Well, as usual it's been a while. Thank you for all the kind reviews and faves, and thank you for sticking with this story. There is an end in sight now, but not just yet! For now, Reno thinks it's all over and he's happy about that. Isn't he?


Chapter Ten

Over

Reno's captivity had only lasted a few days, and yet returning to Edge felt disorienting. His first view of the city from the helicopter struck him with an odd sense of déjà vu as though this were a place he'd visited years ago, half-remembered or seen in a dream, instead of somewhere he'd left only a few days earlier. Reno made himself focus on familiar landmarks: the ruins of Midgar, the headquarters of the WRO, and - the tallest building in Edge, much to Reeve's annoyance - the New ShinRa building. Tseng guided to helicopter towards the helipad on the roof. Reno had wanted to fly himself, claiming to be perfectly fine after a decent meal and a good night's sleep in Icicle, but Tseng had forbidden it until he'd been properly checked over by the doctors. As the helicopter turned Reno's eyes fixed on the monument in City Square built to honour the dead of Meteor and to re-establish ShinRa's presence at the heart of Edge, now rebuilt after its destruction by Bahmut Sin. It was at the base of that monument that he'd first encountered Yazoo…

Best not to think about that. Tseng had reported the presence of Loz and Yazoo to Rufus, who had already informed Reeve, and 'a team' had been sent to pursue the remnants. Tseng had told Reno no more than that, and he hadn't asked, but Yazoo's words replayed in his mind: A bullet might be fast enough to kill me. But death isn't the same for me as it is for you – it won't stop me coming back. Was that true? From what they'd said, it seemed to Reno that the remnants had no idea why they'd been sent back from the Lifestream, or who had sent them. Would Yazoo really be able to will himself back into existence if he was killed, or was he fooling himself? If the remnants' return had been some kind of accidental glitch, then surely it wouldn't happen twice?

"I just want my life back!" Reno said aloud. Rude gave him a concerned look. "You okay, partner?"

"Yeah – thanks. I'm… fine. Just – it's weird, you know? Seems like I've been away so long."

"…Too long, anyway," said Rude, finding something interesting to look at out of the window.

Reno grinned. "Knew you missed me."

"Yeah – well. Like I said, it's been quiet."

"Have to do something about that, then!" Reno replied, trying to focus on Rude, putting aside questions about the remnants - about Yazoo. "Soon as I've been cleared by medical, you can buy me a drink. Before – before all this shit happened - Elena said she heard the Goblins was reopening in Edge, this side of Johnny's?"

"Yeah. Haven't been. Kinda busy – looking for you. Someone said they found some of the original tables, and that old painting they used to have hanging up behind the bar."

"Of the Nibel mountains and that eight-legged goat with two heads?"

"That goat was –"

"- Two goats standing next to each other. Yeah, yeah. You keep telling yourself that – but there's a lot of weird shit in the Nibel mountains." Reno smiled. This was familiar. This was how things were supposed to go.

x

The doctor who checked Reno over handed her report to Tseng with a smile. "He's surprisingly fit, considering." She turned to Reno who was doing up a couple of buttons on the new shirt Rude had fetched for him. "There's no serious permanent damage and luckily no frost bite. It would have been helpful if the Cure used on your wrist had been applied earlier, but the bones have regenerated well, and any restriction in movement should be minimal. Wrists are often tricky to heal completely. Other than that – well, I can't tell you anything about your mental state unless you agree to the tests."

Reno put on his jacket without looking at her. His old uniform had been left in the trash back at Icicle Inn. It was good to feel like a Turk again. "No psych tests," he said. "I don't need that shit. I'm fine."

The doctor looked back at Tseng, a question in her eyes. Tseng shook his head. When it came to the psychological repercussions of their work, the Turks preferred to deal with things in their own way whenever possible.

As soon as Tseng and Reno were in the elevator on their way back to their own offices, Reno asked, "So that's it? I can go now?"

