Disclaimer: do you really need one at this point?
A/N: Ok, after recovering from the sugar comma that BMIK and IA1979 sent me into, having all the fun I wanted with 2 nekkid Genesis', dodging firaga's thrown by a Genesis who was resurrected by POMPOMWOOP, saving CHANCE969's life, convincing NATZILLA that I do NOT in fact want Kadaj to die, and huggling JILLIAN and AMON2, I return with the next chapter. I hope you guys like it, and thank you for the reviews from the last chapter.
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Chapter 6: Love, Hate, Life and Death
The two things he hated more than anything else in the cosmos; the failure of one of his own, and planetary deities, both of which were found here on this pathetic ball of rock called Gaia.
Having survived the Weapon attack, and retaking the form of Gold Saucer manager Dio, he was sitting in a motel room in Corel, reflecting on how to deal with each problem.
The biggest of the problems was going to be the Devine Force directing the planet. Such beings always made his task laborious. They never surrendered easily, and he could remember less then a handful of occasions where the God/ess hadn't had to be executed. They always had their defenses, their Weapons and their champions. Seeing that there was an order to the way things had to be done, he would have to subdue or destroy the inhabitants of the planet before moving into its ethereal realms to meet the deity head on. Such a headache, but an accomplishable task none-the-less.
The second and more immediate of the difficulties was dealing with the failure. His species sister, Jenova, had come here more than two millennia ago, to do what all their kind did; conquer or destroy. She failed to achieve either. Not only had she met with disaster, but there were still pieces of her scattered throughout the planet, mostly in the form of her fleshly cells placed into human hosts. How she could have been so stupid was beyond him. She could have at least had the decency to self terminate when she realized that she couldn't continue her mission. There was no doubt that all traces of her, including her awareness and her will, would have to be exterminated.
He had felt the traces of his species sister as soon as he arrived, and decided to being tracking them for 'clean-up.' The Jenova cells scattered around the planet were varied in degrees of power and energy, so he focused on the strongest ones first. The closest to signal to his landing point had come from a silver haired brute. Within an instant he was at the Gold Saucer merely by thinking about the boy's location. Finding the owner of the establishment, had been an easy task. Touching the dark-haired man, and sucking out all his cells, even easier than the teleporting. Causing the dead body to explode, now that had just been fun.
A few days after he'd assumed Dio's position, and gotten to study the thug with the Jenova cells, he'd already figured out what abilities the man possessed. Loz, that was the brutes name, was excellent in hand to hand combat, he could heal rapidly, could move quickly without the aid of materia and possessed small amounts of telepathic communication. The boy subconsciously used that power to predict his opponents movements. He also figured out that other strong Jenova signals came from the brutes biological siblings. Thus, Dio had Loz captured and thrown into the prison. He was setting a trap for the other two.
Before Loz had been tossed down the shaft however, Dio had tried to subsume the brats cells, but the Jenova cells kept him protected. However, his touch did significantly weaken the boy, to the point where he couldn't heal at all, even using potions or materia didn't work. One other thing he did learn from such a simple touch, Jenova's will had been subjugated. Oh, she was still minutely aware, but she was no longer in control. Very curious.
Dio had then gone into the prison himself, and began mutating inmates, causing the thug to have to fight. Once he was significantly weakened, Dio's plan was to kill him, and subsume the cells post-mortem. That had not been the case. Whoever or whatever had taken control of Jenova was actively shielding the man and had hidden him.
As he was searching for Loz, he felt the Weapon emerge from the desert sands, just as the brothers and the champion entered Corel. In a fit of rage, he transformed his own body, growing multitudes of fleshy purple-ish tentacles from his back, and went around the Saucer causing all the patrons to explode at a mere touch. The chaos that ensued had done much to calm him.
He went yet again to look for Loz, but by then, the champion and his group had arrived. He left Loz in hiding to go and greet the group. He remained hidden, studying them before made his presence known. Yes, the other two brothers had Jenova cells, and as he expected, they were quite powerful, but what he hadn't been prepared for was the fact that the champion had her cells as well. He became livid that he couldn't kill them all with a mere touch.
