*Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and ideas….and the plot bunnies in the corner. Please don't sue, I'm a poor college student that has no life and way too many video games.*
"All I want is less to do, more time to do it, and higher pay for not getting it done."
Of Secrets and Labs
A soft caress of a sigh, a whispering of turning pages, a creaking of shifting leather…he was bored. Angeal Hewley, SOLDIER First Class, was completely and utterly bored. The words stamped across pages could have been written in a foreign language for all he knew, because he understood very little of what was printed. Maybe if he put an effort behind it he could…no, it wasn't even worth the effort of trying.
Angeal had no idea what the higher ups were thinking when they sent him, Genesis, and Sephiroth to the tiny insignificant town of Nibelheim, but whatever it was it had better damn well been worth it. They had been escorting several groups of scientists and engineers up to the town's Mako Reactor and back, every day for the last few weeks and tempers were beginning to flare.
He was frustrated and bored out of his mind…and he was the most patient out of the three. He didn't even want to imagine how Genesis was handling it. Sephiroth on the other hand would never let something this trivial break his outward stoic-ness. Angeal contemplated momentarily if that was even a word, but then drew his mind back to his annoying thoughts.
For the life of him he couldn't figure out why all three of Shinra's finest were needed for such a remedial task of escorting a bunch of nobodies all the way up to the Mako Reactor and then back to the decrepit mansion. So what if the monsters in the Nibel Mountains were some of the most dangerous, it did not require all three of them. Maybe Hojo was just being paranoid, or maybe he was intentionally trying to piss them off…he would never know for sure.
The twisted Professor was currently being held on a tight leash by President Shinra himself when the media went into a feeding frenzy a couple months ago. Apparently someone leaked to the press that Hojo was conducting human experimentation…off the books of course. Initially the President tried to dissuade the media from airing their obviously 'fabricated' data, and stood behind the mad man proudly…that was until the leak turned out to be Hojo's own personal assistant.
A full scale investigation was being held and everyone was pointing fingers. The citizens were up in arms about such accusations and demanded that the Professor be brought to justice, but President Shinra owed Hojo far too much to let a scandal ruin his reputation. So he was attempting to stonewall the press and investigation services while conducting a secret, albeit thorough cleanup.
Angeal was not to know of any of this, none of them were, but he had connections and that was the real reason why they were in Nibelheim. There wasn't any problems with the Reactor, well none that needed this many scientists and engineers, it was a scrubbing. They were destroying evidence and getting rid of the documentation, but since Angeal and the others weren't supposed to know nor did they have any proof, they were forced to do nothing. Until they had solid evidence to destroy the sick bastard, there hands were tied.
Both Genesis and he had spent the first two weeks searching through every inch of the mansion and the Reactor but they had found nothing. Sephiroth had simply observed them, slightly amused and a little skeptical, but did not participate in the actual searching itself. He would of course back them if they found anything, but he thought his time was better spent doing something more productive…like paper work.
Snapping the book he had been reading shut with a loud clap, Angeal huffed in annoyance and marched over to the book case to find something more interesting then the 'History of Mako' to read. After searching day in and day out for any sort of clue, Angeal had called it quits and given up on finding anything incrementing against the Professor and turned his pursuits elsewhere…like finding a book that was even remotely interesting.
Sephiroth glanced up from the only desk in the library where he was still filling out documents that were far too important to wait until they got back to Midgar, or so he told the both of them…repeatedly. Mako green eyes took in the sight of one of his closest friends. Angeal was on edge, they all were. Genesis had surprisingly kept his temper in check, and the General's eyes were drawn to the red head in the corner. He hadn't even looked up from his copy of 'Loveless'.
Angeal was tapping his foot in impatience as he perused the shockingly boring selection of reading material before him. He stilled as something finally caught his interest and he reached a tan hand up to grab it. The book didn't budge. Brow furrowed in consternation, he gave the blue book a firm yank and almost stumbled onto his ass in surprise when the bookcase shifted and then slid to the side revealing a dark passageway.
Sephiroth set his pen down and quickly made his way over to his friend. Genesis joined them a moment later while he tucked his book away inside his long crimson coat. Curiosity danced behind his blue eyes, but the General had a sense of foreboding. Secret passages in an old decrepit mansion owned by Shinra and occupied by Hojo could mean nothing but trouble for them. But…he was a little curious, and this might just be the evidence that they were looking for to put the mad man behind bars once and for all.
Glowing green eyes met those of his friends before they all came to a silent mutual consent. Together they descended the worn wooden steps into the inky black abyss below.
O0O~O0O~Page~Break~O0O~O0O
Genesis didn't know what he was expecting when they reached the bottom of the stairs, but some how a white sterile hall was not it. Though knowing Hojo they really shouldn't have been surprised. It was a lab, one that was currently in use if the voices further off where any indication. Genesis was positive that the underground secret laboratory wasn't on any of the schematics that were given to them during their briefing. Maybe that's why it went unnoticed for so long.