"I'd rather you wrote your report first, if you're up to it." Tseng sounded sympathetic, but Reno knew there was no point in arguing. Best to get it over with anyway – put the whole sorry affair behind him and get on with his life. Then he'd never have to write Yazoo's name again – never see that inhumanly beautiful face again – never think about him…

"Yeah," he said, wearily. "Yeah, I'll do it. Guess you can't let me out of the building 'til the debrief anyway, right?"

"Right."

Reno managed a smile. "Good to see you haven't let things slide in my absence, Boss."

Tseng raised an eyebrow. "I've done my best to cope. If everything's in order you get two days off, and then I've scheduled you to arrange the security for Rufus' meeting with the CEO of the Kalm Hydroelectric Company first thing on Tuesday."

"Ah – you're a slave-driver, you know that?" Reno replied, gratefully.

x

"Yazoo?"

"Hmm?" Yazoo looked up at Loz from his seat on a fallen pine trunk, startled out of some thought or memory which had been absorbing him so completely that he clearly hadn't heard a word of Loz's last two comments. Loz growled in frustration. He could guess exactly what – or rather who – was the focus of Yazoo's preoccupation.

"I said, we have three guns, and more materia now. The guns are loaded. We're better off than before." He held up Tseng's matched pistols, his mood lifting as soon as he had his brother's attention. "The one I fought with before, the big one? His gun is nothing special. But these are good guns," Loz grinned. "Look. One each of these."

Yazoo didn't return his smile. "Yes. He knows guns, that one we caught before. Tseng. He's a good shot. Sephiroth thought so."

Loz nodded eagerly. Yazoo thinking about Sephiroth was much better than Yazoo thinking about the red Turk. Trying to keep his brother focussed on important things – family things – Loz said, "So – where shall we go now? I think Kadaj will be at the Northern Cave."

Yazoo shook his head. "No. Kadaj isn't coming back."

"Just because that Turk told you Kadaj isn't coming back doesn't mean it's true! We're back – why not Kadaj? He wasn't at the Forgotten City when I looked for him, but he could be at the cave by now. We should go back – just to see if he's there."

Yazoo sighed. "They'll look for us there."

"Then we'll go quick. If he's not there we'll move on. We can be there in a day, without anyone slowing us down."

"Reno's fast, though," Yazoo said. "For a human."

Loz scowled. He hated the way Yazoo's eyes stopped seeing at him when he thought about the Turk. Seizing his brother's arms and pulling him to his feet, Loz took hold of Yazoo's chin roughly in one hand. "Look at me!" he insisted. "Look at me."

Yazoo blinked, focussing on Loz with an effort. "I am looking at you."

"You're thinking about him!"

"Yes. I'm always thinking about him. I can't help that." Gently, but coolly enough that Loz knew there was no point in arguing, Yazoo removed Loz's hand and turned away. "We'll go to the Northern cave if you like. It doesn't matter where. But if they come after us, I'll run. I won't fight Big Brother, if he comes. I have to stay alive, in case Reno was right – in case we were sent back by accident. If we get killed and trapped in the Lifestream with no way back…" Yazoo shuddered. "I have to stay alive – to wait for Reno."

"What do you mean, wait? He hates you! If he does come back it will be with weapons to kill you. When we let him go, he didn't even look round!"

Although his back was to Loz, the sudden tension in Yazoo's body showed his brother that those words had hit their mark. "I know," Yazoo said, his voice very low. "But he will think about me. He will look for me, in the end. All I have to do is wait."

"But that's stupid!" Loz exclaimed. "That can't be why we're here! We need Kadaj. He can hear Mother."

"Mother's gone. Or, if not gone, then her voice is too weak to be heard." Yazoo turned back to Loz. "Don't you see? We're on our own. But that's not really all that different from how it was before, is it? I tried – so hard – to keep us together, even at the end. I tried to take Big Brother with us – you know I did. But we were only ever supposed to help Kadaj, and once he was gone there was no need for us. I never heard Mother. Not once. I listened, but I heard nothing, and I don't believe you did either."