He decided on another course of action. He assumed the oldest brothers form and showed himself. He knew the hated auburn haired angel, the one Gaia had chosen as her defender, would see through it, but he gambled on the other two taking the bait, and turning on the champion. To a degree he had been correct. The smaller one, the youngest, had been so deceived that he was prepared to fight the others to get to his brother, however, the feminine one, after a moment, had figured out the deception as well. No matter really, it had been the youngest who had stabbed the champion.
As a being who could assume any form that he syphoned the cells from, assuming Loz's form hadn't been a problem, at first. However, he'd only gotten a few before the Jenova cells had halted him, therefore he could only hold the brutes shape for a short time. Then, right before the trio had fallen though the portal, his shape slipped back to its original state, and he was sure the little one saw it. He had lost any chance of using the baby against the others.
There had been no time to pursue, the Weapon was about to fire. He was forced to teleport here to Corel.
He was contemplating his next corse of action when he was overwhelmed with a sense of total victory. The Champion was dead. The little one had indeed killed him. He looked down at Dio's watch. Dead for over a minute now. A dead champion, a Weapon fired, it's purpose failed, his victory was assured.
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NOOOOOO! The scream floated into eternity. Then Yazoo was sobbing. He was suffocating, breath was refusing to settle into his lungs. An agony so sharp, as to never have been felt before, twisted inside his chest and made his stomach turn. Un-reality was starting to settle in.
Genesis can't be dead. No, that was impossible. He had a reason to be here, he had a purpose to live. He was meant to be a hero, and could not die in this cold, uncaring hospital room, connected to wires and tubes, looking pale and listless. He still had a destiny to fulfill, something bigger than saving the lives of two unimportant remnants.
Dammit, Gaia can't be this cruel. All Yazoo had ever known his whole life had been pain and suffering. Then, for one short week, he'd been allowed to know happiness, even if at first he refused to see it. Finally, he, a cold-hearted merciless bastard, had found someone who loved him, someone cared about him more than they cared about themselves. Someone who could melt the ice around his heart. And now that person being ripped away from him right before his eyes, and he was powerless to stop it. Why did Gaia hate him so much? He thought he'd been forgiven.
His hand tightened around his lovers, as he tried to choke down the sobs. His eyes finally tore themselves away from the green glowing straight line of the hateful, lying heart-monitor. The low buzz of the machine continued to drone on, but it was slowly becoming distant. His gaze fell on the soft countenance of his boyfriend. Genesis looked so peaceful, and Yazoo couldn't help but wonder if his demigod was dreaming of him.
The grief was so overwhelming, that Yazoo's defense mechanisms took over, trying to protect that new emotion called love he had recently discovered. He was starting to see himself with Genesis a different local, a place where they could be together, and be happy.
The silver dove was no longer in the sterile white room with blinking machines, and the smell of disinfectant. Instead his mind had transported them to a small town called Gongaga. They were in a bedroom in an inn, naked and curled around each other. The sun was just starting to light the sky. He pushed some of the shinny fiery hair away from the auburn angel's face, and kissed his delicate brow. "Gen," he whispered lightly, "come on, open your eyes." Yazoo wasn't sure why his face was wet, why he tasted salt on his lips, or why the water was spilling down onto his lover's cheeks.
"I'm not angry anymore Gen." he said as slide his fingertips across the cherub's jaw, knowing that the soft caresses should be enough to cause his love to stir. "I know you didn't mean to call me Seph. But..." he paused for a moment, then added, "if you want, we can pretend that's who I am." Here in the place he was now, he was willing to freely give Genesis anything he wanted.
He dipped his head forward, and placed a kiss on silky soft lips. They were cool and unresponsive. Yazoo whispered against them. "Genesis, baby, wake up. I want to stare forever into your eyes." He wasn't the poet that Gen was, but he was speaking from his heart, so he hoped was good enough.
