Notes: Thanks to Kaze
and Lisa for plot help! And if anything looks like a Disney movie
reference, it probably is.
Chapter Eight
The Tattered, The Torn
Nearly a foot of new snow fell on Hollow Bastion that night. By morning, the residents were discovering their world of white, and they began to go about shoveling it away from their walkways and the public sidewalk. Snowplows went over the main roads, clearing them of the powder and ice. But the side roads still bore their dangerous guests. They would not likely be released until later that day.
Zack had been back to the base during the night, still sick with horror as he had walked among the survivors and helped them with the wounded. Sephiroth had gone with him, and it had made the men happy, to see their two beloved commanders together again on base. None of them blamed Zack for their defeat, of course. They had all wanted to stop the clone army themselves. Zack had only done what he had thought best.
Cloud had opted to stay home with William and Aeolus. It had been peaceful there, and once Zack and Sephiroth had returned, Zack had promptly collapsed into bed. Sephiroth had stayed awake a bit longer, making certain that everything was in order before going to sleep as well. And after Aeolus had promised to come get them if anything went wrong with William, Cloud had at last also succumbed to the urge to slumber. By that time it had become well into the night, and all of them overslept.
An immense yawn tore free from Cloud's lips as he sat up in bed. The clock radio on the nightstand read Twelve-Twenty-Five. He muttered to himself, running a hand through his bangs. It was ordinarily time for lunch, but they would be having breakfast. It sounded like Zack was downstairs in the kitchen now, fixing it.
Would William want to eat? Clones would have to eat, he supposed. After all, why not, when they were living things too? Maybe William would be as awed by food as he was the couch and the bed. He had only had a metal slab at Hojo's laboratory. Having such soft things to lay on amazed him.
And Cloud took it for granted. After seeing William's enthusiasm, he probably should not. To sleep on a soft bed was a wonderful thing.
He threw back the covers, placing his feet on the carpeted floor. It was already growing warm. Zack had turned on the heat upon waking up, apparently. And that was fine with Cloud. He hated going into the bathroom and having the tiles chill his bare feet.
Now, as he shuffled into the hall and to the bathroom, he glowered at the new mirror. They had replaced the old one the other day, after Cloud had slammed his hand into it during the very weird mini-earthquake. And all he could think was that it had better not happen again. He had gotten the message already! He was still fully intent on staying alert for anything to do with ice. And he still hoped there would not be anything to find. Why would he want to have that added to their problems after everything else?
A few moments later he was coming downstairs and entering the kitchen. Zack was doing something at the stove with a skillet and some eggs. Sephiroth was getting some other ingredients out of the fridge. William, apparently, was still in the guest room, not well enough to sit up to the table.
"Hey!" Zack grinned, looking over as Cloud walked in.
The blond nodded in reply. "Hey," he returned. "Smells good."
"It should," Zack smirked. "Mom's omelette recipe."
Cloud nodded. So that was why it also smelled familiar. He remembered having that dish when he had eaten over at Zack's house. They had still been kids then, of course. Zack's mother had died before he had gone into the army. And then his father had been killed in the Heartless attack years later. Zack had consoled himself by saying that at least they were now together again. But Cloud knew he missed them deeply.
"You haven't made that in ages," Cloud said, sitting down at the table. When it came to making food, he would not be much help at all. It was better to sit back and watch.
Zack shrugged. "Just felt like it today."
Sephiroth straightened up, setting the food on the counter. "We have to patrol the city today," he said. "The army won't be able to get everywhere, with their weakened forces." The police were on guard as well, but Sephiroth would feel better to look through the streets himself. Especially since it was clones of himself on the loose.
Cloud nodded again. "We could go after breakfast," he said.
"Wish I could go along," Zack said, his voice wistful. He reached for the carton of milk, pouring a small amount into the skillet.
"Someone living needs to stay with William," Sephiroth said. "Aeolus shouldn't be here by himself."
