he saw them waiting but didn't say anything. He didn't even stick around for them to thank him again. They only watched his retreating form for a few moments before they both turned to start transferring their stuff to the saddlebags.
It didn't take them long to finish, and they started out as soon as they were in the saddles. They were both hunched against the wind and hoped it would die down as they made their way inland.
Luckily for the two of them, the weather did improve as they headed steadily east. It wasn't great the whole way, though. They stuck close to the mountain range as they went, which helped block some of the worst of the northern wind, but that also meant that there were several times they were caught in snowstorms. During the worst of those, they would hole up in the closest village until it passed.
Their travel was slow since they would also take time to hunt. They didn't want to stop just because they were traveling alone. It helped supplement their stocks with fresh meat, but it also allowed them to keep increasing their funds. Despite Zack's tendency to want to splurge occasionally, he didn't whine too much at Kris' insistence that they be as frugal as possible.
By the time they made it to the pass that they would use to cross the mountains, spring had finally arrived. With it came torrential rainfalls, but Kris had allowed them to purchase waterproof cloaks as well as sturdier bags to keep the worst of it from ruining their supplies. During their trek across the divide, they barely stopped for rest and didn't bother hunting. Even though it was spring, and the snow was melting, it was still cold near the peaks, and they wanted down as quickly as possible.
They skirted the giant swamp near the base as it was marked with danger signs. It was the only place on the map that was marked as such, so they had no desire to find out why. They also found that there were several notes on the back, including advice to stop in Kalm. By the time they got that far, they had already been told why in several of the villages they stayed in. Once they got passed Kalm, the going would get much tougher. Not because the monsters were worse or the weather, but because it was a wasteland.
They were both skeptical the first time they were told, but after hearing it so many times, they decided it would be better to be safe than sorry. They stocked up more than usual for the expected two weeks it would take them to get from Kalm to their final destination. They were both glad they had.
At their first sight of the wastelands, they both paused. It was not the same as the desert. Even though that place was so hot that it was nearly barren, at least some things were hardy enough to survive in the heat. This place seemed to have nothing. It put them both on edge, and even though they hadn't had problems with monsters so far, they decided that they would take turns sleeping.
Fortunately, the rest of the trip was uneventful. They started seeing the city two days before they finally made it to one of the gates thanks to the way the city seemed to be in the bottom of a bowl shape. They both paused a few miles out and stared at the colossal wall that seemed to stretch forever in both directions. Kris poked Zack in the side at the sight of his mouth hanging open. When he looked at her with wide eyes, she grinned. "Ready to make your destiny, little brother?" He laughed at her question before he spurred his chocobo into a run. Her laughter could be heard joining with his as they raced to the nearest gate.
When they arrived, they found that the giant door was closed, and they couldn't see any way to open it. They looked for nearly half an hour and couldn't find any way to even ring a bell or let someone know they were there. They also couldn't find any evidence that the gate was manned.
They were aggravated, but Zack was still so excited about being near the city he had dreamt of for so long, that the delay didn't faze him much. They finally decided to pick a direction and see if they could find an alternate entrance. It didn't take them long until they came across a long ramp that seemed to lead to another gate further up the side of the wall.
They hadn't made it all the way up the ramp when they noticed a smaller door open, and a man came out. He stood waiting for them. When they drew even, they dismounted, and the man gave them a quick once over. He looked to Zack first. "Lemme guess, you're here to try out for Soldier?"
Kris narrowed her eyes at the tone to the man's voice, but Zack didn't seem to notice anything. She held her tongue and let her brother speak. "That's right!" She smiled as he tried to reign in his enthusiasm. He scratched the back of his head with a chuckle before he continued. "I guess you get a lot of us, huh?"
The man didn't bother hiding his rolling eyes before he looked them over again. He shrugged lazily before he turned back to the door he had come from. "Follow me. We'll check your paperwork."
Kris did not like the man's attitude, but she knew Midgar was not going to be like Gongaga and held her tongue. They led their chocobos and followed the man across a large echoing room that contained several other people that seemed to be waiting as well. He left them with another uniformed man before he headed back to his post.
The new man seemed to be a bit nicer as he actually bothered to smile at the two of them. "We get so many people looking for a new life here. Why don't the two of you tell me what you're looking for and I can try to get you started?"
Kris frowned slightly as it was easy to see the man was faking his geniality, but she shrugged it off as Zack launched into his dream of joining Soldier and becoming famous. Kris wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh or punch the man when she caught him rolling his eyes too.
Once Zack was done, their escort turned to her. "What about you?"
Now that they were actually here, Kris found that she was reluctant to tell anyone else that she couldn't remember her past. She shrugged slightly and pointed at Zack. "I wanted to make sure he stays in line, plus I think that Midgar is the place to be to find a better living."
The man frowned slightly. "You do realize that many come here with only a vague notion of what they want and either leave empty-handed or wind up in worse straights then they were in before?"
She barely stopped herself from frowning at him. "That doesn't surprise me. Are you saying I don't get the chance?"
The man must have seen something in her eyes, and he took a step back and shook his head. "Not at all. As long as you have your paperwork, I can't stop you. I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were in for."
Kris grunted at him but didn't say anything else. The last thing she wanted was to get in trouble before they were even in the city proper. At that point, the man took a seat behind a computer close by and motioned for the two of them to take a seat after they tied their chocobos to a nearby post.
It took an unreasonable amount of time for the man to go over their papers and take their pictures for the new IDs. Kris wanted to curse at the fact that they had not had a chance to clean up very well since they left Kalm. She knew there had to be a layer of grime all over her, and when she saw the picture, she wanted to groan. At least Zack looked happy at the idea that they were one step closer to being citizens of the city.
Once that was taken care of, the man motioned them to follow once again. He stopped at another large door and gave them a critical look. "Chocobos aren't allowed to travel the roads in the city proper. Just past this gate is a selection of inns for newcomers to the city where you can stay while you find a place. They also have stables where you can keep the birds until you can find something more suitable for them. If you decide to keep them, there are special paths you must use, but there should be a specialist at the inn you choose that can help you further. I wish you both luck."
At that, he opened the doors and waved them through. They both stopped at the sight of the number of people milling about the area. Kris was slightly overwhelmed as she wondered if they had stumbled on the only door that took new citizens, or if all the gates were crowded. It was made worse by the fact that she knew all the people milling about were ones looking to start a new life just like they were.