Wedge didn’t know how, but he managed to muster the strength to walk back to his bunk after his ordeal was over. “Lucky me,” Wedge thought to himself as he saw that Horace had already left his office. He changed into his spare uniform and put the one he was wearing into his pack. He was glad to get out of that sweat-soaked suit, and tried to take his mind away from the residual sting of the electrodes.
“The things I do for my brother...That’s the only reason I’m doing this,” Wedge reassured himself as he walked to the galley. He just hoped that Horace wasn’t there .
“Wedge!” The voice Wedge heard cut through his hazy thoughts. “You can still stand after that?!”
“Biggs? Yeah, it just smarts...a lot. Let’s get a bite to eat.”
“Okay. I managed to crawl out of there once you arrived.” He paused. “I was taking the bullet for you, Wedge. Why did you have to go?”
Wedge let out a painful sigh. “We were in that together. Even if Horace had ordered me to stay at his office, I would have eventually come for you.” The pain of the shocks was gone from his body, but still fresh in his mind.
Taking their trays, Biggs found an empty table and sat down. “Wedge, that’s noble of you and all, but you can’t put up with a guy like Horace forever. Even if he is your brother, are you still planning on staying his assistant?”
“You don’t even know half of what he did to me as soon as I walked through that door. He’s really milking this thing for all he can get.”
“So why even stay? You should ask to get a transfer.”
“No, I can’t. Even if they were able to accept a transfer on such short notice, I can’t do it.”
“Why? I’d go with you. Technically, I’m the same rank as Horace, so you could pretend to be my assistant.”
“No, Biggs. I hate what he’s doing, yes. I can’t stand losing all my hard work to become a stupid assistant.” Wedge looked down into his plate. “But, I have to do this.”
“You still can’t tell me why! Why are you letting everyone walk all over you like this?”
“I made a promise.”
“What?”
“Before I left home, my mother and father made me promise to take care of Horace. They told me to do everything in my power to make sure he got to the top so he could bring fame to the Palmer family.”
“Why can’t you be the one that goes to the top? Why can’t you try to make a name for yourself?”
“I’m only the little brother. If I managed to get to a high position and leave my brother behind, what would that say about Horace?”
“It would prove he’s a total dolt. We already know that.”
“Of course I know that. I tell you about it all the time. But Horace was already the favorite of the family before I was born. My parents are counting on him to make a good impression of the Palmer family. I can’t give them anything less, it would hurt even more that this to disappoint them.” He looked up. “That’s why I’m staying with Horace.”
Biggs saw that Wedge would never give up his parent’s dream, even if he had to become a martyr to do it. “All right. If that’s what you have to do, all I can say is that you’re too honest for your own good sometimes.”

“That was delicious! I never knew curry could taste so good!” Aeris exclaimed as she started to clear the dishes.
“It’s just my own recipe. Nothing special.”
As she started to wash, she looked back at Wedge, who was busy scrubbing the table. “How old are you?”
Wedge had trouble answering this, since he had no clue how much time had passed since his death. “Well, I was about 22 when I died.”
“My age too,” thought Aeris. She finished washing the last plate and walked to where Wedge was now sitting. “What do we do now?” she asked, looking down at Wedge. Her long, braided hair was hanging down, almost touching his.
“Well,” answered Wedge, “we should start packing and get some rest.”
“What exactly can we pack? You’re the only one that has a backpack, let alone things to pack.”
“Well, I didn’t pack any extra clothes, either. Don’t you have an extra dress?”
“Well, now that you mention it, no, I don’t. Lifestream always took care of it for me.”
Wedge couldn’t stand the thought of traveling without at least an extra change of clothes. “Lets hit the shops, then. I have a feeling we’re going to need the clothes.”
“Do you have any money?”
“Well, I have about 10,000 Gil on me now. That should be enough.”
After counting the money, Wedge took his pack and led Aeris into Narshe.

Wedge heard the sound of the horns. He let the thought cross his mind; maybe he could hide in this bunk forever and forget he even had a brother. He finally gave up and anticipated what was coming, so he stood by the door, waiting for his brother to come in.
Horace stuck his red face through the door and let the rest of his body stumble in after it. “Whee! Hoo-boy! Those executives sure know how to have a good time!”
Wedge noticed that he was obviously intoxicated.”Sir, have you been drinking?”
“Quite right,” answered Horace, staggering. “Hey, assistant! Assist me with this chair!” His speech slurred and his breath smelled heavily of sake.
“Yes, sir,” Wedge said as he broke his fall with the chair. “Just get some rest, sir.”
“Not so fast,” mumbled Horace. “I’m on my way up, you know.” Horace started to hiccup. “When we get back, I’m on my way to a very important int-interview (hic) that I want to pass. (Hic) Heck, I could even be (hic) the pre-President’s assistant(hic).”
Wedge wasn’t sure he heard correctly, but he hoped he could rely on Horace’s drunken rambling. If Horace could get that high up in the power structure, he would have done his job. Laying in his bunk, he closed his eyes. “I’ll do anything I can to make sure he gets that job,” Wedge vowed. “Then, I’ll go out and make myself famous too..I’ll make Mom and Dad proud..”

