Well, this is it. The last chapter of this story, at long last.
^_^ Maybe there really WILL be a sequel, maybe not. I did have one planned... 0_0
^_^ Thank you all for taking the time to read this!
Kazuki: *Rolls eyes* Why are we only in the final ONCE?
Satsuki: 0_0 I'm just happy we're in at all... After all, we were technically supposed to be supporting characters.
Kaji: ^_^ Don't worry! I hear that in the planned sequel, you have larger roles-
Me: KAJI!
Kaji: 0.0 Whoops.
Me: ...BACK. TO THE CORNERS.
Kaji, Satsuki and Kazuki: Fine...
Chapter 10:
Gotta love those mission apps…
Zack was carrying Kaji's half-conscious form on his back as he traveled through the woods in Nibelheim. It had been the closest they could get to where Zack had been planning to go for the longest time.
"Dad… where… are we going…?" Kaji's voice seemed strained.
"We're gonna go see my hometown. We're going to be resting up there until we can figure out where to go from there." Kaji groaned a bit, resting his head on the man's shoulder. "Are you still not feeling well?"
"My whole body hurts…"
"To me, it's amazing that you can even take that Mako… You're a lot younger than most of the people who got a case of Mako poisoning, minor or not, and they practically threw it at you…"
"I spent three years of my life having it in my system… But even now, it makes me sick…" As if on cue, Kaji felt his stomach lurch. "P-Put me down, quick…!"
Zack obeyed, and Kaji managed to get to a nearby bush. The man immediately covered his eyes and looked away as his child emptied the contents of his stomach. A few moments later, Zack looked to Kaji again.
"Are you okay…?"
Kaji, in turn, weakly glanced back up at him and smiled. "I-I feel much better now…" Zack walked over to him and Kaji once again climbed onto his back.
"We've got a long trip ahead of us. Get some sleep for the both of us."
"…I'm not tired…"
"Please?"
"…Okay…" Kaji slowly closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep while Zack continued to trek through Nibelheim… for the both of them.
~Sector 5 Slums~
Satsuki paused when she suddenly sensed something almost too familiar… the sensation burned like a fire…
"It feels… dim…" She looked to the plate above—the only way to reach Midgar. "Up there… he's suffering, isn't he…? Within the hands of Shinra…"
"We've all had to suffer for years because of Shinra." Satsuki faced Kazuki, who had unexpectedly walked up next to her and began looking to the plate as well. "All of us… Those of us here in the slums living as lost souls or even as slaves to their opinion… in Wutai as soldiers looking to avenge the fallen… Even those that are living in the world of SOLDIER are suffering the most. Imagine just how he would feel, to be so young and be exposed to the heinous crimes of that world."
Satsuki's eyes darted to the ground. "…"
"There's never going to be an end because there's no driving force. You want the suffering to end…" He walked past her. "Then you've gotta take out Shinra first."
Satsuki thought for a moment. He was right. Then she trailed behind him.
~Nibelheim: Outskirts~
"Doing okay back there?"
"Fine…" Kaji glanced up slightly. "Whoa. Where'd the light go?"
"It's after nine at night. You slept the whole way."
"…Oh…"
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"…I don't know… I still feel numb, and my head's hurting…"
"Mako does that to you at a much faster pace, so try and take it easy or you're going to trigger side effects."
"There's no way to heal it?"
"Not completely." Kaji rested his head on the man's shoulder again.
"Hey, dad… When we get back from visiting your hometown, can we go back to the slums to visit?"
"Why bring that up all of a sudden?"
"…I think you really miss Aerith."
Zack chuckled a bit. "Maybe I am. Probably as much as you're missing Satsuki, Kaji. But love can do crazy and powerful things to one's heart, ya know."
"…What's love?"
"There isn't really one meaning to love."
"Well, what do you think it is?"
"Love is… Hm… well, love comes in a lot of shapes and different kinds of colors. There's a type of love in the form of friendship, another in liking something… like a favorite food or a certain hobby."
"Like how you love fighting?"
"Exactly."
"Well, what about love in a way that you are with Aerith?"
"Aerith and I formed a strong bond from the moment we met, and before I even knew it… I fell in love with her. She was the only person I wanted. Love in that form is truly unexpected, and… well, I guess it's even harder to understand if you've never experienced it for yourself, and even when you have."
"What about… you and me?"
"Oh, you mean like the bond between a child and a parent? That's a different level of love." Zack began. "With the two of us in mind, the bond between a parent and a child… Right now for me, it's… it's one of the most surreal feelings in the world. I don't regret the day that I brought you back with me."