In his minds eye, he rose from the bed, and started to cross the room. His psychical body moved as well. His foot got caught on a wire, and he stumbled. That snapped him back to the reality that his hearts soul was dead. Suddenly he was straddling Genesis' hips, his fingers biting into the flesh of his shoulders. He began shaking him roughly. "DAMN YOU GENESIS RHAPSODOS! WAKE UP RIGHT NOW!" Yazoo didn't care that his booming demand could be heard throughout the entire ward.
He didn't notice the people in white enter the room. He didn't see that a machine with paddles connected to it, had been wheeled in with them. He barely felt two sets of arms lifting him from the body of the red-head. "DON'T YOU DARE FUCKING LEAVE ME!" It was a screech. "YOU PROMISED TO STAY!" His face was red and swollen, tears and snot leaking down. "I LOVE YOU GEN!" another broken sob. "P-please...come...back" a whispered prayer.
He wasn't sure how he got outside the room, but he was suddenly standing next to Rufus. He wrapped his arms around himself, not bothering to look at the blond president. He was numb, something inside him was missing, and he didn't know what it was. Someone had taken a part of his soul.
Through a foggy muddle, he knew that someone had a name. Kadaj!
He spun and began to walk away from the room. The last thing he remembered hearing was "Clear!"
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Loz didn't understand. What was wrong with him? Why wasn't he able to heal on his own? And an infection? He had known when he was in the shack in the desert, that his leg was infected, but he still couldn't wrap his mind around it. He had never been ill a day in his life, none of the remnants had, and up until now, he believed was immune to things such as infections.
He was lying in a crisp white-sheeted bed, in the Costa del Sol intensive care unit. He had been in this room for less than fifteen minutes and already there was an IV pumping antibiotics into his system. Now he was waiting on an anesthesiologist to come in and put him to sleep. A doctor had seen him right after his arrival and explained that they were going to have to re-brake his leg, so it could be set properly.
He let his mind drift as he waited. As a nurse was jabbing the IV into his vein, the cute blond Turk had taken the time to explain to him that both his brothers were here at the hospital, but neither of them were injured. It seemed that Yazoo's boyfriend had gotten hurt when the Gold Saucer had exploded.
Though he wanted his siblings to come see him before his surgery, he had to admit that he was very pissed at them. Those little shits had left him alone in the desert with that...creature, just so Kadaj could fight with Yazoo's boyfriend. And since when did Yazoo have a boyfriend. The middle brother wasn't allowed to date. Sure, Kadaj could date, but Kadaj was different. The baby was reckless, insane and able to take care of himself. In fact, Kadaj's boyfriend was Rufus fucking Shinra, which was just fine by Loz. Yazoo, on the other hand, needed someone to take care of him, be gentle with him, someone to really love him. Loz knew how men were around his more delicate brother. They wanted only one thing. 'Like hell' Loz thought groggily. 'Aint no mother fucker going to use my little brother for a piece of ass. When I get better I'm gonna kick this boyfriend's ass.' maybe, had he not been so tired, in so much pain, and on a shit ton of drugs, he would have realized that Yazoo's boyfriend had come with them to try to save his life.
Loz had just decided to let his eyes close and get some sleep while he waited, when a voice overruled that decision.
"Hello Loz." It was the Turk leader, the one he and his brothers tortured when they were looking for mother. Loz snarled and stared at him.
"While were are waiting for you to go into surgery, would you mind answering a few questions? Tseng's face was emotionless, unreadable. His voice the epitome of professionalism. If he held a grudge about the past, there was no sign of it now.
The silver brute eyed the smaller man from top to bottom before clearing his throat. "Where are my brothers?" He didn't bother with answering the question.
Tseng's expression stayed the same as he answered. "I do believe that Kadaj is on his way down, and Yazoo is with Mr. Rhapsodos. The man is in critical condition, and Yazoo hasn't left his side."
