It was blindingly bright in the uncouth disinfected room where the clinking buzz and the metallic ring of whirring machinery invaded thickly and heavily. The artificial lighting was harsh and obscure, coating everything in an abundant grey that broke the noise and created an odd sense of impending gratification in the locked harbour of the large room. A metal table rested in the centre, a figure strapped atop it and held in place by thick metal cuffs that sank and bit into the soft naked flesh about the motionless person's ankles, wrists, neck and stomach. Tubes fed in and out like bubbling transparent snakes, feeding into the skin of the left wrist a thick white liquid whilst tubes of boiling black was pumped into the right.
Upon the extraction table the unconscious person slowly began to wake. Blue eyes opened in blurred confusion and blinked twice. Turning his head, he frowned at the pipes and machines that whirred heavily above him as a thick brass machine sucked in and exhaled heavily on his far right, breathing mechanically for a purpose he couldn't quite grasp at. Blowing the few stray brown locks out of his eyes, he attempted to sit up and grunted when he was met with the protesting force of the metal straps that held him down.
He blinked again hurriedly at the intense lighting that seared his vision and struggled harder, panting when the bonds refused to break. Throwing his head back against the table, he attempted to recollect some memories that could lead to the understanding of where he was and what was happening. But as he searched thoroughly, wracking his brain for the smallest shred of a wisp of remembrance, he found himself wincing at the painful barrier that blocked his mind. Something was preventing him from recalling the lost locked attributes he was desperately searching for, and he could almost see as well as feel what was blocking his inner self from exploring all of the shadowed halls he harboured.
On his left there was the sound of footsteps and he snapped his head in that direction, squinting at the steel door that remained locked. On the other side the footsteps stopped and there was the sound of hushed whispers before a lock clicked and a tall man entered alone dressed in pristine white. His hair was silver and long, falling down to his waist gracefully as he folded his arms and looked down on the secured brunette before him with scolding eyes.
"So, you have finally awoken." The voice was filled with authority and a supremacy that clung to the room and seemed to echo with power. "I was beginning to wonder if you had perhaps become another mistake. The other failures experienced the same pre-warning signs before their bodies shut down and their minds became lost to their own genetic disorientation." The man looked over the brunette once more, taking into account the pale flesh and lost ocean eyes as the only clothing to cover the boy's modesty was that of a thick blanket that hung over his waist and traipsed down to the floor.
Nodding, he continued speaking, musing his own thoughts openly as he caught hold of the brunettes eyes and held them. "It is good to know progress has been made. You are rather unique, however monitoring sessions will have to be put in place before we are able to present you as a cure to your creator. It would do no good to have lingering after effects of your genetic code."
The brunette spoke up for the first time, his voice raspy and almost new as he spoke. "Creator…? What-"
"Did you think your mind to be blank for no consistent purpose?" The man above him seemed almost curious as he wandered around the table, admiration and amusement evident in his voice. "I must remember to congratulate Zexion. He has finally proven his worth in creating you. You are presentable…flawless, even. If he has kept his mistakes to a minimum we may even be able to use you as a prototype for the other assignments."
"Other assignments? What are you taking about?"
"Surely you do not consider yourself to be the first?" When the brunette never answered but only glared up at him, he continued. "There have been others; are still others. Each is defective. Faulty." He shook his head in disgust. "So much money and time wasted. We are in need of a cure to cleanse this world of the mistake made by man all those years ago. You will be the foundations of that cure. You see, for many years man has suffered the tolerance of lesser brethren – men who are too incompetent to control the Divine Energy Source."
"Divine…Divine Energy Source?"
"Yes. I suppose, seeing your conscience curiosity, it would be fitting for you to understand the binding laws that stem your very creation and purpose. Approximately two hundred years ago a cold war reigned. Man almost destroyed itself through the use of nuclear weapons after the depletion of all finite sources of non-renewable energy. However, small pockets of the human race survived, and a new energy source was found within the confinements of immense layers of rock. It had been brought to the surface through the near destruction of the world and the mass vibrations through the earth's mass. Crystals were formed and harvested." The man reached inside his lab coat and pulled out a dangling silver chain that held on the end a glittering crystal that openly bled white energy.