Zack set the carton down. "Yeah, I know," he acknowledged. "I'm happy to stay here with him, of course. But I can't help wishing . . ." He trailed off, shaking his head. "Naw . . . forget it." He would not make any mention of how frustrated he was with his leg. Instead he grinned, adding a small amount of butter and flour. "Brunch'll be ready pretty quick!" he announced.
"That's good." Cloud glanced at Sephiroth, who gave him a knowing look in return. They both realized what Zack had left unsaid.
And while both of them wanted to help him, neither was sure how to do it. Telling him he needed to keep off his leg more so it might heal was something they already did. And when possible, they tried to ensure that he did exactly that, by taking care of many of the tasks that he would ordinarily do. For a long time Sephiroth had handled the cooking. He still did, at times, but Zack had insisted that he was going crazy without more to do and that he wanted to make at least some of the food again. They had finally compromised by buying a tall stool for him to sit on when he was at work with his culinary skills.
Of course they made sure that he went to every meeting with his physical therapist, too. Sometimes he did not want to or did not feel like it, saying that it really did not help much and that he could get more of the exercises accomplished at home. They did not doubt the truth of those statements, but they still saw to it that he went. Cloud would drive him at times, and Sephiroth would do the same on other occasions, and sometimes he would just teleport. The therapist had actually grown quite accustomed to seeing the patient appear without warning, his blue-winged friend at his side. Wings did not bother her, and she had always been quite congenial to both Sephiroth and Cloud. She had mentioned several times that she was grateful for their determination to get Zack to the appointments.
And Zack had definitely made improvements. He had not been able to walk at all after the shooting, and it had taken some time for him to succeed in getting those first steps down right. Now he could move about quite well, though the pronounced limp was always present.
It had been right after Zack had been allowed to go home after Hojo's attack that Cloud had all but moved in. He had gotten used to sleeping on Zack's couch, or in the chair, whichever happened to be free. The couch had been Sephiroth's domain, but he had let Cloud use it during times when he had been especially exhausted and the chair would not have sufficed. Cloud had been grateful, and sometimes even finding feathers in the cushions had not been much of an annoyance. But it had been a relief for everyone when Zack had decided to have the house remodeled. Even though living around the actual remodeling process had been a pain.
And then Cloud had moved in for real. After all the time spent there, it had not been a difficult adjustment in the least. It had been more difficult the times when he had been back at his old home, all alone; though when he thought of it, he could not even remember if he had ever spent the night there since Zack had been hurt. Oh, he probably had done so a few times, just to have the comfort of a bed again. But in his mind those times blended with when he had been by himself after Sephiroth had recovered and left. It did not really matter now, anyway.
They were a family. A strange and convoluted family, but one nevertheless.
Cloud would not have it any other way.
The day passed in a relatively calm manner. William was awake and greatly enjoyed the meals, both brunch and a mid-afternoon snack. The day patrol of the town did not reveal any fires or other problems---save more angry residents with yard tools. They waved their snow shovels at Cloud and Sephiroth when the two walked by, yelling curses and telling them to leave Hollow Bastion. Both Cloud and Sephiroth were irritated.
Cloud was confused, too. "What did that one guy mean?" he demanded as they turned a corner.
"Which one?" Sephiroth asked, his voice calm and unassuming.
Cloud rolled his eyes. "The one who called you a blankety-blank kidnapper."
Sephiroth smirked at Cloud's description. "I guess he meant what he said," he answered.
Cloud glowered. "I thought you weren't going to keep me in the dark about stuff anymore," he complained.
Sephiroth shrugged and did not respond. He had not really wanted anyone to know about the Sun angle. To him, that was private and personal. And yet if it was going to continue to be used as venom against him, then Zack and Cloud might become mixed up in it too. They probably did need to know.
By the time they arrived home, he had made his decision. Zack was wide awake, sitting on the couch and staring out the window, when they walked through the door. He looked over, grinning wide with relief.
"Hey!" he greeted. "Everything in shipshape?"
"For now, at least, it's not getting any worse," Sephiroth grunted.
"Who knows what the future will bring," Cloud muttered.
Zack sighed. He half-wanted to make a crack at their pessimism, but he was still feeling depressed about everything himself. With everything that had been happening, it honestly did seem that pessimism was only realism. And he had never thought he would actually admit such a thing, even to himself.