Wedge didn’t know it was possible for women to be so indecisive.
“Oh my! That dress would look fabulous on me! But this one looks nice, too. And look at this! This is just adorable! Wedge, which one would you prefer?”
Wedge had already wasted no time in buying his gear: a new backpack, yellow shirt, jeans, and boots. He was however, very practical in his answer. “Just get something that fits well and doesn’t chafe. Just something simple like what you’re wearing now is fine.”
This apparently wasn’t the answer Aeris wanted, so she kept looking anyway.
Wedge saw something that caught his eye. “I found something,” Wedge said, holding up a women’s sailor suit. Its white and pink tones complimented the tasteful rippled skirt that came with it. “Is it you?”
Aeris could not believe her eyes. It was perfect! She had never seen anything like that before in her life! “How did you know? I’ll take it!”
“No, I will!” A sinister looking creature burst from a display case and grabbed their bags and new clothes, bolting out the door.
“Thief!” wailed Aeris, who was knocked down by the lupine robber. “Help! Thief!”
Wedge went to Aeris’s aid, helping her to her feet. “What?! Where?”
“He went out the door! He’s getting away with our bags! Hurry!”
Almost without thinking, Wedge sprinted out of the store. Looking in both directions, he saw the thief run up an alley. Wedge dashed through the crowd, dodging people as they came, but being very careful not to hit anyone. He darted down the alley, winding through it and following the thief’s footsteps as they crunched through the snow.
The thief stopped. “Dead end..” He thought to himself, hearing Wedge’s heavy breath as he approached.
“I don’t know why you stole from me but you’re going to get it!” Wedge called out as he approached the end of the alley. The thief saw Wedge at the end of the alley and called out, “Ha! You’re a joke! I am Lone Wolf, the greatest thief in Narshe! And, dead or alive, you won’t catch me! What a pitiful sight!”
Wedge looked up to where the call was coming from and saw Lone Wolf perched on the snowy rooftop above him. “You’re right! I can’t get you while you’re up there!” Before Lone Wolf could jump away, Wedge charged the building at full speed. A deafening slam was heard as Wedge collided with the wall at full force, cracking it and sending Lone Wolf down into the alley in an avalanche of snow.
Lone wolf was stunned. When he was finally able to get up he felt a very angry Wedge pull his collar. “Now I’ve got you.” The last sound he heard was his face colliding with Wedge’s fist.

Wedge woke up to hear a shower going in the next room. “4:00 in the morning. I get the feeling this wasn’t some routine mission.” Knowing that Horace couldn’t be awakened by any amount of screaming, he called out to the only person who would be showering at this hour. “Biggs?”
“Yeah.”
“What are you doing up at this hour, sir?” Wedge called as he gathered his clothes and towel, mocking his higher ranking friend.
“Stop that ‘sir’ stuff. We’re just buddies right? Same as always.”
“Well, you do outrank me, Biggs.”
“Yeah, because of Horace’s blind luck. Well, then, I order you to come here and have a decent conversation without all this ‘sir’ nonsense.”
“Right away, Biggs,” Wedge answered, jokingly.
While Wedge undressed, Biggs talked. “So, how’s it going with you?”
“I’m fine. Just wondering, that’s all.”
“About what?”
“How long have we been out of port?”
“About four hours.”
“That’s not really the problem, then.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Why do you say that?”
“Well, I was told that we were sent out here to collect wildlife samples while we transported the president.”
“What’s so unusual about that?”
“I’ve received readings that say that there are no other signs of life within a half-mile radius of the reactor.”
Wedge couldn’t believe this. “That’s impossible! This shoreline should be teeming with life! Isn’t that why they picked Junon as a good spot?”
“That’s what they say. After what I found, I would have to believe it.”
Wedge knew what the natural conclusion was. He didn’t even need to say it.
“The reactor is sucking away the life in the ocean, Wedge.”
“I know what you’re going to say, Biggs. You want me to help you get proof.”
“I was going to ask you that, but I know you can’t.”
“Right.”
“If you did, that would jeopardize your chance to make your brother into something. I know how much your parents mean to you. That’s why I can’t ask you.”
Wedge turned his shower off and got dressed. “But, we’re in this together, Biggs.”
“You don’t have to get involved. I’m just telling you because you’re my best friend, Wedge, rank, or no rank.”
“Biggs..”
“I already told you, I’m not trying to make you choose between me and your family, Wedge. I’m just letting you know.”
Wedge assured himself that his obligation to Horace would not last long.

