A/N: Disclaimer - FF VII world & characters are not mine. This fic is rated M for violence; this is chapter 4 of 4 (complete). Thanks a lot to ChaosAngel4us and SinsofMidnight who beta'd this chapter, any mistakes you find here are mine. For those of you who have read and reviewed this story: thank you, you all made my day.

A Good Son

Chapter 4

Short puffs of breath blew into cold air in front of him. Sephiroth ground his teeth against the shivers that crept on his muscles, making it harder to brace against the tree on his side. Heat flashed on and off inside his head, crashing his equilibrium and threatening to burst out. It was a good thing they had arrived at the shrine before his vision bailed out on him. Sephiroth took a shaky breath. A few minutes should be enough for him to recover a bit. Now if only Strife would just lower his voice.

"But they took Tifa! I bet Rufus is going to blame her and Barrett for summoning the Meteor. He's going to execute them in public, Aerith!"

Gainsborough didn't budge from her place in front of Tseng and reached for Strife's outstretched sword instead, guiding the blond to lower his weapon.

"I know, Cloud, but Tseng defended me and offered to guard me when I insisted I need to stay here to work on Holy. It's not his fault-"

A rumble from afar caught their attention. Now what? Sephiroth pulled out his sword and narrowed his eyes at the direction the noise came from. The ground trembled. The shrine's foundation rattled and the bells on the gates swung wild. The loud rings grated on his ears and Sephiroth bit back a groan.

"That must be one of the Weapons." Tseng touched Gainsborough's arm lightly and she finally stepped out of his way. "The Weapon from Rocket Town passed the east continent one hour ago and is headed this way. One of them even stopped its attack on the mako reactor at Midgar and flew north."

Great, just what they needed. Sephiroth and Strife, the Weapon magnets. If his head wasn't about to go supernova he would have laughed along with Fate. The pain in his head spiked to new heights and he blinked a few times to clear his vision. Strife was glaring at him, but Sephiroth refused to believe that the blond had developed psychic power to read his mind.

"If they want to destroy Jenova, shouldn't we let them do their job?" Valentine ventured his opinion.

The earth shook again and Gainsborough grimaced. "Jenova is under a barrier at Northern Crater and they can't sense her yet. They will swarm here before anyone can get there to break the barrier."

"They will destroy this place." Tseng said to Gainsborough. "I'll ask Rufus to send backup, but you have to follow me to our safe house a few towns back."

Gainsborough shook her head and turned to Sephiroth.

"Just a moment. I need to talk to you."

Sephiroth nodded and sheathed his sword. Predictably, the blade of Strife's broadsword flicked to his direction as a response to his movement, held ready for use. The man looked like he wanted to protest, but Gainsborough gave him a warning glance and the blond yielded after giving a scowl. Strife didn't let them out of his sight, though.

"Thank you for saving my life." Gainsborough said when they reached the altar. The clear pool reflected swirling lines of light, soothing his eyes a bit. Sephiroth wrenched his gaze from the calm water and nodded at her. She was tilting her head heavenward, her lips set in a thin line. A looming black spot hovered in the sky.

How many hours did they have before Meteor hit?

"There is a way to protect the planet from Meteor, a strong power that comes from Gaia itself. I was summoning Holy when Jenova tried to kill me." She said, her voice soft. "It should have worked, but Jenova is suppressing the spell. When she dies, the restraint on Holy's power will be broken."

She found his gaze and the light in her eyes shimmered. There was no judgment in her stare, no ill wish on him. So here was another person who saw through his past and accepted him for who he was. Sephiroth swallowed and treasured the warmth brushing his skin.

Did he have any chance after all?

"The Lifestream said you are going to save the planet."

Well. Sephiroth cleared his throat. That was quite an ambitious assumption, so he corrected her.

"Strife is going to kill the Weapons. You are going to release Holy. I am going to kill Jenova."

Someone else was going to have to do something about world peace.