"Someone called me a kidnapper today," Sephiroth remarked, his tone mild.
Zack stared. "Huh?!" He looked from Cloud to Seph. "Why the heck would anyone say that?!"
"And who were you supposed to have kidnapped?" Cloud frowned.
Sephiroth sighed, shaking his head. "Kala-Ansa's daughter," he said. "She adores me."
Cloud gave him a look as though he had sprouted three more wings. "You, and some kid?" he said in disbelief. "That would never happen."
"How long's this been going on?" Zack exclaimed. "And what's it gotta do with you being called a kidnapper?"
Sephiroth crossed his arms. "I just met her yesterday," he said. "I walked her home after she got into a fight with that obnoxious boy. Her mother didn't approve." His eyes narrowed. "I saw her next that evening. She said she had run away from home and that Kala-Ansa had brought some man to 'cure' her of the spell I put on her."
"What the heck?!" Zack burst out.
Cloud just shook his head. He was liking the sound of this woman less and less. It was like she was living in the dark ages.
"I took her to Merlin's," Sephiroth said, his tone weary. "She wasn't ready to attempt going back, for fear of finding that man still there. As far as I know, she's still at Merlin's home." There was no need to mention their sojourn in the cathedral. It was irrelevant to the problems at hand. "Meanwhile, Kala-Ansa believes I took her daughter somewhere and has been rallying the townspeople against me because of that."
"Oh great." Cloud frowned. "Maybe you should've dragged her back home, even if she was kicking and screaming."
"She was terrified, Cloud. And if the situation was truly as she described, it sounded as though it could be classified as abusive." Sephiroth studied the blond. "Would you want to be responsible for sending a child into something like that?"
Cloud averted his gaze. "No," he mumbled.
"I did what I thought was best," Sephiroth said.
Zack nodded. "And it probably was best," he said. "So, let's not worry about it! If anything goes wrong, it just does."
Sephiroth grunted. "I thought you didn't believe in fate."
"It's not fate!" Zack gestured wildly. "But it doesn't mean any of us would be responsible for trouble. It's just the crazy prejudice!"
Cloud sighed. That was true, but he was still worried. He did not want the situation to get even worse, and he definitely did not want it to be caused by Sephiroth only trying to perform a kindness. Kala-Ansa would stop at nothing. Her heart was cruel and and black. And if she continued to believe that Sephiroth had taken her daughter, her rage would know no bounds.
By evening they determined that they should survey the city again. They had encountered precious few soldiers and police officers on the daytime trek, and it should help to have as many people out as possible. Under the cover of night, it seemed that the clones might be more likely to venture outside. Zack was concerned, but he agreed.
And so Cloud and Sephiroth were now wandering through the mostly cleared streets, snow and ice on either side of them and a frozen wind nipping at their cheeks. Most residents were inside, unlike the previous night when they had been searching for Sun. That was a relief, and yet in another way the calm seemed eerie. It was not likely to last.
Sephiroth idly wondered how the child was getting along, and whether the Restoration Committee would try to convince her to go back home. Maybe they would call Kala-Ansa and say that she was there, and have Sun tell her that she would come back only if that man would not try to hurt her. But they would have no guarantee that Kala-Ansa would not lie just to get her daughter back. Or she might think that Merlin and the Restoration Committee had kidnapped Sun. When she had lost all reason, it was impossible to know.
"There's no fires here," Cloud stated the obvious. He was bored, but also tense. Something was wrong. He could feel it. And from the way Sephiroth's wings were being carried---as if they were stiff boards---he sensed it too.
"I'm surprised the clones haven't tried anything yet," Sephiroth frowned. "Let's try over here before we call it quits." He indicated the block around the corner. It would eventually lead to the other end of the marketplace, which the clones had seemed so fond of attacking.
Cloud nodded. "Fine. Let's get it over with." Under his cloak, the bat wing twitched. It was still healing. Just this morning he had examined the dark thread weaving through the leathery flesh. Underneath, it had looked like the skin had knitted together, as it should be. He hoped the thread could be removed soon.