Loz looked angry for a moment, as though he was thinking about denying the truth of Yazoo's words, but then he nodded slowly. "I never heard her. But that's because she only needed one of us to give orders. That wasn't our job. It doesn't mean she didn't – she doesn't –"

"Doesn't what?" asked Yazoo, a cynical look in his eyes that Loz found disturbing. "She doesn't love us?" His laugh was bitter as he added, "We were never there to be loved – only to fight."

"But that's why we had each other!" Loz exclaimed. "We always loved each other, didn't we? And we'll be all right together now." He took the materia out of the slot on the gun he'd taken from Rude and held it out to his brother. "You have this. I'm strong enough without it."

Yazoo took the glowing orb in his hand, gazing down at it thoughtfully. "It causes confusion," he said. "I already do that. I make people think they love me when they don't. You saw Tseng, back there – how he gave in to me. If anyone has cause to hate us it's him, and yet even he couldn't resist…"

"But that only works when you're very close. This can be cast. Take it."

"I'm not sure I want –"

"Why not? It's power. Remember that explosion at the end, last time? Bang! So much power!"

Yazoo gave him a cold look. "We died."

"That was the idea!"

"We failed. Even in that. We died and Cloud survived."

"And maybe that's why we've been sent back – to succeed this time!"

Yazoo frowned. "Succeed at what?"

"I – don't know yet," Loz admitted. "But whatever it is, Mother will tell us, when it's time. And we should be ready. Have the materia." Taking the lambent sphere from Yazoo's hand, Loz attempted to press it into his brother's forearm as they had both done last time. Nothing happened. Rolling back the sleeve of Yazoo's long coat, Loz tried again, pushing the materia directly against skin. Yazoo gasped, and Loz jumped back, dropping the materia.

"What's wrong? Yazoo?"

"It hurts! It burns."

"Why? It didn't before!"

"I'll try again." Yazoo retrieved the materia from the bed of last year's brown pine needles where it had fallen, and pressed it against his own arm. Slowly the small sphere dissolved into his flesh, but by the time it had been completely absorbed Yazoo was pale and shaking. "It hurts," he whispered. "Even inside – I can feel it."

"Get rid of it. I'll try instead. It's not supposed to hurt."

Yazoo closed his eyes. "It doesn't want – I can't –"

"Try. It shouldn't hurt you. I don't want it to hurt you!"

Yazoo moaned. On his arm a materia-sized lump appeared. Loz tried to close his fingers around it, but it was still beneath Yazoo's skin.

"Separate it," Loz said. "You shouldn't have to think!"

"I'm trying!" Yazoo gave a cry of pain, and the materia emerged from beneath his skin, falling to the ground again. Loz took Yazoo's wrist gently in one hand, staring at the mottled bruise that had appeared on his brother's forearm. The skin was unbroken, but the bruising was deep, red and purple.

Loz picked up the materia and attempted to push it into his own arm. The sphere sank into his flesh, through the coat, with little difficulty. "It's not like last time," he said. "It's a bit harder – as if it's pushing back. But it doesn't hurt. Why did it hurt you?"

"I don't know." Yazoo ran his fingers over the bruise on his arm. "He said he could never love me, because I wasn't even human," he murmured. "But what if I'm becoming human? Perhaps then –"

"No!" exclaimed Loz, dismayed. "You're not one of them! He will never love you."

"But we're weaker than last time. We feel pain. Our bodies are more – present here than they were."

"Your power to make people do what you want is still strong. You just proved that with Tseng. I can still take the materia. We are not human! Humans are weak and stupid. Mother had no long-term use for them, and neither do we!"

"I'm not Mother!" Yazoo cried. "I am not her, and I won't be Sephiroth, how ever much I might be like him! I am myself. Yazoo."

"No." Loz went to his brother, and put his arms around him. "You were never only Yazoo. You're Mother, and Sephiroth, and Kadaj and Me. Even Big Brother. All of us – together. We were never supposed to play with the humans for long. Just until we had what we needed. They would all have died anyway – when we left the sun."