“That thing took our clothes?” Aeris poked the Wolf-Man, who was tied securely to a pole Wedge had driven into Banon’s front yard.
“Yes, and his name is Lone Wolf.” He was aching from the collision, but was otherwise not even winded. “Hmm. He doesn’t look too smart, either.”
Lone Wolf looked like a wreck. Swelling had developed over the fur near his right eye, which was starting to open.
“Looks like he’s coming to,” Wedge announced, rubbing his hand as if it was dirty. “Maybe he can tell us something about this place.”
Lone Wolf saw his captors and found that he was unable to move. “Hey! What’s the big idea here? Let me go right this second!”
Wedge put on a surprisingly intimidating face. “The big idea is, “ emphasizing the point by prodding the thief, “is that punks like you shouldn’t be stealing from other people. Why are you doing this to people who are already dead?”
“Ah, they hated me when I was alive, anyway.”
“I’m sure you were a thief while you were alive, weren’t you?”
“Yeah, yeah, I was a thief before I died. So what are you going to do about it? Hmm? Tie me up? You already did.”
Wedge was getting tired of this hoodlum’s arrogance. “Aeris, I don’t think he’s getting the picture yet. What do you say?”
“Well, he has been very rude. I can’t imagine a good person would steal from people. Especially dead people.”
“That settles it. Aeris, can you give me my pack?”
“Sure,” Aeris said, giving him his pack. “Why?”
“Oh, what are you going to do, whack me with the bag I stole?” Lone Wolf teased.
Wedge dug through his pack. Finding his Materia Blaster, he took it out and carefully aimed and fired at a nearby boulder, causing a loud explosion. Everyone around them turned to look, and as the smoke cleared, they saw that the rock had been totally vaporized. He then turned the gun on Lone Wolf and took a step back.
Lone Wolf was paralyzed with fear. He didn’t want to die again.
“You’ve just thrown away your last lifetime, Wolf.” Wedge powered up his blaster.
“No! No, no, no, no, no! Please don’t kill me! I’ll be good! I wont steal from anybody ever again! I don’t want to die! Please!” Lone Wolf had a look of dread on his face.
“Aeris! What do you think? Does he mean what he’s saying?”
Lone Wolf pleaded, “Yes! Yes! I do! I do!”
“Shut up!” Wedge shouted, turning his attention back to Lone Wolf. He aimed and fired again at where the boulder once stood, leaving a large crater under the dust cloud. “If you don’t want to be blasted, keep your mouth shut until we tell you! Aeris! What’s your verdict?”
Aeris was unsure of what to make of this situation. Tifa never told her Wedge could be like this. All she had seen before was the soft side of Wedge; the Wedge that cried and cared about people and made curry, but the look in his eyes now said that he was cold inside. They were almost familiar.. “It’s up to you, Wedge.” She decided to test him. She hoped and prayed that Wedge would not be one to kill a thief over some clothes.
Wedge now pointed the gun at Lone Wolf, charging it with a high-pitched hum. “Well, then. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”
“I-I-I’ll return all of the things I stole!”
Wedge was pleased to hear this, but did not show it. “Oh, really? How? You’re tied up and I’ve got a gun pointed at you.”
“Here! He motioned to his vest pocket. There’s the keys to the treasure! I hid all of it under that house!”
Wedge reached into the wolf’s pocket and grabbed the keys, throwing them to Aeris. “Which house?”
“Please don’t kill me!”
“I’m not going to kill you yet. You had just better hope you cooperate and help us return all the things you stole!”
“Y-yes sir. There’s a locked chest under the clothing store. You have to go under the stairs to get it.”
Wedge stood there, pointing the gun at the thief, thinking about his confession. He stayed for a few tense seconds, waiting to see if the effect of his speech had sunk in or not. When Lone wolf had finally given up and closed his eyes to wait for the shot, Wedge put his gun to his holster. “I’m not going to kill you yet.” Handing the gun to Aeris, he told her, “Wait here. I’ll check it out. If he tries anything funny, kill him.”
Aeris held the blaster in her hand and pointed it at the ground. It was still hot and sweaty from Wedge. “I can’t kill him, Wedge.”
“I’m not planning on having you do that. He won’t try to escape. But,” Wedge paused to take another look at Lone Wolf, “he might be telling the truth. I’ve got to at least try to trust him, even if he is a thief.”
As Wedge walked back to the store, Aeris thought about what Wedge had told her. His words reassured her that he was never really planning to kill him. He was still the same lovable Wedge. “All right, you thief, “ Aeris yelled, “you’d better not try anything funny with me because I’m not as lenient as Wedge is. Got it?”
Lone Wolf saw that she was dead serious.