A cold sensation washed over him, freezing him in his tracks. There was something wrong with their plan. Somehow he knew it. Something would go drastically amiss if they did what they had just spoken of.
He could not explain why he did what he did next.
"Sephiroth!" He reached out, grabbing at the other's arm. "Let's not go that way."
Sephiroth frowned. "Why?" he asked. "Do you think a lynch mob is lying in wait?" This was said only half-sarcastic.
Cloud glowered, gripping tighter. "I don't know!" he grumbled. "I just . . . I don't think we should go there. Look, there's no smoke, or weird lights in the sky or anything. The clones must've not started anything there, either."
Sephiroth made a grunting sound in his throat. It was not usual for Cloud to have such random and sudden changes of mind. That fact alone made him willing to listen. And he was tired himself. He wanted to get home, and to not bother with pointless investigations along the way.
"Let's take another route home," Cloud went on. "I don't know, like going left instead of right." But that did not feel good, either. In fact, the more he thought about each path, the more his uneasiness increased. And now it sounded like vague voices being carried on the wind. Some kind of mob was coming. Whether it was a lynch mob or not, who cared. Obviously whoever it was did not like them.
"Teleport us out of here!" he burst out, just as groups of angry people began to converge from all directions. They would be trapped. And he was not in a condition for battle.
Sephiroth was not going to argue. Cloud was grabbing onto him, and that was all that needed to be in order for them both to leave. He shut his eyes, concentrating and gathering his powers to him. Undoubtedly this would not make them any more popular, to vanish before everyone's eyes. But they had no business trying to attack him and Cloud. Neither of them had done anything wrong.
The same instant he teleported, something hard hit him in the back. His concentration was shattered. He had meant to send them home. Instead he found himself tumbling into a snow bank.
He coughed, spitting the powder out of his mouth as he raised himself up. Wonderful. He had been so distracted that he had sent them to the base of the Dark Depths. The lights of Hollow Bastion shone in the distance.
"Cloud?" he called.
No answer.
He stood, dusting the snow out of his hair and off of his coat. "Cloud!" This time his voice was stronger, more commanding. Maybe the distraction had sent them flying in different directions and Cloud was laying dazed. But a quick search of the area showed that he was not there.
Sephiroth did not stop to think any further. Again gathering his strength, he teleported back to where they had been. Cloud had been left behind somehow. Maybe whatever had hit Sephiroth in the back had jarred Cloud away, too. Maybe he had even ended up teleported somewhere else. But the first priority was to check back where Cloud had last been with him. The mob could not have gotten away so fast.
And yet the area was still. Sephiroth could only stare. He had transported himself to an empty plaza. There were the roads that they had contemplated taking. But there were very few of the footprints of the mob in the snow. They had vanished, and had tried to erase the evidence of their trail. And Cloud was nowhere to be seen either. Had they taken him? Or could he have managed to get away?
Sephiroth advanced, casting his gaze about for any sign of his friend. "Cloud!" he called a third time. Still no answer.
Something laying in the snow caught his eye. He bent down, retrieving a scrap of red cloth. It had been resting inside one of the few remaining footprints. The winged man straightened, closing his fingers around it. He had not been gone five minutes. And now, somehow, an entire mob had disappeared. And from the looks of it, they had torn Cloud's cloak and taken him with them.
Unless he could have been sent on home. Immediately Sephiroth teleported there.
Zack looked up from the couch. "Seph! You're covered in snow! Where's Cloud?" he gasped.
Sephiroth's heart sank. "I don't know," he answered honestly. "I don't know." Quickly he began to relay the story, while Zack listened in horror. The moment Sephiroth was finished, Zack began pulling himself up.
"I'm gonna call the Restoration Committee!" he exclaimed. "We'll all go out looking. We'll turn Hollow Bastion upsidedown until we find him!"
"There's no need." Aeolus was standing in the doorway of William's room, his expression grim.
Both mortal men turned to stare. "What do you mean?" Sephiroth demanded.