"Some of us learned to use the crystal and it enhanced us; making us the more superior race. It granted us the ability to perform and train our bodies and brought forth to us the amazing abilities of fire, wind, water, earth, light, shadow and illusion. However, there were those that were too fickle to use the Divine Energy Source, and so they have no purpose in life but to leech off those who are able to harness the energy. Which is where your purpose comes to hand." He placed the crystal back inside his chest and smirked. "You are built to perfect the human race and serve your superiors. You are made entirely of the genius of man's amazing mind."
The brunette flicked his eyes back to the ceiling where the dimming light blazed heavily. Swallowing hard, he spoke thickly. "So…I have only my purpose in life?"
"Without purpose life is but a false hazy path that no man has the right to follow. Purpose gives man order and responsibility. It is what moves the human race forwards. Without it there would be no objective to life."
The brunette stayed silent, musing the thought over in his mind and collecting it unpleasantly before another thought came to him. "And these crystals…do I have one? Or am I part of the inferior species?"
"Do not be absurd. I have already informed you, you are the cure created by the dominant race of man. You have your purpose. Zexion foresaw the coming puzzlement of how you were to carry out your destined fate and so, in replacement of your heart, he gave you a free flowing source of highly concentrated energy that would allow you to govern several abilities whereas organic holders of the crystals are limited to just one. You do not have a crystal, but you are able to harness the energy of the supply granted to you."
"I don't have a heart?"
The silver haired male raised an eyebrow. "Have you failed to recognise the lack of beating fluid within your body? You have been made with blood to allow your body to intake the nutrients needed to stay healthy, however, although you bleed, the action is stimulated by the course of electric currents the crystals feed through you. You have no organic pulse, no heart, and therein no need to breathe. In every sense you are not a living being; thereby you have become a cure. But you do have one consistent flaw."
"A flaw? I thought you said-"
"I said you were a grand prototype. To say you were without defects would be a ridiculous notion. Although you bear no heart, and you are sustained by the energy of the crystals, there is no telling what your limitations may be without further scrutiny."
"So I have no memories, no heart, and no past…just my purpose?"
"That is correct."
The brunette turned to look at the superior man above him, his voice slightly desperate. "Do I at least hold a name?"
"We gratified you with an identification code, yes. Every experiment has their identification code indented into their wrist to allow ease of scanning at the end of each completed task. It allows us to track the efficiency of each project. Coincidently, the scanner is also linked to the supply of energy within your false heart. If for any reason targets are not being met the supply will shut off and your body will shut down. You will die."
"But if I'm not living, how can I possibly die?"
"Because you would not be given the opportunity to fail twice. We would not waste time and money rebooting a failed system." When the boy before him never answered he returned to the previous topic. "Whilst under construction you were given the name Project Sora. I found it fitting that you be named after such a prominent success. So, Sora is your name."
"Sora…" Sora let the name roll of his tongue before he nodded. "And you…" He looked to the cold man above him and frowned. "What do they call you?"
The man gave a cold sneer. "My colleagues call me Sir, my superiors call me Sephiroth, and you may call me Master." Turning to the door, Sephiroth approached it and ignored Sora's questioning stare. "You will be clothed and shown to your detainment unit wherein you will wait until further instruction from myself. My colleagues will come for you shortly. You will do as instructed, perform any and all tasks given to you that come from a regulated official, and you are to focus upon your purpose."
"You never told me what my purpose actually was." Sora whispered, his voice echoing about the machine infested room.
Sephiroth stopped, turning back to stare at the experiment laid out before him. Shaking his head, he ignored the puzzled gaze and spoke with a heavy tone. "All will become clear in time. You will be taken out into the field shortly after your test runs have been completed. From then we can discover if you are in fact a sufficient prototype." Without another word he turned and the door hissed open once more, shutting behind him heavily as he left.
Sora stayed staring up at the ceiling. Closing his eyes he listened carefully, concentrating hard. He waited for the lub dub his body expected. But there was no beat. No heart. Just a mechanical hum that echoed in his ears and stemmed a deep sense of loss within him. He was the cure; and the cure had no room for the beating weakness of a heart.
Hope anyone who read this enjoyed :)
Main pairing - Soriku with Akuroku and maybe zemyx. Maybe other pairings later on :)