The others were tense beside him and his hand gripped the sheath of his faithful Rapier to calm his own fraying nerves. It helped…a little…not enough. He still felt uneasy; this place gave him the creeps. Angeal stepped next to him and placed a gentle hand on his forearm, forcing his grip to relax and calming Genesis with his physical presence.
Sephiroth took the lead as they made their way cautiously down the long hallway. They opened every door they came across but had yet to run into anyone else. The first door had been a simple closet, carrying the average cleaning supplies. Unfortunately that was the most normal thing they found. Every other room after that looked like it came straight out of a horror film. One room in particular appeared to be some sort of torture chamber. There were chains hanging from the ceiling, dried blood on the walls, and a pool of still coagulating blood upon the floor.
It wasn't until the fourth room did they run into their first problem. The door was locked. Sephiroth stared at the number coded locking mechanism in what could only be classified as consternation, pale pink lips pressing together, eyebrows raised. A leather clad hand rose gently, fingers caressing numbers in interest before he punched right through it. When he pulled his hand back, he brought a bunch of brightly colored wires with it. They could hear the lock disengage even over the crackling of electricity coming from the now exposed and severed wires.
"Very subtle Seph," Genesis said giving Sephiroth a sly smirk. The taller man just raised one elegant silver eyebrow before sweeping past his friends and into the room.
Genesis and Angeal followed him quickly after sharing a look, and almost walked straight into his back as he had stopped moving suddenly. Curious as to what could have caused his superior officer to freeze in surprise, both Genesis and Angeal moved around to either side so they were flanking him.
The room was as clinically white and emotionally detached as the hallway they had just left. There appeared to be only one exit, which they had just entered through. It was darker in the room, as if it was intentional, and Genesis' mako enhanced eyes swept the room carefully and efficiently before settling upon a figure against the adjacent wall. From Angeal's quietly muffled gasp he had noticed it too.
Genesis could just make out the shape but nothing detailed as the only light source appeared to be from what spilled out from the hall. Feeling along the wall, his fingers paused over what he was sure was a light switch before he depressed it. He was proven correct in his assumption when light quickly flooded the room, leaving no corner untouched.
His eyes never left the figure, there for he saw as it flinched harshly at the loud click and penetrating light. It was a person, a young male if his eyes weren't deceiving him…possibly eighteen, nineteen at the most. He had longish spiky black hair, a decent athletic build, tanned skin, no shirt, and a pair of dark grey sweat pants riding precariously low on his hips. They were resting so low that Genesis would comfortably bet that he wasn't wearing any underwear beneath them.
The male was kneeling and bound. A smooth metal collar wrapped firmly around his neck, just shy of being too tight, with a thick metal chain hooked through the loop in the front and attaching to the floor in between his spread thighs. It had just enough slack that he could straighten, but not stand. Arms were bound by leather buckle restraints behind him, encasing his wrists all the way up to his elbows, forcing them together and nearly dislocating his shoulders in the process. The position could not be comfortable.
As Genesis allowed his eyes to travel lower he saw that even if the young man hadn't been chained to the ground he still would not have been able to stand. Leather straps were wrapped around each upper thigh and encircled his ankles, locking them together. Two triangular things upon his head twitched in their direction and the boy's head slowly tilted towards them.
A black blindfold was covering his eyes and Genesis nearly did a double take to confirm that yes that really was a metal bit jammed in between his teeth, pulling tightly at his lips and latched behind his head. It was either to keep him from biting the scientists or committing suicide by choking on his own tongue. From the looks of his elongated canines though, Genesis would have put money on the former.
The boy's body was covered in bruises of varying sizes, scars of varying shapes, and several wounds that were still bleeding, albeit sluggishly. Angeal took a shuffling step forward and the boy's head snapped suddenly in his direction, the two triangular things perched in his hair stood strait. Genesis wouldn't have known that his friend had moved if the young man hadn't zeroed in on it. Angeal was always exceptional at stealth, not even Sephiroth could hear him when he was trying to be quiet.
He saw the left black triangle twitch towards the General and himself while the right one stayed fixed upon Angeal. It was only then that Genesis finally realized what they were. They were ears, canine like ears. Movement by the boy's leg drew his eyes and the Lieutenant General stared in disbelief as he saw what could only be a tail. Just what in the name of Gaia was Hojo doing?
Angeal started forward slowly and Genesis saw him freeze when a low rumbling growl filled the small room and bounced upon the walls. The sound wasn't like anything he could recreate, not even Sephiroth sounded like that when he growled in frustration. It wasn't human; the sound was purely animalistic and clearly meant to warn off others. Angeal was not to be deterred though, and continued forward after the initial shock wore off.
All three of them could see the tension rolling off of the younger male as Angeal got closer. When he was about five feet away they saw the black ears swivel around to press flat against his skull, nearly disappearing in his hair, lips pull further away from already exposed teeth and a snarl was ripped from his throat. This time Angeal didn't stop, instead he looked as if he was actually expecting the reaction.
He finally stopped when he was less then a foot away and then kneeled in front of the bound male. Genesis could see the boy trembling.
