Title: What Happens In The Army
Author: Raserei Hojo
Chapter: Shinra HQ
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Possible Shounen-Ai
Summary: Cloud was fascinated with the army; that's why he joined it. It made him feel stronger, like he fit in. But the commercials and flyers for Shinra Inc.'s army were just an opaque and sugar-coated interpretation of hell.
Cloud stared ahead, his eyes large and wondering. So this was Shinra HQ, the place where he would spend the next few years of his training. It was a daunting thought. All around him young men rushed by, each one clad in a blue uniform. After a few minutes, the boys in blue disappeared and were replaced with older men in red coats and hats. Their boots clanked loudly on the linoleum floor.
This would be his life for now. To Cloud, the place seemed to be full of energy and life, something fun and exciting. However, the other boys around him seemed timid, frightened of their new surroundings. Cloud took it upon himself to toughen up and swallow his fear. It would stay in his gut. He would make it stay down. His fingers tightened around the rifle he had been given.
"All right you worthless plebes, line up properly."
The voice had come so suddenly that it took determination not to look around for the source. He lined up parallel to the other boys, trying to make the line as straight as possible. Cloud stared down at the floor and then at the pair of soft leather boots.
"I said, line up properly."
Once again the new recruits did their best to form a perfectly straight line. It seemed impossible to do, especially with fifteen boys of different heights and weights. They fumbled with each other and argued over which soldier was making their little line imperfect.
"Quiet!"
The recruits instantly fell silent and looked at the man.
A sigh rushed through his lips as silver bangs limply fell into his face. "You're all hopeless," he said, "every single one of you." He fixed his gaze on the youngest looking recruit. "You—come here, boy."
Cloud's breath caught in his throat, and gathering his courage, he apprehensively looked up. The badges on the man's uniform were great in number; so great that there was no doubt the man was a general. And those intense glowing green eyes and silver hair made mistaking him nigh impossible; this was his idol, General Sephiroth. He had seen Sephiroth on television and in the newspaper all the time, but being so close to him made Cloud feel small and meek.
Green eyes narrowed and thin lips tightened as the boy had not yet approached. A few moments later the boy gathered enough courage to step forward and mumble a weak, "Sir!"
Sephiroth frowned, annoyed with the boy's lack of speed. "What's your name?"
"Flemming, sir. Jason Flemming." His voice trembled slightly.
Sephiroth placed a knife at the neck of youngest looking recruit. Everyone stiffened. "Now, Flemming… I'm going to kill you. What will you do to save your sorry life?"
Jason thought frantically, but could not come up with a suitable answer. So he answered truthfully. "I… I don't know, sir."
"That's too bad."
"I'm sorry, sir," he murmured.
Sephiroth roughly pulled the knife away, making sure to leave a thin trail of blood on Flemming's neck. He tucked the knife away at his belt and proceeded to pace the length of the line. He stopped in front of Cloud.
General Sephiroth rested his hands on his hips, staring down at Cloud's quivering blue eyes. He held his gaze for a moment, before snatching the rifle from Cloud's hands and pointing it at his temple. "I'm going to kill you; what will you do to save your sorry life?" His leather gloved finger rested haughtily on the trigger.
Cloud forced himself to swallow dryly. Sephiroth pulled back the hammer of the rifle and the gun clicked ominously. A cold smile tugged on the general's lips.
He remained silent, and though he remained calm in appearance, his mind was racing fervently for the answer that would please the general. Sephiroth was patient, but pressed the icy rifle harder against Cloud's temple to remind him of the question. Finally, Cloud responded, "I will do nothing."
Sephiroth seemed pleased as he offered Cloud his rifle back. "Please," he said, gesturing to the rest of the line, "tell your friends why your answer is correct."
Cloud glanced along the other boys. "Because you're in charge, and what you say goes…?" He wasn't entirely sure of his answer.
Clasping his hands together, Sephiroth nodded. "That is correct. This short exercise was to show that I am in charge. You will not do anything other than what I say. Even if I tell you all not to breathe, you will follow my instructions exactly as they are given. If you cannot comply with my rules, you are free to leave." He paused and waited for a few moments; no one moved, and each of them seemed to be trying not to breathe.
Cloud did his best to digest this information. It was common sense, but his heart was still racing from the confrontation with the general.
"However," Sephiroth continued, "I am not the only one in charge. There are others, most of whom are lower in rank than myself. Even so, you will follow their instructions without complaint. Rank is shown outwardly by the number of badges on your uniform—if the other has more than you, remember to say nothing unless spoken to." He folded his hands behind his back. "Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir!" they shouted.
"Very good. Then I will lead you to the barracks, but I will only show you once, so pay attention as to where it is. You will not be switched to another barrack until you are promoted, and at that time you will be able to choose where your sleeping quarters will be. Of course, you'll have to stay alive quite a while to be promoted. Now then, if you would be so kind as to follow me."
Sephiroth led the recruits outside. The frigid air whipped at their cheeks and threatened to blow their helmets off, but they held on to them tightly. It took them fifteen minutes to arrive at the barracks, which did not look as if it would keep them very warm. Instead they were like old wooden cottages that were falling apart. Sephiroth pulled hard to open the rusted door and beckoned everyone inside.
Cloud shivered to warm up. It was bitterly icy inside, but it did have a fireplace with a pile of logs near it. Indeed the place was falling apart—holes were in the floor and ceiling while the holes in the walls were patched up with cloth, dust covered every surface in thick gray layers, and all the lamps seemed to be broken—but it was still a shelter from the cold.
"Consider it to have a 'lived in' feel to it," Sephiroth said. He walked to the middle of the room and gestured to each location as he spoke, "Upstairs here on the left are the bedrooms and on the right a storage room for your weapons and clothes. On the first floor there is a kitchen, common room, and library for those with wits enough to read. Use your utilities well because no one will fix the things that are broken."
The recruits looked around the room, filling with dread the more Sephiroth spoke.
"You training will begin tomorrow at 0500 hours. Each of you will arrive on time. If one of you fails to arrive without medical reasons, your entire company will face the punishment. You will meet your SOLDIER tomorrow in the entrance to HQ and he will guide you through the process of raising your rank." Sephiroth looked at each of the new faces and said formally, "I hope that one day you are promoted enough to accompany me on a mission." With that, he turned and left, shutting the door.
The recruits instantly sighed and began to relax. Despite Cloud's idolization of Sephiroth, he was glad that the general was gone. He had been feeling nervous and his stomach had been clenching and turning. But now he was free to do as he pleased—for the most part.
"Well… Guess this means I'm finally on my own."
Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Uhm… Yes, I did go away for two months. And I know I should be updating High School Drama and Happily Ever After. But I just needed to write this to inspire myself to update. Really! So, please review and tell me what you thought! (By the way, this is not a one-shot. It shall continue! Promise.)