Gainsborough's lips curled up into a small smile. Was she teasing him?

"The planet wants me to give you these." Gainsborough handed him two materia. He frowned and inspected the black materia. Was this the black materia Jenova used to call Meteor?

"It rolled from the body of Jenova's clone at the shrine. When slotted into a sword, it will fuse its magic into the blade." She explained. "It will erase its victim from existence."

Sephiroth spared a glance at her and raised his eyebrows. That sounded ominous. When she didn't elaborate, Sephiroth rolled the other materia on his palm.

"I used the white materia to summon Holy. Jenova failed to pierce it; it dropped to the pool when you shoved me away from her sword." She watched him then, her eyes questioning. As if she was puzzled why the planet thought he would need it. "Its magic in the blade will purify. The sword will slice, but it cannot kill. It's not used to hurt the victims; it's used to heal them."

Oh. Sephiroth clenched the materia, its surface was smooth on his hand. A spell to purify. A means to end Jenova's possession of Lucrecia. So was this his reward for purging the cursed alien from the planet? The materia didn't answer him, but maybe this was given as a token for Gaia's blessing. That the planet had heard him and decided to grant his wish.

He couldn't quite clear the tightness in his voice when he said his gratitude.

"Both of their powers will be activated once you deliver a fatal blow." Gainsborough finally continued when he offered no explanation. "You only have one chance. The materia will break after that."

Sephiroth nodded and put the materia to his pouch. That was fine with him. He glanced north, where sunlight peeked from the horizon of greys. Strife would have to stay here and prevent the Weapons from getting on his way. If he took off now he would reach Northern Crater just before sunset. He grasped Lucrecia's pendant close.

"May I ask where you got the crystal?"

Gainsborough's quiet voice brought him back. Sephiroth looked at the pendant and released his grip.

"It's a parting gift from my mother."

Surprise crossed Gainsborough's eyes, but then her gaze softened.

"A wise choice."

Sephiroth glanced at her.

"Do you know what the inscription said?"

A smile warmed up her face. "It's an ancient word used in the Cetra's prayers. The short literal translation is to live." Her hand paused when she reached for the pendant, asking for permission. He gave his consent and she traced the symbol with her thumb. "It means more, though. It is read as in, live your life to the fullest. 'May you lead a happy and fulfilling life'."

She let go of the pendant and showed him how to pronounce the word. "It's also a word of the spell to protect, which requires a payment in the form of the caster's life force. The more you give, the stronger the spell. My mother said the Cetra warriors sacrificed themselves when they used the spell to protect people from a massive destructive spell Jenova released at their last fight."

A spell to protect him from Jenova. Did Lucrecia sacrifice her life to give him this? Sephiroth looked away, his throat constricted.

A light earthquake splinted the platform they were standing on and snapped a small cry from Gainsborough. Sephiroth held her steady. When it stopped, both Tseng and Valentine jogged to his side. Gainsborough took Tseng's offered hand and jumped down the altar, before heading off to Strife.

"Cloud said you're off to kill Jenova." Valentine looked up, his red eyes glinting hard. "I will come with you."

Sephiroth shook his head. They didn't know how many Weapons were coming and Strife would need all the help he could get. Besides, Jenova would exploit any weaknesses and fight dirty. If Valentine came with him, his attachment to Lucrecia would only hinder them.

"No, you should help Strife defeating the Weapons."

Valentine was about to argue, so Sephiroth cut him off. "I will save her from Jenova." He gave his best assuring tone. "You can catch up with us later."

Valentine clenched his jaws, but didn't say anything else. Sephiroth set off to fetch his bike.

"Sephiroth."

Something in the man's tone stopped him. He turned to look at Valentine properly. The coldness in Valentine's stare had abated, leaving only flickers of something he could not name.

"Lucrecia saved me when I thought I was beyond saving." Valentine's voice was strained.

How would it feel like, to have someone who strives on when others have given up hope? Sephiroth rubbed the twinge on his chest, the pendant cold against his skin.