Kaji gently smiled at him, closing his eyes. "Dad…"
"Yeah?"
"Can I ask one more thing…?"
"Fire away."
"…Even after all that we've gone through… and the fact that I carry you inside of me… do you love having me as a son?"
"I love having you as a son, whether you're my biological son or not. You've changed me, Kaji, and I know that what happened in the past was not your fault. Your past is your past, and what's most important is what reflects on your present. I want you to grow up to become someone of great status mentally—someone strong enough to accept his own ideals."
Kaji had already returned to sleep.
~Gongaga, the following morning~
"This is Gongaga, my home!" Zack beamed. Kaji had to stifle a laugh at the mere sound of the tiny village's name. "H-Hey, don't laugh! Pfft, as if YOU would know anything about this place!"
"It's just the way that you said it." Kaji looked around a bit. "Is this really where you grew up?"
"Backwater type of place, isn't it?"
"No, I think it's really quaint… It's almost a relief to be here." Kaji walked ahead, occasionally looking back to Zack. "…Why did you leave here?"
"To become a hero."
"What about your parents?" Zack crossed his arms, looking away.
"I don't know. I left home when I was thirteen to join SOLDIER, and I never told my parents where I was going."
Kaji paused. "…Then you ran away?"
"Could you really blame me for wanting to become a hero at any cost—even leaving behind my parents in order to live out my dreams?"
"I wouldn't!" Kaji choked out. "I wouldn't ever leave you, dad!"
Zack patted the boy's head. "Everyone has a time to leave this world, Kaji. There's going to be a time when you're going to grow up, and there will be multiple occasions where you'll wish to be a child again. And eventually, your soul will return to the life-stream from whence you came." Kaji's eyes saddened a bit. "Some of us will die sooner than others, and once that will happen to anyone who dies… I know that we may have regrets. I just want to be able to live out my dream before my time is up. That's why I decided to leave home early."
"There's no way that you could die before me!"
"Well, it's too soon to say that…" He moved a strand of hair from over the boy's eyes, "Since there's no telling when we'll go back to where we belong."
Kaji leaned in a bit to the touch. "…I don't want to die yet…"
"You won't, Kaji. Not as long as I'm here. Don't doubt yourself."
"I'm not…"
"Hey, that's a SOLDIER operative!" Zack paused and then glanced back, spotting a group of infantrymen. Their eyes were focused on Kaji, who immediately clung to Zack's pants leg. "He has that experiment!"
"Shit!" Zack lifted Kaji up and then raced off. "How could they have possibly hunted us down?" The infantrymen swarmed and instantly gave chase, firing round after round at them. Kaji buried his face in Zack's chest as the man swiftly dodged, petrified by the gunshots.
"Dad…!" Zack glanced back at the infantrymen, and then smirked.
"Hold on tight, we'll hit them off at the cliff." Zack sped up and ran for the cliff, then glanced back again—the infantrymen weren't as fast, but they were hot on the trail. Kaji then hid within the bushes, and Kaji clung to him, stifling a cry. "Shh…"
Kaji eased up a bit. The infantrymen casually went past the bushes and scanned the area. Zack's eyes narrowed, and he kept a slight grip on the Buster Sword with one hand and the nearly inconsolable Kaji in his other. About twenty endless minutes had gone by before the infantrymen went past them, and once Zack heard the leader report back and then they all left, he came out of hiding, cradling the crying boy in his arms.
"Hey… it's okay, Kaji… It's okay, we're safe now…"
"T-They t-tried to kill you!" Kaji sobbed.
"But they didn't. Calm down…" Zack held him closer. "I'm here…" Then he began walking in the opposite direction, back down from the cliffs.
"…Where are we going…?"
"To see my parents."
Zack found his house after taking in the sight of the tiny village once again. He gathered his courage and then began knocking on the door once he had set Kaji on the ground. A man with medium length black hair with grey tints that stood about two inches taller than Zack answered, and his steel eyes went wide. {A/N: 0_0 I... DON'T really own Alexander, whom I named after the magical summon Alexander. I created his character personality, but Zack's parents did play a small role in VII.}
"Age hasn't been good to you, ay, pop?"
"Zackary Fair, you have NO right to make fun of my age!" The man embraced Zack and then young SOLDIER warrior grinned. "Where have you BEEN all of these years, under a rock?" Zack pointed down at his attire.