Loz didn't need to ask who Mr. Rhapsodos was. It was obvious that he was the boyfriend. It did hurt his feelings that Yazoo was choosing to visit with this other guy, instead of coming to see him. But then again, maybe Yazoo really cared....nah, not Yazoo. There were only two people Yazzy cared about, and they were Kadaj and himself. And sometimes Loz had to ask if Yazoo really even cared about them.
Wait....Rhapsodos. That name held meaning. Loz was suddenly remembering his fevered dream. Tseng had become merely a focal point, he was looking at the man, but not seeing him. Rhapsodos...THE RED ANGEL! Loz tried to shake it away, but the memory of the dream refused to release its hold. The Red Giant had failed and the Red Angel was dying.
Loz muttered, not really meaning to speak, but the Wutaian heard him anyway. "The red angel can't die, or we are all lost."
Tseng's carefully composed mask dropped and his dark eyes narrowed ever so slightly. Those words did not bode well. He wasn't sure why but they caused him to shiver. Not a normal reaction for the Turk leader.
Loz focused again, too late to have seen the stoic man's armor disappear for those few seconds. The eldest remnant chose to answer Tseng's earlier question. "Yes, I do in fact mind. I have no reason to talk to you. If you have questions, give them to the other man, the big one who saved my life in the desert. I will talk to him."
Tseng was yet again surprised by this best of a man. This time, however, his features stayed placid. He bowed his head in acknowledgment, then left the room.
Now all Loz had to do was wait. For either the person who would put him under, or his baby brother. Which ever came first. A few minutes later, a lady came in, put a breathing mask over his mouth, and told him to count backwards from one hundred. He made it to eighty-eight, then he was out.
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Kadaj was frozen at the elevators. Slowly he turn his head, looking over his shoulder. He knew that scream. He used to hear it often when he and his brothers were in the labs. It was the sound of Yazoo's pain. Kadaj cringed and his heart broke. There was only one meaning behind that wail; Genesis had died.
Oh, goddess, how could he make it right? How could he take back what he had done? He swallowed a whimper, and a single tear rolled down his cheek. He turned away from the elevators, and went back into the waiting room. There was no doubt in his mind that soon Yazoo would come to make good on his earlier threat. Kadaj prepared himself mentally for what was to come.
He would not run from Yazoo, nor was he being suicidal when he thought of giving his life to atone for what he'd stolen from his brother. Yazoo had been the best part of him. The one who had nurtured him without a single request in return. Until earlier that day, he hadn't realized how unhappy Yazoo had been. So, yes, his life was the least he could give in compensation for what he had taken.
His wait wasn't long. Maybe two or three minutes at most. Then he saw his brother walking down the hallway. Yazoo was moving toward him at a slow, uneven pace, as if he were the dead one. Kadaj wanted to run to him, to wrap his arms around his brothers neck, to console him. But he knew better. He stood in place, swallowing tightly as Yazoo approached.
Yaz came upon his brother, said not a word, but took the baby by the hand. Kadaj laced his fingers though his sibling's, and allowed Yazoo lead him to where ever they were headed.
He was taken the rear gardens, crossing to a more secluded part, where there were no lights and no prying eyes. Yazoo finally stopped, and turned to face the youngest. Even in the darkness, Kadaj could make out Yazoo's swollen cheeks, puffy lips and hallow spheres. Yazoo had never looked so empty and lost. Inside he wept for his brother.
Kadaj was shocked when Yaz wrapped both arms around his small waist, dropped his head, and bawled into his neck. Shaking, he lifted a hand to his brothers hair and gently began to stroke it. "He's dead 'Daj." Yazoo sounded pitiful, but Kadaj could only respond by entwining his brother's shoulders with his free arm, and pulling his close. "Shhh," it was barely a hum from the youngest, as they began to sway.
After an infinity of holding onto one another, Kadaj felt cold wet lips against the skin of his neck. Oh, Gaia, his heart skipped a beat. Here it is. He had actually allowed himself to believe that Yazoo wasn't going to make good his threat, and instead only cling to him for comfort. But those lips proved otherwise. They stung his skin and pierced his mind with fear. He couldn't stop the shiver that ran up his body. A soft moan seeped from his throat.