The man cleared his throat. "Just don't die on her yet."

His head protested at the sharp movement when he looked up. The world swayed around him, but Valentine held his gaze steady. Did he know? Did Valentine listen to his conversation with Strife earlier? Sephiroth fisted the pendant. Lucrecia was familiar with Hojo's work. If he could just survive the fight against Jenova, then maybe...

Maybe...

Sephiroth struggled for a breath at the thought. Valentine only let out a thin smile and nodded.

Hang on, because she will save you too.

Sephiroth finally nodded back and then turned to go. This time Valentine didn't stop him, but he could hear the man's whisper as he left.

"Be safe."

He parked his bike and walked ahead. The afternoon sun reflected off of a massive barrier on the crater, a giant dome among the white snow. Sephiroth weighed the two brimming swords in his hands and swung the one in his left hand. Black electricity exploded at the point of contact and traveled across the dome's surface. The barrier shook and popped out with a snap.

"Didn't your mother tell you that it's impolite to barge in to someone's house without knocking?"

A feminine soft voice echoed in the crater. Jenova walked towards him, Masamune on her hand. Lucrecia's face worked into a welcoming expression, her gaze lit into lively sparks. None of it was within her control, though. And the thought that he had allowed Jenova to use her like she did him... his stomach recoiled. Sephiroth didn't bother to entertain her with words and took the first move to attack.

"Not in a talkative mood, are we?" Jenova only laughed. "Fine, then let me tell you a story."

He blocked her hits and parried.

"Once upon a time there was this beautiful princess. The queen died giving birth to her, so she grew up lonely. She vowed that when the time comes, she would be there for her child. Unfortunately the healer told her she was infertile."

Jenova threw him off and changed her stance. Sephiroth narrowed his eyes; the neutral footwork made it hard to read her intent. One thing was for sure, though. She was about to perform a fast attack. Jenova caught his gaze and smirked.

"One day, a prince from a faraway kingdom came and proposed to her. There was very advanced magic in his kingdom. He would be able to give her a child, but she would have to do as he said. She agreed and they got married."

Masamune launched and zeroed on him. The first strike shoved him back a couple steps and jarred his right arm to the bone.

Ow. Make that a very fast attack.

Sephiroth tightened the grip on his swords and fended off the hits, Jenova's movements blurred around him.

"They performed the spells on her, and inside her body, a life formed. The magic hurt her so much, and at times she wished for death, but she held on. She kept on going and living through the pain, because one day she would hold her dear son and he would smile in her embrace." Jenova pushed hard and threw him a sneer. "And for his smile, she would survive."

Jenova pierced his defense and Masamune sliced the air just inches from his ear. Sephiroth already ducked and rolled down with the momentum, shifting his grip to stab backwards. Jenova snorted and jumped away, then hacked his next attack. She was gaining more speed, and he began to lose track of her position. Fortunately for him, she was still inclined to continue her evil monologue.

"The time came, and the labor left her on her death bed. She was half awake when they held her baby near her. He was crying, his little hands reaching out for the familiar warmth. Wide eyes, silver hair, so bright. She passed out before she could reach back for him."

A cracking sound echoed on the crater's walls as her kick to his bad knee folded him forward. He was too breathless from compensating her moves to let out a scream. Jenova kicked his left wrist and his sword clattered on the ground. His vision whitened as he dodged another kick and roused to his feet. His ears were ringing and he swayed; his right sword blocked Jenova's blows in a futile attempt to restore his defense.

"They told her he died moments after she passed out. She grieved and chose to exile herself to a cave, where the goddess offered her visions of her son. In those visions her son is alive. A witch had told the son that his mother's kingdom offered her as a sacrifice to his father's kingdom, and that they had abused her ever since. That turned him into a wicked warrior who vows to have revenge, slaying and burning all of villages he sets feet to."