Aeolus shook his head. "Come and see," he said cryptically. Without another word, he turned and went back into the room.
Zack and Sephiroth wasted no time in following. And then they saw what had made Aeolus react so gravely. William was sitting up in bed, staring across the room at the television set. Kala-Ansa was pictured in front. Behind her, Cloud weakly struggled against the muscle men who were restraining him on either side. Already he had been badly beaten.
"People of Hollow Bastion, we finally have one of the foul winged devils in our grasp," Kala-Ansa was announcing. Her voice was smooth and cold, but the trace of sadistic satisfaction was unmistakable. "In less than one hour, he will burn at the stake, televised live for all to see. This is how we will deal with the invasion of winged beings in our fair country. Take up arms against them! Fight them and all who love them on every side, for they are evil and can only bring darkness and destruction.
"Earlier tonight our mayor was found seriously wounded in his office. Scattered on the floor near him were dark blue feathers. We already know the winged creatures have started fires. We know they have beaten back our armies. And now this. How long will you allow it to go on? How many more people will have to die before this threat is abolished? We must deal with them as we have dealt with the other villains that have intruded on our city. The Heartless were eliminated. The dragons have been killed. The fire imps are being destroyed. And we must add all winged demons to their numbers!
"Don't let them burn down your houses. Don't allow them to murder your families! Innocent children mean nothing to the likes of these!" She gestured behind her at the captive blond. "They're savages---barely even human! You are our city's last hope for bringing this madness to an end!"
Cloud strained against the wretched thugs. "It's a trap!" he screamed. "They want both of us, Sephiroth!"
One of the men struck him hard across the face. "Silence," he hissed.
The screen blanked out, then became covered in broadcasting snow.
Zack could not stand to watch. His fists clenched until crimson began to drip from his palms. "How can they do that?!" he cried. "They can't just kill someone without giving them a trial or anything!"
Sephiroth shook his head. "Right now, the how isn't important," he said. "What's important is that they're doing it. They were broadcasting from inside a building. I think it was city hall." He turned. "You call for backup. I'm going there now." His tone left no room for arguments.
"Alone?!" Zack grabbed at his other best friend's arm. "Seph, you heard what Cloud said! I can't have both of my best buddies getting caught like that!"
"It's my fault this happened." Sephiroth's voice was taut. "If I had held onto Cloud when we teleported, maybe he would not have been pulled free." He glanced back over his shoulder. "I'll be fine."
Zack swallowed. He knew that Seph would never be convinced otherwise. And time was of the essence. Seph could get there instantaneously. But still, supposedly they had at least close to an hour. He did not want Seph to go alone, to risk being caught himself.
Before he could say anything else, Seph was gone. A lone blue feather floated to the floor in his wake.
Zack's shoulders slumped. "He's gonna get hurt too," he moaned, moving towards the nearest phone. William's had its ringer off, so as not to disturb him, but otherwise it worked like a perfectly normal telephone. Zack would call Merlin and the Restoration Committee. And he would see that everyone on their side came out tonight. Kala-Ansa's anti-wing people would undoubtedly have a large army. Well, they would have one right back! They would not let her harm one of their friends.
"I wish I could help," William said, his voice filled with regret as he watched Zack dialing. "The only thing I've done is to have suggested that failed attack on the clone army."
"You've done more than that," Aeolus said. "You saved those people from the fire. In addition, you've gained their support now. And you've shown Zack that I'm not the only good clone among the army."
William nodded. ". . . There must be more," he said then. "If someone could only reach them . . . !"
"They'll break away, too," Aeolus answered, his voice firm. "You don't need to do anything. You just need to rest."
As the receiver was picked up on the other end, Zack came to attention. "Hello?" he exclaimed.
"Oh, Zack. Hello," Merlin's voice answered. "I heard about Cloud. Terrible, just terrible." He sounded strangely distracted.
Zack frowned. "Is something else wrong too?" he asked. After the news about Cloud, the last thing they needed was any other negative announcement.
Merlin sighed. "Well, to be honest, as soon as the news report came on, that child Sun went running out the door," he said. "Leon and Yuffie have gone running after her, but I don't believe they've caught up."