"You murdered him 'Daj." Yazoo's voice was hoarse, but soft and loving. He started suckling at Kadaj's earlobe. Kadaj wanted to voice his protest, to explain what happened, but he was helpless to do more than hold tighter to Yazoo's shoulders. A stinging pain came and the youngest could not stifle his yelp. Teeth ripped into the sensitive flesh, threatening to tear his ear off. A warm liquid began to flow down over his neck.
Kadaj had squeezed his eyes shut, yet he couldn't pull away from his siblings loving embrace. The teeth stopped their pressure, and he was surprised that Yazoo hadn't taken the appendage. A warm breath ghosted over his cheek, and then Yazoo's lips lingered inches from his own. "Did you know he was a poet, 'Daj?" The baby couldn't find words to answer, but then again, he knew Yazoo wasn't expecting a reply. "The most beautiful words would spring from his lips." Yaz leaned a littler closer. "And they were given to me. Did you ever think the greatest gift given to me would be words?" Yazoo chuckled, and Kadaj opened his eyes.
He was terrified by what he saw in Yazoo's eyes. Hatred and insanity. Kadaj was quivering now. Cold lips fell on his own, and a hand wrapped into his hair, holding his head still. The kiss was rough and bitter, yet Kadaj responded. The teeth came again, sinking brutally into puffy puckered skin. Kadaj squealed and the taste of blood filled his mouth. Yazoo slipped his tongue across the puncture, and despite everything, Kadaj hardened.
Yazoo pulled his head away, and the baby felt those deadened eyes peering into his soul. He chanced a glance at his elder, his mouth throbbing painfully. "His lips tasted of honey and cinnamon. I had thought they would taste of a sort of berry, but I was pleasantly surprised." One of the arms holding Kadaj's waist released him, and sneaked behind Yazoo's back. Kadaj already knew Yazoo was getting. A fresh wave of hot tears burned at the teens eyes.
"Don't cry 'Daj." Yazoo dipped forward and kissed both of this brother's eyelids. "I still love you. After all, I raised you didn't I." For the first time since seeing Yazoo exit Genesis's room, Kadaj found his voice. "I love you too, Yazzy."
A flash of silver caught Kadaj's eye, an instant before he felt something hard and metallic pressing against the side of his temple. "I lied about making you suffer, my little boy. I could never really hurt you..." Yazoo's face became a blank slate, "Not like you hurt me."
"Yazzy, I'm so sorry" Kadaj whimpered, then held his breath.
The shot was as deafening as thunder. Yazoo's arm jerked, blood sprayed and Kadaj fell backwards.
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Genesis kept his lips pressed to Sephiroth, finding tranquility in the ex-general's arms. It was nice, just the two of them, floating in the nothingness. He was still confused about Sephiroth's reaction. One minute the silver war machine had told him that he really had wanted Genesis dead, and a few moments later, Seph was begging him to stay. Ugh..he didn't want to think about it right now. He was content, and that's all the mattered.
"What do you think of Yazoo Rhapsodos?" The question seemed to be filtered through a tunnel. He turned his head from Seph, effectively breaking the kiss. He searched his companion's face, wondering why Seph would ask such a question.
"Seph?" Genesis noticed that his ex-lovers arms tightened around him.
"Hmm?" There was a lazy hum in the sound.
"Who is Yazoo Rhapsodos, and why did you ask about him or her?" Genesis was truly perplexed. He thought he knew all his family members. However there wasn't a Yazoo among them.
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. "I didn't say anything Gen, I was kissing you, remember."
"Someone said that name. I heard it."
There was a growl in Sephiroth's chest. "Don't worry about it, Gen. You said you were staying here with me."
"I think it sounds pretty. But I would like a diamond." Genesis was suddenly flooded with memories. Meeting the beautiful boy in the inn. Walking out on him later. Making love in a tent. Holding his silver dove, wanting to ease his fears. Pushing him through a portal.
"Yazzy?" He pushed at Seph's shoulders, trying to escape. "Damn it, Sephiroth, let me go. Yazoo needs me."