His knee was on fire and he couldn't pivot fast enough to duck her punch to his stomach. What little air remained in his lungs left him in a whoosh. Then Masamune's hilt rammed on his head. Pain snatched the ground from his feet and he couldn't block some of Jenova's rain of hits and kicks. He must have lost his grip on his other sword sometime after that.

Jenova paused to inspect her work. The world sharpened in crystal agony when she stepped on his broken knee.

"Then a hunting party from her kingdom arrived at the princess's cave. She soon realized that her son was alive after all, that her visions were real. She was overwhelmed with sorrow and guilt, and begged the goddess to help her son. The goddess agreed to her deal."

Jenova let go and the beginning of a seizure raked on his skin. No. No. Sephiroth gathered his wits and tried to slow his breathing, but just like he had no control back then when he was relatively uninjured, now wounded and in pain he was helpless against the seizure's onslaught.

He was half curled on the ground when Jenova grabbed a fistful of hair on his head and yanked him forward. Shocks exploded along his spine and the last thing he heard before the world faded out on him was Jenova's low growl.

"Weak. The whole lot of you."

Awareness came to him like a kitten licking on meat. Its sharp teeth grazed sandpaper on his skin, a promise of more to come. The first thing he registered was that every inch of his body burned. Hot pain clamped on his muscles, small twitches of movements propagated agony everywhere. The ground was a stark frozen ice against his body. From the way his lungs struggled for air, he probably had bruised ribs. Sephiroth opened his eyes to a dark sky.

"Don't worry. You're not in hell yet."

Smooth voice from his right. Lucrecia's face made a blur appearance above him. Sephiroth tensed, but his battered body refused to move.

"Stripping you and carving my name on the sweet flesh would be marvelous, but then hypothermia will probably numb you before any fun could really begin."

She tsked and a long flash of light hovered on his vision. She seemed to get a kick out of hearing his bones crack, because she stomped on his bruised ribs. At the same time, the familiar swish of sleek metal cutting air rushed to his side. Blood muffled out his scream and white pain jolted his body as Masamune embedded itself in his arm.

"On the other hand, your mother has an impressive array of knowledge on how to dissect a human body and satisfy the pain receptors without killing the subject. No wonder your father approved of her." She chuckled. "I can't decide which is more delightful; watching you writhe under my mercy or listening to her cries."

Jenova pulled Masamune and knelt on one knee next to him. Sephiroth managed to curl on his side when painful coughs wrecked his lungs. This close he could faintly see Jenova run two fingers on the blade and collect what little blood was left on it. He spat out a chunk of blood and she laughed a little. From this angle he couldn't see her face, but she didn't try to cover the sounds when she licked and sucked her fingers.

"Delicious."

His throat constricted convulsively, and he had to take a controlled breath before he could try to speak again.

"What..." He shuddered as he suppressed a cough. "What deal did my mother make with the goddess?"

His swords were just two feet away. A carefully executed offense on his last reserve of adrenalin could work, but he had to be precise and fast. He needed to distract her first and buy some time before he could lunge to fetch the swords.

"Hm. Curious, that." There was a rustling sound as she stood and twisted his left hand backwards. Her high heels dug onto his spine to pin him down. Black spots blotted his vision and his chest screamed on him. A quick snap dislocated his thumb, shooting fresh pain to his spine.

"She doesn't know exactly what she traded her life for." Jenova dislocated another finger. "Is it for a magical weapon? A power boost? Enhanced healing rate? Higher endurance for pain? Anything is acceptable, just as long as you are safe."

She snorted. "Such blind faith."

He struggled as she worked on the rest of his fingers, but he couldn't get enough leverage to escape.

"Maybe she sold her soul for your immortality." She snickered as she let go of his hand and kicked the back of his head. "Now there's a thought. If I kill you now, would you revive later? An everlasting plaything. Who knows, maybe you'll break sometime in the next century and then I can order you to do all the legworks as we course the universe, destroying one planet after the other."

His throat was too clogged to curse at her, so he settled on glaring instead.