Yazoo pushed Loz away, looking at him with hard, angry eyes. "That wasn't what I wanted. Not even the first time."

Loz stared at him, not understanding. "You didn't want – What? How could you not want what Mother wanted? What do you mean?"

"It wasn't only me. Sephiroth didn't want it either – not really. Not only. Why do you think he kept losing?"

"What do you mean?" wailed Loz. "You make it sound as if he wanted to lose, but he didn't – he tried. Mother beat the Cetra, and they were stronger than humans."

"Yes – but she didn't beat them all. And they weakened her so that she couldn't come back on her own. Shinra made Sephiroth – he was part human. Perhaps I'm part human too."

"No. Sephiroth rejected that part and you don't have it."

"I think Sephiroth was torn. He wanted to be like one of them, but he never really was, even when he believed he was human. He never felt he belonged with them. He wanted contact – not with Mother – with others. Humans. That's what I want. Reno isn't us."

"But that's what I'm saying!" protested Loz, his lower lip beginning to tremble. "You don't need him. He's not us!"

"If we're meant to be alone, why can't Mother win?" Yazoo countered. "This world has always been too much for her. She knew as soon as she came here, but she couldn't travel on without this planet. There was too much life already here. Too much energy wanting to stay near the sun – the planet's own energy. But Mother is almost gone now. She tried, and she failed. She used Kadaj, and he's gone. I don't want to be - used up like he was, fighting a war that's already lost."

"But I don't understand!" cried Loz, tears building in his eyes. "How can you want what Mother doesn't? It doesn't make any sense! It hurts when you say these things, Yazoo. It hurts like it hurts when you look at that Turk – when you think about him instead of me. I love you! We all need you – me and Mother – Kadaj –"

Yazoo looked at his brother, his anger fading. "I'm sorry," he said. "I don't want it to hurt you. But I'm not – not a good son. Not like you and Kadaj. Even last time – when I was only half awake – I didn't do everything I could to help you. To help Her. When we were looking for Mother, didn't you ever wonder why I never made them tell me where she was?"

Loz shook his head hopelessly. "I don't understand? What –"

"Think about it! Use your brain for once!" Yazoo hissed, frustration making him cruel again. "We were just talking about my power. We had Tseng and Elena for days. I could have made them tell me everything, right from the start!"

Loz's mouth opened, but he couldn't seem to find words. Tears spilled out of his eyes and down his cheeks but he made no move to wipe them away. At last he took a deep, shuddering breath and forced himself to speak. "Then why didn't you? I don't understand." His voice cracked as he asked, "Why would you betray us? I don't understand!"

x

Reno looked at Tseng across the desk. At least this was Tseng's office and not a cell – but he still felt like a prisoner about to be interrogated.

"I put everything in the report," he said, knowing that he sounded defensive.

"Yes. I've read it." Tseng's expression was guarded, Reno thought, remembering how he had watched from the helicopter's cockpit as the Northern Crater vanished into a blizzard beneath him, leaving Tseng and Elena alone with the three remnants. He remembered catching a glimpse of Elena's face, pale and determined, as she'd run towards the chopper carrying the sealed box containing Jenova's remains – her shouted words in his headset as she'd thrust the box into Rude's outstretched hands – "Get out!" He remembered the sound of gunshots.

Neither Tseng nor Elena had ever spoken a word about what had happened to them after that – not to Reno, anyway. Who could tell what Rufus Shinra knew?

"They never asked me any questions," Reno said. "I don't think they know what they're here for. It's not like last time. Could be a mistake that they came back at all."

"A mistake?"

"Yeah. Like – a glitch in the Lifestream. Like a power outage, or something."

"Do you have any reason to think that's the case?"

Reno looked at his hands. "Not really. Only – they don't know why they're here – I'm pretty sure about that."

"Perhaps Jenova's will is strong enough to restore them to physical existence, but not strong enough to project her intentions?"