"SOLDIER First Class Zack Fair, reporting home for a visit!"
"Oh, so you DID get far in SOLDIER! I always knew my boy would find a way to make us proud!" Kaji poked his head out from behind Zack, glancing up at the man. "Aw, this guy—Wait a second, why does he look just like YOU?"
"Um… In some ways, this is your grandson, Kaji." Kaji shyly waved at the man. "Kaji, this is my dad, Alexander Fair."
Alexander looked to Zack. "Can we talk about this?"
"Later on." Zack peered inside slightly. "Ooh, mom's cooking~"
"Hey, Danielle, get in here, we've got guests!" A woman with long black hair peered out from the kitchen, and she dropped the bowl she was holding to the floor.
"Y-You…"
Zack waved a bit. "Hi, mom." She practically bolted out of the kitchen just to hug him. Kaji saw the height difference between the two instantly. She was about 5'6, not much shorter than Zack. {A/N: Danielle... I got her name from thinking about Daniel. XD I was watching Advent Children once when I was writing this part, forgive me. Yet again, she is but she isn't really owned by me.}
"My baby… My baby's come home…!"
"Yep, I came home, mom…" Zack replied, petting the woman's hair with a large smile on his face. "I'm home."
"Danielle, our son has brought home a little guest…" Alexander began. Danielle glanced up at Zack, then down towards the now helplessly confused eight year old boy. Her expression darkened a bit when she saw his face alone. Within seconds, Zack could slowly feel his pulse rate dimming.
"M-Mommy, y-you're cutting off my circulation…!" Danielle released the grip she had on her son—so THAT was where Zack got his strength?
"Zackary, a WORD."
"Y-Yes, mommy!" Zack went into the kitchen with her.
Alexander chuckled a bit, and then looked to Kaji. "He's in for it now, huh?"
"Alexander, get in here THIS INSTANT!" Alexander tensed up before gulping.
"C-Coming, honey!" He looked to Kaji again. "You can have a seat anywhere, Kaji. Grandma and grandpa are just gonna go and have a chat with Zack."
Kaji nodded a bit, taking a seat on the couch.
"Zack, GRANDSON?"
"Well, mom, you DID say that you wanted some when you and I got older…" She shoved him a bit, highly pissed.
"I meant that you should have waited before you acted!" She looked to Alexander. "And you're over there casually calling him our grandson, did you KNOW about this?"
"What? No, of COURSE not!"
"Mom, relax, will ya? Kaji isn't my birth son, but he's carrying my genes in his system, which makes us related. He's mine." Danielle was confused. "…I know it's confusing, but it's hard for me to explain too… I can't drag him back into the life he used to have before I found him…"
Kaji had his ear pressed against the door, remaining perfectly still.
"Aw, Dani, give the boy a break. He just came home, after all."
Danielle calmed a bit. "Okay… I can deal… No more surprises… no… secret girlfriends or anything like that?"
"…Well, actually…"
"Zackary Fair, you went and got a girlfriend and didn't tell me!" Danielle had the boy caught in a chokehold.
"D-Dad, little help!"
"Sorry, kiddo, mom's the one wearing the pants right now. I can't really interfere when that happens."
"What kind of man ARE you?" Zack whined.
"Um… One who loves his wife very, very much?"
"What ELSE are you hiding from us, Zack?" Danielle whined. "Have you lost your innocence?"
"What? Mom, NO!"
"But the day's still young…"
"Alexander!" Danielle hissed.
"C'mon, the boy's handsome and he's not getting any younger—some pretty girl was bound to scoop him up someday."
"Well, actually… I fell through her second roof. Long story."
"…My baby…" Danielle whimpered.
From the other side of the door, Kaji groaned slightly. 'Ugh, my head's really foggy… The Mako must still be messing with my system…'
Zack suddenly opened the door and ended up whacking the boy in the head, knocking him to the floor.
"Oh, crap, Kaji, are you okay? I'm sorry!" Zack helped him to his feet.
"Whee, pretty stars~…" Kaji snapped out of it, shaking his head frantically. "Sorry, I'm fine, really, I am…"
"Geez, Zack, are you trying to take the boy's head off?" Alexander ruffled the youngest boy's hair a bit.
"Hey, in my defense, I didn't even know that he was right there!"
"Guess he really DOES have your blood somewhere in there—he's just like you were at his age, except you were much more energetic."
"Dad, am I really like you?" Kaji asked.
"Well, in some ways." The boy grinned.
"Hey, Zack, why don't you two go on upstairs to your old room? Dinner should be ready soon."