"Oh, look. Dearest mother is lashing at me. She's begging me to leave you alone, to hurt her instead." She smirked and kicked his stomach. He curled up and had just enough time to reset three of his fingers. "The only person who prayed for you even after knowing the horrors you committed. Your whole existence is nothing but eternal suffering for her, but still, she's trying to protect you. She even already prepared a checklist to cure and restore you to good health, if only I would restrain myself from damaging you." She shook her head. "Your species' stupidity astounds me sometimes."

Jenova yanked on his hair again, dragged him to his right. The bumps and jostles on his body nearly blacked him out. He gritted his teeth and steeled himself. Just a few more moments...

"What do you think, Sephiroth? You, who couldn't even save your own mother. Are you worth her sacrifice?"

Sephiroth took a couple quick breaths and snagged her arm. Her high heels gritted on the pebbles as she slipped and lost her balance. He slammed his elbow on her head as she fell. She hit the ground with a crack. Sephiroth snatched the swords and stabbed the white sword in his right hand to her throat.

Jenova buckled and managed to knock him off her, then yanked the blade and hurled it away. The wet squelch of her flesh rang loud in his ears and Sephiroth flinched. For a moment his heart contracted painfully. Did it work? She swayed to her knees, hands red with blood.

Then her eyes bulged and Jenova screamed. High pitch soundwaves shook the crater's walls and burst into his ears. Sephiroth clamped his hands on them, felt the slick liquid crept onto his arms. Light sealed the gaping wound on Jenova's throat and her body convulsed. More light poured out from her mouth, ears, and every pore of her body. Sephiroth wrenched his eyes shut as the light exploded around her.

When he looked up, his ears were still ringing. His vision was still blurry, if not worsened. Jenova was in her true form, resembling the statue Shinra kept in the lab. Lucrecia was slumped on the ground, her body brimming with light. Jenova reached for Lucrecia's body and recoiled when she touched her. Sephiroth charged at Jenova with the black sword in his left hand. Jenova fished for Masamune and blocked him on time.

Neither of them was up for round two, but Jenova had more appendages which she exploited to their fullest. The first lash of her sharp tentacle whipped his back raw, sent him sprawling forward. Pain seared his body and Sephiroth fought a strong urge to curl. He grabbed the discarded white sword instead. The light on the blade had dulled from the spent magic. It stood strong against the lashes though, so Sephiroth forced himself up and resumed their dance.

He quickly found that penetrating Jenova's defense with those razor sharp whips swarming on him was impossible. But she must have been injured severely, because her attack was driven by her rage and he could read her movements like a guidebook on Swordsmanship 101.

Jenova had a weak point he should bust. The only problem was that he only had one chance before he dropped from the pain. Sephiroth licked his lips and braced himself. The swirling pattern of her attack parted and he jumped, sword raised high.

At the moment a movement from Lucrecia's direction entered his peripheral vision. She might be invincible to Jenova's touch, but she wouldn't stand a chance against Masamune. Jenova snarled and already changed her reach, her weak point shifted drastically as she thrust Masamune to Lucrecia's chest.

Sephiroth grimaced and did the only thing he could.

He twisted to kick Jenova's left shoulder. His ribs gritted against themselves and yanked on his balance. Three sharp razors whipped his right side and slapped him sideways, knocking off the sword in his right hand. Jenova roared and rammed Masamune down his stomach. Sephiroth grasped at Masamune's blade and pushed forward, impaling himself deeper.

Jenova jerked in surprise.

He sneered in her face and thrust the sword in his left hand to her heart.

Pain coiled a tight rope around his neck and pulled hard. It wailed and crushed him into darkness before Jenova could scream.

Hard wind rushed to his face and blinded him. Its strong current barked a persistent loud swooshing sound to his ears. Agony had merged with his existence, stretched out and without an end in sight. From the look of things, Fate would grant Strife's wish and rewind his death at Nibelheim.

At least this time Jenova died with him, permanently.