Zack slapped his forehead. "She'll go right to where they're holding Cloud!" he cried. "And she'll probably try to get her mother to let him go."
Merlin paused. "Maybe she'll succeed," he mused.
Zack took a deep breath. "Normally this is where I'd agree with you," he said. "But in this case, I don't think Kala-Ansa would even listen to her daughter. It might even make things worse.
"And we've gotta save Cloud!" he exclaimed. "Seph went running after him." He ran his tongue over his lips. "I think he blames himself for Cloud being taken."
"We're all planning to come out to help," Merlin said. "And I don't imagine you'll stay behind, even with your leg?"
"Darn tootin' I won't stay behind!" Zack retorted. "Let's go save them! And maybe we can put an end to this craziness while we're at it!"
"That's the spirit!" Merlin encouraged. "You'll have all of our support!"
"Great. Then let's get going." Zack hung up the phone without another word, turning to leave the room. He was going upstairs to get his sword. And then he was going to save his best buddies. Sun too, if she needed it.
He could only pray that he would not be too late.
Cloud was not pleased when he looked out of a window at city hall. Below, in the middle of the square, a small group was setting the ominous wood stick thing in place on a platform. Even through the double-paned glass, he could hear their laughter and their curses towards the "winged vermin." Cloud's wing twitched. They were not going to wait an hour. They had said that to give Zack and Sephiroth a false sense of having time to prepare a plan.
And if Sephiroth had been watching the television broadcast, there was no doubt that the warning of a trap would not deter him. He would come anyway. And Kala-Ansa had some sort of plan in mind for catching him. Cloud did not know what it was, but it was obvious that there was something, from the whispered exchanges between her and her men.
A fist clenched. This was his fault. The stupid mob had thrown stuff at both him and Sephiroth, and he had been startled and jolted right out of grabbing onto Sephiroth's arm. He had lost his chance to be teleported away; he had been seized by Kala-Ansa's lackeys before he had even had the chance to recover from the blow. And now they were going to kill him.
Not that he planned to let it happen, of course. The two jerks were still holding onto his arms. But when they tried to drag him outside, he would kick at them and slam his elbows into their ribs and do everything else he could to get free. And then, well . . . he would just have to run. And keep running. Maybe he should break a window, jump out, and fly away.
"Take him to his death!" Kala-Ansa ordered from somewhere behind them. "Sephiroth will come. Just wait. He's probably already here, determining the best way to get inside." She paused, and Cloud decided that she was trying to be dramatic. "And then we'll destroy them both!" she cried. "Let them burn like witches of old."
Yeah. She was trying to be dramatic. But no matter how much Cloud kept telling that to himself, it was undeniable that burning alive was a very intimidating and actually frightening method of death. He did not want it.
Would it bother Sephiroth much? He could control fire, though he did not have any power over flames that he himself did not originate. He could burn to death as easily as anyone else.
The henchmen came to attention, gripping tighter at Cloud's arms as they began to pull him away from the window.
He came to life, jabbing his elbows into the creeps' ribs. They howled in surprised pain, and before they had time to react, he was kicking at them as well. He tore free, breaking through the window as he plunged into the frozen air. His wing spread.
Too late came the remembrance of the leathery appendage's injuries. Would he be able to fly on it? Would the stitches tear open? In desperation he beat it up and down. He had to become airborne! He had to get away, and then they would not catch Sephiroth, either.
But the wing could not hold his weight. A choked scream left his lips as he began to plummet downwards. Maybe they would not get to burn him at all. The impact of falling from a fifth-story window was not going to be pretty.
His descent stopped as an arm curled around his waist. His eyes widened in shock and disbelief. A majestic flap of heavy wings met his ears.
"Sephiroth?" he gasped, struggling to turn and look.
A grunt answered him. "Let's get out of here," the tri-winged man said.
Both of them were shocked by the sudden weight that was flung over them both. Sephiroth's wings, trapped in the small space, could no longer beat. They curled over, wrapping around Cloud's body. But they did not fall. They were suspended by . . . something. Something very strange.