"Geez, dad, what am I, five?" Zack grinned, leading the boy upstairs.
Zack opened the door to the tiny room, and Kaji walked inside first, looking around. There were pictures of a man with knee-length silver hair on the ceiling along with SOLDIER decorations.
"Who's the guy?"
"Oh, that's Sephiroth. He's considered SOLDIER's hero, and he's a First Class like I am—the best among us too. I idolized him a lot when I was younger." {A/N: ...Well, at least Sephiroth got an honorable mention. =3}
"He must have inspired you to join SOLDIER too."
"I guess he did." Kaji took a seat on the bed.
"Hey Zack… How did you find your way into SOLDIER anyways? Was it hard?"
"Well… It all started two years ago, when I became an infantryman for Shinra…"
About an hour had passed before Alexander had entered the room. Zack glanced back at him and smiled.
"Hey, dad."
"Hey." Then Alexander glanced at the sleeping boy on Zack's bed. "Kaji fell asleep, I see."
"Yeah, it's one of his hobbies."
"Well, your mom said to come down for dinner."
"What're we having?"
"Beef stew and tempura."
"…What a weird idea. My favorite and Kaji's favorite at once."
"Coming downstairs?"
"Yeah, just let me wake him up." Alexander nodded and went back downstairs. "Kaji, time for dinner…" Zack shook him a bit.
Kaji jolted awake. "Huh?" Pain suddenly rushed throughout his body, but he managed to pause before he could allow it to show.
"You hungry, frantic?"
"Y-Yeah, a little…"
"Food's ready."
"Okay…" Kaji groaned a bit before sitting up. Zack crossed his arms.
"Your energy seems kinda low. Still not feeling that well?"
"Not really… I think the Mako is getting to me…" Zack went through his item storage and pulled out an antidote.
"Here, see if that helps." Kaji stared at the clear liquid before putting it up to his lips. Almost immediately, he cringed and tried to wipe the substance off of his tongue.
"UGH! What is that stuff MADE of?"
"Um… Behemoth sweat and a bit of Moogle magic for flavor," Zack lied smoothly. "It might taste bad, but it'll help or my name isn't Rich Mandope."
"…But it's NOT."
"Just drink the stuff." Kaji plugged his nose and downed the liquid, shuddering a bit.
"Okay, really, what IS that suff?"
"I think it's just vitamin water and tea leaf filling. The filling is bitter to douse any type of poison the body may be dealing with."
"Oh…" Kaji could feel the liquid sitting in his stomach and clutched it, groaning. "It doesn't help me… My stomach hurts…" The boy then laid back down on the bed and Zack pulled the blanket over him a bit. {A/N: In other words, Kaji is practically immune to the antidote, he just doesn't know it.}
Moments later, Danielle entered the room. "Is everything okay up here?"
"Kaji isn't feeling well, mom…" Danielle walked over to the boy, examining him.
"He looks a bit pale… Did you check to see if he has a fever?" Zack shook his head, and Danielle sighed. She placed the back of her hand over the boy's forehead, and he slightly cringed from her cold touch. "It's slight, but it might rise… There's no doubt that he's caught something out there." She glanced back at Zack. "Honey, you came all this way, you should go downstairs and eat. I can take care of Kaji."
"M-Mom, are you sure?"
"I'm sure. Go on, go." Zack nodded a bit before exiting the room and going downstairs. Danielle looked to the boy, who slowly closed his eyes, moaning a bit.
"I knew I was getting sick…"
"You're not gonna sit here and feel guilty about it, are you?" Kaji slightly shook his head. "Well, it appears that you ARE Zack's son if you have such a mentality."
"Really…?" Kaji turned on his side. "…I've been hearing it so much… it's almost gut-wrenching…"
"Gut-wrenching?"
"Just thinking about what I took from Zack… It just… It makes me sick…" Danielle just stared at the boy—actually, more like glared.
"You STILL can't seem to keep up with me when it comes to eating!" Alexander boasted, laughing like a maniac. Zack finished yet another bowl of stew—the tenth. Alexander was on his thirteenth and counting. "Honestly, I thought you would gain more out of being in SOLDIER!"
"So I'm not a glutton! Big deal, I'm a great deal stronger!"
"But you're still not like your old man though!"
"Oh-ho-ho, you wanna go?"
"If you can rise to the challenge."
Zack smirked. "Come and get it."
"NO brawling in the house, boys." Danielle called, causing both men to freeze in mid-fighting position. "And calm down—you can move, you know. I'm not violent."