Wedge found the door underneath the stairs easily, but getting in was the hard part. “I’ve already tried ten keys on this door! Why doesn’t it work?” He punched the door in frustration, causing it to splinter into pieces. “I guess that’s why.”

Horns blared loudly through Wedge’s brain as he slept. He promptly got up and proceeded to wake Horace out of his slumber.
“Sir? Sir, it’s time to get up. It’s 10:00, sir.”
Horace silently mumbled curses to himself as he rose from his chair. “Is that what time it is? This is annoying. And what are you doing here?”
“Well, sir, the President made me, your little brother, your new assistant yesterday, sir.”
Horace was obviously feeling the aftereffects of the alcohol on his body. “Oh yes, that’s right. Well, since you’re here, I’ve got a stack of budget forms on my desk over there waiting for this stamp.” Horace shoved Wedge into the chair, which he vacated quickly. “Now, don’t disturb me while I prepare for my video interview.” He flopped down in his bunk and started snoring. Wedge wasn’t about to invoke his wrath by bothering him again.
Wedge finally got around to taking a look at the paperwork. Nothing really caught his eye, so he started stamping Horace’s personal seal into the required boxes.
Though the door was closed, he heard the showers start up in the next room. Wedge almost called for Biggs, but stopped himself when he remembered his brother. He was so focused on his work that he couldn’t hear the pair in the showers next door.
“So, is the schedule going as planned?”
“Without a hitch, sir.”
“What did you do with those budget papers?”
“I sent them over to that Palmer idiot. He probably has no clue what he’s signing.”
“Shh! He’s next door.”
Neither of these voices were Biggs’.
“Who cares? You heard his stupid brother. ‘With all due respect, sir, he’s a very heavy sleeper.’ Give me a break.”
“I’ll have you know, I think that man would make a very commendable soldier someday.”
“Do you think so, sir?”
“Of course. He’s responsible, he came forward. He even had tact.”
“But sir, you demoted him.”
“A necessary casualty. I need more people like Horace on my staff.”
“Why sir?”
“He’s easily manipulated. He’s also a chronic brown-noser. Sensible, intelligent men like Wedge Palmer need not get in the way of my plans.”
Wedge stopped stamping and took a good look at exactly what he was stamping.
“I see, sir. What should I do about it, sir?”
“Horace is already within my grasp. But, this Wedge character will be a painful thorn in our sides if not treated correctly. Can you arrange for some, shall you say, private training?”
“What did you have in mind, sir?”
“The Turk initiation camp.”
“Isn’t that a bit harsh?”
“That’s what I’m hoping for. There, he will be either crushed, like a little bug, or will emerge as Turk material.”
“I’ll have to agree with you there. If he goes, I’m sure he’ll be successful.”
Wedge dripped with sweat as he read on. “Materia growth crystals? Underwater missile turrets? Mako explosives? Virus matter?” Wedge asked himself. “What does this mean?”
“Why do you say that?”
“He has some kind of obligation to his parents to make Horace into something decent. Sometimes it pays to have constant audio surveillance of this ship.”
“Ah. I see, Commander.” The showers went off.  “Well, then, I’m leaving you in charge of getting him into the camp. See to it personally that he becomes a model soldier.”
“Yes sir, Mr. President.”