Cloud let out a stunned curse. "A net?!" he burst out. "A steel net?!"
Sephiroth gritted his teeth, anger raging in his heart. He could not teleport when he was physically restrained. And steel! They had purposely used metal to keep their prisoners from breaking the device with their hands or using their weapons. But he reached up anyway, struggling to pry open the top. It would not budge.
"Now, winged men, you will play my game, by my rules." Kala-Ansa was standing at the window from which Cloud had jumped. Her arms were crossed, and she did not seem surprised at all by the turn of events. She had planned to catch Sephiroth in this way. But had she expected Cloud to attempt leaping away? Whether she had or not, it had certainly not ruined her plans.
Cloud glowered at her through the openings in their strange cage. "Yeah, well, guess what? Your game's trash," he yelled. He blinked as spots appeared before his eyes. Suddenly he was so tired. But that did not even make sense. He should be wide awake, especially when they were about to be killed!
She ignored him. "Sephiroth," she said, "when you're on the ground again, I want to speak with you."
Sephiroth did not like the new and ominous tone to her voice. There was something there, deeper and darker than her previous sadism.
"When we're on the ground," he growled, even as the net was being lowered on pulleys, "the game will end." As soon as the net was taken off, Sephiroth would teleport with Cloud. If Kala-Ansa believed that they would stay around to be burned at the stake, she was sadly mistaken. But on the other hand, she would surely know they would try to get away. She must have something else in mind. That only meant all the more that they had to move with haste.
. . . Though that could prove a problem. He was growing so sluggish. From Cloud's swaying, he was feeling the same. And realization dawned. The green eyes widened in outrage before beginning to glaze over. He slumped back.
Kala-Ansa only smirked. "Yes, Sephiroth, it most certainly will," she said.
The net hit the snow-covered grass. As the top was mechanically loosened, the two men were still. Cloud was sprawled across Sephiroth, neither noticing or caring. Their wings were limp, intertwined with each other as well as arms and legs. The thugs who poured out of the front of the building did not have any difficulty in lifting them out. There was no resistance.
Kala-Ansa had indeed thought of every angle. She was not in the mood for a long, drawn-out fight, which could end in error. She wanted a surefire method to keep them from getting away. The odorless knock-out gas she had installed in the net had worked wonders.
"Tie them to the stake," she ordered, disappearing from the window.
The residents of Hollow Bastion were taking Kala-Ansa's words to heart. The military had failed, but that did not mean that the common citizens would. They gathered up whatever weapons they could find, from clubs to old rifles to sharpened kitchen knives. Others had only their shovels or rakes or hoes. But whatever could be used to kill a winged creature was brought. Tonight this madness would end. The clone army would suffer defeat, while their ringleaders burned to death! After the townspeople witnessed the execution, they would seek out the army.
And the clones were aware of the people's determination. The Master Clone sneered as he flew over their homes. Pathetic worms. They would have no chance of victory. These streets would be running with blood before the night was over, and the majority of it would not belong to the clones.
He teleported back to the castle. The clones under his command were preparing last minute spells and practicing their teleportation skills. He walked among their ranks, placing his hands behind his back.
"We've been accused of being savages," he smiled, speaking loud enough that every clone could hear him. "Let's show them just how true of a statement that is. Kill all who oppose you. We are taking no prisoners!" He paused. "But leave Sephiroth to me. He will not burn tonight. He's my prey."
The other clones shouted their consent.
The Master Clone smirked. White Coat had told them of his reasons for making all of them. Not only would they torment Sephiroth and his friends, and see how the townspeople would react, but they were going to attempt the utter overthrow of all current government in Hollow Bastion. The Master Clone himself had delivered the near-fatal wounds to the mayor that night.
But unlike many of his younger brothers, the Master Clone did not trust White Coat. Once they had served their purpose, he doubted that they would be allowed to rule freely over the people, as White Coat had promised. But if any attempt was made to make them nothing more than White Coat's slaves as he ruled himself, then the Master Clone would see that White Coat was eliminated.
No one would take away his freedom, and that of the other clones.