A soft touch to his face ground him back. Someone cradled him close and grasped his hand.

Mother?

She fixed his position on her lap and Sephiroth winced. The rumbling vibration said she was talking to him, but he couldn't hear any of it. He tried to swallow and clear his throat to speak, but the movement jolted new pain to his stomach. She tightened her grip on his ribs and white stars clouded his vision. He grasped her hand in a wordless plea.

She loosened her grip and his vision cleared a bit. The shape of her body floated in contrast to the bright sky. He frowned. Was it sunrise already? The hair on his skin stood up; his instinct told him to shrink under a cover or bolt the place immediately.

When she dies, the restraint on Holy's power will be broken.

Tremors crept on the ground. The icy whirlwind picked up on speed and the pressure jammed the air with static. Sephiroth wheezed for air to keep himself from passing out; his body throbbed with pain.

The planet would pull on its reserves to release Holy and they were on ground zero. He swallowed with difficulty. The magical backlash would fry them to death very soon and there was no way he could haul his mother out of here before it happened.

Lucrecia was oblivious to his dread and kept talking, her body pressed on something cool against his chest. The crystal pendant.

Oh. So that was why Fate paused on its way to deliver him to his death.

Sephiroth raised his right hand and smothered a pained gasp that followed. He tapped on his ear and brought his hand to point to his mouth, forming a sign language.

"I'm deaf. I can't hear you."

A pause, then her body shook. Droplets of water fell on his face. He gritted his teeth as he raised his trembling hand to wipe away the tears on her face. The effort taxed him and his hand dropped sooner than he'd like. He fisted his hand to form an A gesture, then rotated it on his chest twice.

"I'm sorry."

It felt inadequate to him, but no words would be enough to express the suffocating clench in his heart. Sorry that his birth had brought her pain. Sorry that he wasn't fast enough to pick up the hints and realize that she was still alive. Sorry his actions at Nibelheim sent her nightmares. Sorry he was stupid enough to fall for Jenova's mind games. Sorry he couldn't get to her sooner. Sorry that she had to trade her life for his safety. Sorry that Jenova tortured her just because the alien hated his guts.

Are you worth her sacrifice?

Lucrecia tugged his left hand and uncurled his grasp. Her hold was a bit shaky but her answer was not. She ran the tip of her fingers to his palm twice and gently touched his chest.

"I forgive you."

Sephiroth sucked in a breath. Heat crawled to his face and he bit his lower lip hard to keep himself under control. One wrong move and the chain of coughs would press on his ribs and render him useless.

How would it feel like, to be forgiven?

He grasped her hand to borrow strength and she grasped his hand on return. The air was now tinted with ozone, rays of light sparkled in his vision.

Maybe, just maybe, Fate would grant him mercy and allow him to live. Maybe he would survive this night and Lucrecia would nurture him back to health. Maybe then he could start a new lease on life and find peace.

But whatever final card Fate would deal him with, there was one thing he would make sure.

He dislodged his hands from her hold and fisted an A, then brought them in one smooth gesture from his hip to his chest.

"Live."

Lucrecia broke into sobs that racked through his body. He ignored the pain and grabbed the pendant.

Mother...

Too many things left unsaid.

His magic shied from his command, pulled away by the call of the planet.

I just want you to know...

He pulled them back in a hard won wrestle. Hurt dipped and seeped into his bones as the pendant started to flash hot in his hand.

... how happy I am to have met you.

The spell from Holy lit the sky ablaze. The ancient rune on the pendant flared alive under his magic and layered them in a cocoon of light. It burned through his life force and plunged him into white agony, but that was a small price in exchange for her life.

So bright... Sephiroth gasped for air that would not come. The Lifestream painted a mirage in his vision, ready to take him back.

He reached out and Lucrecia twined her hand with his.

Live.

Lucrecia's grip was steady, anchoring him to her side, telling him not to let go.

Live and live on.

Sephiroth let out a smile as the world burst into brilliant light.