"How's Kaji?" Zack asked.
"He went back to sleep…" Danielle replied, tending to dishes in the kitchen.
"Is that all?"
"Yep, that's all."
"What's wrong with Kaji?" Alexander asked.
"He isn't feeling very well." Danielle and Zack replied in unison, causing Alexander to sweat-drop, shaking his head.
"…Fine. Leave me out…"
Zack looked to Danielle again. "Mom, you look tense… Is something wrong?"
"Did Kaji take something from you?"
"…Why do you-?"
"He said that thinking of what he took from you made him feel sick."
"…Mom, I could never explain Kaji's very existence to you because I can barely understand him for myself!"
"You STILL don't get me?" The three glanced up at the top of the stairs and faced Kaji. Steel eyes were filled with such remorse—such rage. "…I should have known it wasn't meant for me to have a family that understands me!" Then he ran off.
"Kaji! Hey, hold on!" The door to Zack's room had slammed from above. The impact made the entire house rattle. "…He hates me…"
"I'll go talk to him." Alexander replied.
"No, dad, really, I can do-"
"Zack… Trust me, I can do this. I have experience with dealing with a kid." Alexander went upstairs.
"Mom, I can't BELIEVE you did that!"
"All that I did was ask him if he was all right, Zack; YOU'RE the one that blew out of this all out of proportion!"
"You didn't have to question him!"
"I never knew that he was listening!" Danielle snapped. Zack walked past her and then went into the kitchen.
"Kaji? It's grandpa, can I talk to you?"
"Go away!" Kaji hissed. Alexander ran his finger along the upper rims of the door before coming across a small silver key.
Thank goodness Zack never took it back.
He unlocked the door and entered Zack's room. Kaji was shaking in the corner of the room, clinging to one of Zack's pillows for dear life, amber eyes of Ifrit attempting to break through the steel passages.
Alexander made his way over to the boy, lifting him up. "Don't mind Zack… He only meant that he's still getting used to knowing the real you. No need to get so worked up…" Kaji's breathing got a bit labored.
"A-Augh!"
"What is it?"
"M-My body's…!"
"Go back to sleep, you brainless child."
Kaji felt his body shut down completely, and Alexander put a hand over the boy's forehead. "…He's burning up… He must have over-exerted himself…" Alexander gently laid his form on the bed, pulling the covers over him. He wiped some sweat off of the boy's forehead with his sleeve.
The heat is growing more intense…
~7:17 P.M~
There was an abrupt knock on the front door.
"I'll get it!" Danielle called. I wonder who that could be at this h- Danielle nearly had a heart attack when she found a group of SOLDIER infantrymen standing at her door.
"Good evening, ma'am. Are you aware that there is an AWOL SOLDIER operative within the area?"
AWOL? Zack was AWOL?
"U-Um, indeed, I'm aware."
"He is also carrying a loose experiment alongside him and must be taken into custody by Shinra."
"W-What?"
"Hey, mom, what's go-?" Zack froze when he spotted the men.
"That's him! Apprehend him!" The infantrymen stormed the tiny house and Zack drew the Buster Sword just as the men began firing rounds mercilessly. Danielle screamed, ducking to the floor. Zack was mortified by the very sound of his mother's scream.
His own FAMILY was being torn into the world of SOLDIER—his own family, being threatened because of him.
"STOP, DAMMIT! I'm a First Class, I'M the one who should be giving the orders here!" He roared.
"Our orders don't come from you—they come from the science department!" Alexander raced down the stairs, bat in hand.
"Get the hell out of my house!" The infantrymen quickly swarmed, and within minutes, the three were taken into custody, handcuffs locked on them.
"Zack Fair, you have been charged with theft and tampering with an important experiment that is under legal custody of the Shinra Science Department. And these people will be charged with aiding a felon."
"I am NOT a felon!"
"Zack is our SON! We have every right to assist him in whatever way we can! And Kaji is no different—he's a part of this family!" Alexander bellowed.
"Never mind those oblivious parents of his." A male voice called. From the group came an elder man wearing a lab coat, his hair pulled back into a ponytail. "I request my experiment returned immediately, and his DNA donor separate from him at once."