"Who knows? Boss – I don't know. I can't tell you shit. I'm sorry. All I know is that the crazy one – Yazoo – wouldn't leave me alone until I made a deal with him, and then I kept him at bay – mostly. I nearly killed him, but he survived. I've written everything that happened in the report. Even – you know. All that fucking shit about how he said he loved me. What happened when I was out of it with the fever. I never wanted – you can't think I wanted… Fuck, Tseng! You don't know what it's like! You don't know what it does to your mind when he gets close –"

"I do."

Reno looked up, to find Tseng watching him intently.

"Believe me, Reno – I know. It happened yesterday, when he disarmed us. But before – when they had us prisoner…" Tseng looked away, his gaze on the distant tower of the WRO building.

"But you resisted." Reno could hardly look at Tseng; his shame was too great. "Somehow you resisted – and I couldn't." His gaze fell again, and he picked nervously at a hangnail on his thumb. When he spoke again, his voice was low. "You never told them anything. Nor did Elena, and I used to call her Rookie! There was nothing I could do to fight it. I'd last maybe a few seconds and then I was – I just – I would've done anything he said. If he had asked me questions I would've spilled in a heartbeat. Never thought I was that fucking weak. Thought I was a Turk."

"Look at me, Reno."

Reno made himself look up at Tseng, meeting his director's eyes with difficulty.

"You did nothing wrong," Tseng said, his words precise, emphatic. "I know what that power is like. Yazoo gave me a demonstration of it, when I was their prisoner – just once."

"But – you never told him anything!"

"I was about to tell him everything. I would have done whatever he asked. But he moved away before I could speak and my mind was my own again. He never came near me after that."

"But why not? I don't get it! He could've made you tell him where we were gonna take Jenova's head the minute they had you in the cave. Why wouldn't he use the power, if he had it?" Reno's eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. "Boss – when you say he gave you a demonstration – he never – ?"

Tseng shook his head quickly. "He hardly touched me. Just enough to show me that I was powerless against him. Enough to show me that I would betray Shinra and everything I held sacred without a thought of anything but him." Tseng looked away again, remembering…

…Yazoo pulled the hair back from Tseng's face where it had stuck to the dried blood on his temple. Tseng winced as the hair came free, pulling the scab off the wound, which started bleeding again. It wasn't much pain – not compared to what had already been done to him over the last days – eight? Ten? Half conscious much of the time, he'd lost track already, and he was ashamed of himself for that.

Not much pain, but enough to make Tseng's eyes water, because there was a point – he'd reached it two nights ago - where any more was too much.

"Where's Elena?" he asked, his voice barely more than a whisper. They rarely gave him water. He hadn't seen Elena for at least four days. "Is she alive?"

Yazoo bent close, inspecting the wound. "Still clean," he said. "You won't be dying of infection, anyway."

"Elena?"

"You don't ask the questions here, Turk." Yazoo smiled, as if he'd made a joke and expected Tseng to appreciate it. "That's my job. Shall we get on with it, or are you feeling more cooperative today? The other Turks, in the helicopter, took Mother from us. We only want to know where they would have taken her. Is that unreasonable?"

"I told you," Tseng replied, "we no longer have a base. They could have taken it anywhere."

Yazoo's serene face darkened with sudden anger. "And I told you," he said in the soft, menacing tone Tseng had come to associate with agony, "not to call her it."

Tseng braced himself – couldn't help closing his eyes - but nothing happened. When he opened them again, Yazoo was watching him curiously. "You make it worse for yourself, imagining," he said. "Relax. React only to direct stimuli. I shouldn't have to tell you how to deal with interrogations. You're supposed to be the expert."

"Where's Elena?" Tseng asked again.

"I could make you tell me where Mother is," Yazoo said, thoughtfully. "They didn't ask me to, but I could. I wonder whether Kadaj would be pleased, or angry? He likes me to do what I'm told." Yazoo frowned. "They both do. I'm not as strong as Kadaj or Loz, but I could make you tell me, and you'd do it without hesitating for a moment. You'd want to tell me. Shall I show you?"