Sephiroth stopped the commanders squirming by crushing their mouths together. He continued the forceful kiss for a while before pulling away. "Just a while longer, then I will send you back to my son. But for now, you have to be patient."
It was Genesis's turn to half-slit his eyes. "What's going on Sephiroth?"
A smirk played on pale lips. "We need for the alien being to believe you are dead. He can feel Gaia's force in certain people. You, as Gaia's chosen champion, are one of those people."
"So I am dead?"
"For the moment."
"Wont he be able to feel it, when I come back to life?"
"I don't think he'll be looking. This is what I think he's going to do." Sephiroth was an excellent strategist, so Genesis payed close attention. "He is going to stay away from the brothers for the time being. They are together, and though no match for him, he is afraid one of them will escape if he attacks them, and if that happens it will take even longer to accomplish his task. That leave him one other option. He is going to go after Gaia's other hero. The one she has used to his breaking point. He is going to seek out Cloud."
Genesis sighed in understanding. "So, I am Minerva's secret weapon."
"Exactly."
"Seph?" he pushed a few strands of silver hair from his old lovers face. "You really didn't want me here with you, did you?"
The one winged angel's face became cold. "I told you that when we first started conversing."
Genesis nodded. "Is it time?"
"It is now, yes." He released his grip on Gen.
Genesis turned away from Sephiroth, and felt himself starting to fall. 'I'm coming back to you Yazzy.' That very thought elated him.
Sephiroth waited until the astral form of Genesis was completely gone, and he was alone again in blackness. "I will always love you Genesis Rhapsodos."
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Reno was sitting beside Rude's bed, bitching about the hospital's no smoking policy, while Elena was standing in the doorway awaiting Tseng's return.
"Well, I'm just glad you're alright, Rude." The blond interrupted Reno's rant. "I was pretty worried when Rufus called and said you were in the desert prison when the Saucer blew."
Though he hadn't said it, Reno shared Lana's sentiments. He was scared he was never going to see his partner again. "Well, lucky you came out with only had a few scrapes and bruises. Could've been worse, yo. I mean, look at Rhapsodos."
Rude was about to comment, when Reno's PHS sounded. He flipped it open, holding up his index finger, singling for his partner to hold that thought.
Um, yeah boss. I saw them go out to the garden, when I went to get coffee." Silence "That so? I know one little girly-man who is going to be happy to hear that." Reno's lips curled into a smirk. Will do boss. Going right now."
He snapped his phone shut. "Well, guys, I gotta go get Rufus's little bitch, and his creepy ass brother. Be right back."
The other two Turks nodded and watched as Reno disappeared from the room.
In less than a minute Reno was outside. He had to admit, the garden was pretty even at night. He scanned around for the brothers, but didn't see them at first.
Moving in a bit further down a cobble stone path, he finally caught sight of two dark shapes pressed against each other. He scowled as the feeling of interrupting something private sneaked across his mind. Well, at least he came bearing good news.
The Turk was almost upon the brothers when he saw Yazoo pull his gun and put it to Kadaj's head. 'The fuck, yo?' though he refrained from speaking that statement aloud.
Reno drew his own piece from his jacket, and held it steady, pointing at Yazoo's arm. He waited for a moment, to make sure he was assessing the situation correctly.
"Yazzy, I'm so sorry." Kadaj had said.
The hammer of Yazoo's gun clicked. Reno fired.
The red-head's bullet did just want he wanted it to. It grazed the long haired man's arm, opening the flesh, but not doing real damage. Kadaj fell on his ass when Yazoo released him from his hold.
Yazoo spun and leveled his gun on Reno's chest. The Turk smiled, and holstered his own weapon. "Hey princess," he said as he hadn't just shot the man, "Rufus called. Your boyfriends awake and asking for you. Kadaj," his eyes turned to the teen who was picking himself up off the ground. "The boss wants you too, but didn't say why."
Reno then turned and headed back to the hospital, leaving two stunned brothers in his wake.
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