"Yes, Professor Hojo." The infantrymen split, some of them heading upstairs while the latter remained downstairs. {A/N: You all were completely right when you suspected Hojo of Kaji's situation. I had that part set from the start. One person even mentioned that this was a similar situation to Vincent Valentine *Hehe, Vincent the Vampire for me*. 0_0 Honestly, when I wrote this story out, I had never gotten past the part where Yuffie showed up in Dirge of Cerberus, but one day I just might hunt it down again to play it.}
Hojo looked to Zack. "You've been a great help, Mr. Fair. KAJI will be much easier to train now that you've tapped into his full power."
From upstairs, the three could hear loud screams—nearly blood-curdling screams. Zack knew that they had gotten to Kaji already, and his eyes went bewildered.
He was going to die in their hands!
"HOJO, YOU SICK BASTARD!" Zack bellowed, trying to free himself from the infantrymen. "LET ME GO! I'll KILL you! How DARE you put a child as young as Kaji through this-this BULLSHIT!"
"Ah, but in good time he will become one of the most extraordinary beings in the world. With the right crafting, he might even one day live up to Sephiroth's standards… IF he can lose his human emotions, that is."
"He doesn't need that kind of power! All he's wanted—all he needs is someone who would love and accept him! All you've done for his entire life is treat him as if he were the dirt under your fingernails! He doesn't deserve the torment that he's been receiving from Shinra! Kaji deserves a REAL place to call his home!"
"You truly believe you know this child better than the very person who created him—who gave him a life?"
Zack's eyes narrowed and he jerked as if to try and pull away from the grip. "I made him too! He's carrying my genes! So he's MY son!"
"Pure ignorance…" Hojo rubbed at his temples. "This boy may carry your genes, but he is far from being anything to you."
The infantrymen came downstairs, three of them carrying Kaji in order to keep him as restrained as possible. He was tied up in rope, his hands bound by handcuffs as well. He was currently blindfolded and half conscious. Once again, Zack jerked, but this time managed to break free from the infantryman's grip, moving forward a bit until he was restrained by two more.
"Kaji! KAJI, LISTEN! No matter what happens from here, no matter how much trouble either of us get into, and no matter how much you might cry… I'm your father, I love you, and I'm always going to be there! Remember that!"
Kaji immediately jerked as well from the sound of the man's voice, letting out hysterical yells, trying to break free. "ZACK!" And then he was taken away. Zack bit his bottom lip as the door slammed.
"You can release the elder couple." Hojo began. "The boy is to be returned to Shinra and kept away from my experiment at all costs."
Alexander and Danielle were freed, and she immediately hugged her still handcuffed son as tightly as possibly. "Zack… I'm so sorry…"
"…No, it was… I-I just…" Zack stifled a cry, and Alexander wrapped an arm around the boy.
"It's all right … It's not a good thing, but… Every man… knows what it's like when they lose a child…" Zack broke down crying.
"I-I couldn't save him…! I couldn't be his hero…!"
"You were more, Zackary… You were so much more…"
~Shinra Corp-7:40 P.M~
"The experiment was successfully apprehended, and his accomplice is currently being returned to Shinra as we speak. We appreciate your assistance."
Cissnei hung up her cell phone and sighed. "…So he's on his way back now…"
'He's never going to forgive me for this…' {A/N: ...I almost didn't forgive Cissnei for that.}
~Shinra Science Department-2:52 A.M~
From the moment that they had shipped him back, the scientists had been trying to stabilize Kaji's rising body heat. Eventually, they decided to just leave him in his old room and practically expected him to cool down—it was his nature, after all.
"Professor Hojo, KAJI appears to be doing a lot better physically. And based on all the prior experiences he's faced, his brain waves have tremendously begun to flow."
"And his status?"
"He continues to sleep as though his body has entered another state of relapse… I believe it has been caused by his rising temperature and body levels."
"So that boy Zack Fair has placed more trauma upon him than even I had come to anticipate… Pure drivel…"
"Professor?"
"As soon as the experiment begins to regain even the slightest sense of movement, I want for you to place him back into his Mako pod. Now that he has begun to grow in terms of strength, we shall continue from where we had previously begun."
I remember hearing voices…
I didn't recognize them anymore…
I didn't even remember what happened…
What day is it?
Where am I?
Why can't I breathe well…?
…Who am I?
How do I get out of here?
Suffocating… Suffering…
Shut down… Shut down…
I want my dad… I want him back here with me… Right this minute…
I hear more crying… More of my crying…
Her beautiful face… the face of her…
My best friend…
Take me back again…
Take me back to who I once was…
Show me a future I can smile upon.
~End~
And there you have it, the end of Kaji's tale... or is it?
Do you guys want to see a sequel? ^_^