“I’ve got it!” Wedge dragged out the chest. Its sheer weight caused all of his muscles to bulge as he was straining to get it to Lone Wolf and Aeris. Once he got it to the street, he moved behind it and pushed it over the road with all his might.
Lone Wolf’s jaw dropped when he saw Wedge push the chest toward him. “Y-You could move that?!”
Wedge puffed out his tension and regained his stern look. “What did I tell you?”
“Y-you told me to shut up, Wedge, sir.”
“So, do you want me to rip you apart or not?!”
Lone Wolf believed every word he was saying, convinced that he was fully capable of killing him with or without the blaster. “No, sir. Please don’t kill me, Wedge, sir.”
“Stop your bawling. I’m going to open this thing now, and there had better not be any surprises, so tell me NOW!”
Wedge’s voice slammed into Lone Wolf’s head. “N-no wait! Don’t open it yet!”
“Hmm? What’s that?” Wedge asked, not letting up on the thief.
“Th-There’s a booby trap! If you open it, it’ll kill you!”
Wedge’s expression changed slightly. He was finally getting somewhere with this wolf. “Well, then. Thanks for telling me.” Retrieving his blaster from Aeris, he pointed it at Lone Wolf. “I’m not going to shoot you, but you are going to disarm that chest, understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good.” With one hand pointing the blaster at Lone Wolf, Wedge pulled out the pole with the other, letting the ropes fall. “Move! Open the chest!”
Lone Wolf stepped out of the ropes as he walked toward the chest. “Do you still have the keys?” Wedge tossed the keyring to him. Lone Wolf walked around the chest and Wedge followed, looking for the proper keyhole. Sticking one of the keys into a small hole in the wood of the chest, Lone Wolf gave it a turn. “It’s disarmed now, Wedge, sir.” He tossed the keys back to Wedge.
“Aeris! Tie him up with those ropes again!”
“Wedge, sir!” Lone Wolf looked pale through his fur. “I disarmed the chest!”
“Just in case this thing blows up in my face, you’ll be around to serve your punishment!’
Aeris did a good job of tying him up again, from the waist up this time. “All set!”
“Then let’s open it!” Wedge put the master key in the keyhole and looked inside. Coming back from the chest, he looked satisfied. In a loud voice, Wedge yelled to the city. “People of Narshe! I believe the items in this chest belong to you. If you want to claim them, line up here in an orderly fashion!”
Within half an hour, the residents of Narshe had filled the main street in a line. Each one had something to claim that had gone missing because of this wolf, who was forced to apologize to everyone he stole from. By midnight, only four people remained.
“Do you have my sword? It’s long, but really dull.”
“Here you go. Say sorry to the little fellow, Wolf.”
“I’m really sorry I stole from you.”
“Did that thief take my red purse?”
“Here it is, ma’am.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Thank you, Wedge. What a nice man...”
“Didja take my canny, you teef?”
“Hey, little one!” Wedge looked in the chest. “I’m sorry, but there’s no candy in here.”
“I should be sorry. I was the one that ate it.”
“Oh pooie! You meen woof!”
“Now, now, what do we have here?” Wedge searched the wolf and found his coin purse. Opening it, he took out a few gold pieces and gave them to the kid. “Here, buy yourself some candy.”
“Tanks, misser!”
The last one was a familiar face. “Wedge!”
“Banon!”
“So, you finally know why you were brought here.”
Wedge was about to say that he didn’t, but he stopped himself. He did know why he was here. “Yes, Banon. I see what you mean.”
“You know, everyone here has a purpose dictated for them. Artisans, merchants, warriors like you, Wedge, and thieves like him-” Banon pointed to Lone Wolf, “have a purpose here. However, the world, living or dead, will never be perfect-”
“I know, Banon.”
“Don’t interrupt me. I can see it in you, Wedge. You don’t know it yet, but you’ve already shown great potential.”
“I have?”
“It was no accident how you managed to stop Lone Wolf. No one could do it while he was alive. Now look at you: you’ve single-handedly saved these dead people from the greatest thief they have ever known.”
“I-I don’t know what to say.” Wedge was obviously flattered, but tried not to take it too seriously. “I guess I should get ready to leave, Banon.”
“Yes.”
Wedge looked down at Lone Wolf. “Get up, you.”
He had slept through Banon’s whole speech. ”I’m up, sir. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. Tomorrow, you’re leaving with me.”
The word tomorrow gave him hope. “Tomorrow? I..have a tomorrow..”
“Wedge? I’m going back to the house. Get some rest.”
Wedge watched him walk back to the house. “Now, Wolf,” Wedge told him, “I have my doubts about you.” He still held the blaster in his hand, but now it was being flicked idly. “How long were you a thief?”
“All my life, Wedge, sir.”
“That’s going to change right here and now.” Wedge’s voice matched the calm of the moonlight. “Kneel, thief.”
Lone Wolf did his best to kneel while he was tied.
“Repeat after me! ‘ I,” and state your name, ‘ do solemnly swear-”
“I, Lone Wolf, do solemnly swear-”
“ ‘-to be honest, good, and truthful,-’ ”
“-to be honest, good, and truthful,-”
“-and a help to the people, on pain of death.”
Lone Wolf gulped, and recited: “-and a help to the people, on pain of death.”
“Now, you may get up. Come with me, there’s a warm fire waiting inside.”
“Yes, Wedge, sir. And,-”
“Yes?”
“Thank you for leaving me a tomorrow.”
 

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