Tseng said nothing. Yazoo came closer and laid one gloved hand against Tseng's cheek. About to pull away, Tseng suddenly forgot why he would want to. Yazoo was gazing into his eyes, smiling slightly. "You understand now?" he asked, softly.

"Yes. Yazoo - you're –"

"I know. And now you want to tell me, don't you? Where your colleagues took her?"

"They would have taken her straight to H –"

"Ssh." Yazoo withdrew his hand, and took a step back, his eyes on Tseng's face.

"You see?"

"How?" Tseng gasped. "How did you do that? I -"

"Nearly told me everything?"

Tseng shook his head, but it was an obvious lie.

"Something beginning with 'H'?" Yazoo smiled. "Or were you going to say 'straight to Hell'? Well – we'll never know. They didn't tell me to use my power, so we won't count that little slip of yours… But I just wanted you to know – any time I like, I can make you tell me anything at all."

… "I almost told him where you'd taken Jenova's remains," Tseng said, looking back at Reno. "He stopped me. He moved away. I asked him why he didn't use that power – whatever it was…"

"What did he say?" Reno asked.

"He said, 'Nobody asked me. She didn't ask me.' Then he left me alone. I didn't see him again. It was always Kadaj and Loz after that." Tseng held Reno's gaze, but a faint flush appeared high on his cheeks as he said, "The worst of it was that part of me wanted Yazoo to come back. If he'd used that power – if he'd made me tell the truth – then it would have been over. There wouldn't have been anything I could have done. As it was, I had to keep on resisting, knowing that at any time he could come back. For all I knew, he'd already got the truth from Elena. If Valentine hadn't come for us, I don't know how long I would have been able to hold on."

Reno breathed out slowly, closing his eyes. When he opened them again, Tseng was still watching him. Reno sighed. "Yeah. That's it. The physical stuff is easy to deal with, in comparison. That thing Yazoo does - it leaves you feeling so – helpless. You have no control at all. Fuck, Boss – you don't blame yourself for thinking that shit, do you? That power of his - there's not a thing you can do against it."

"Exactly. I did blame myself. And you were blaming yourself – thinking I'd resisted when you couldn't. But you're right. I don't believe anyone could resist that force – whatever it is. Nothing that happened when you were under that – that spell – is anything to be ashamed of. You fought. You survived."

"Yeah. And tonight I'm gonna go get smashed outta my skull with Rude, and forget the whole damn thing. But I wish – they weren't still out there. Loz. Yazoo."

"Don't worry. As I told you, Rufus has contacted Reeve. The remnants are no longer your problem, Reno."

"But - they're not going to be a pushover, even now. They're weaker than before, but still stronger and faster than any human."

"Reeve's asked Strife," Tseng said. "And Valentine."

"Strife? Again? Oh… Okay." Reno didn't understand why that idea disturbed him so much. Tseng sensed his unease. "Reno, your part in this is over. This is WRO business now. Rufus is happy to leave this one to Reeve. Let it go. Have a good time tonight."

"Thanks, Boss. I will. And thanks - for, you know…"

"Go, Reno."

Reno made for the door, but when he reached it, he hesitated, his hand on the handle. "Did – did you ever get that shit out of your head?"

"Yes," Tseng replied. "It takes time. Expect flashbacks. Nightmares. But the memories do fade."

"Right."

Reno went in search of Rude, but his mind wasn't on the coming evening in the new Goblins bar. All he could think of was Cloud Strife and Vincent Valentine on Yazoo's trail. They were the best fighters on the planet. Both of them had saved the whole fucking world! Cloud's sword and Vincent's gun would be a match even for remnants of Sephiroth. One of them would kill Yazoo, and, if the remnants' return really had been a glitch, then that would be game over. Why didn't that thought make Reno feel better? Why did the image of Yazoo cut open by Cloud's sword or pierced by Vincent's bullets give him no satisfaction? Why was the cold fear in Reno's stomach associated not with the idea that Vincent and Cloud might fail in their mission, but that they would succeed?