A/N: Good news, we have a scene change, this really should be Urbs Mortui part B since it overlaps with everything. It picks up when Sephiroth left the inn and follows what everyone else was up to during Ariella meeting Vincent and Nate.
Urbs Mortui: Secundus Pars – City of the Dead: Second Part
Back in the city not all was well, Sephiroth had gone to the center of town with his sword, he gazed up at the clock tower. "Mother, I will be there for you soon." He summoned a fireball and incinerated the clock tower. Behind him he could hear footsteps, it was a human worm. He spun around trying to cut down the scum, however the one who stopped the attack seemed to be different from those he hated. The spiky white hair and startlingly blue eyes stood out as green infected them.
Weiss stood there firmly blocking Sephiroth's attack, "General what the hell's gotten into you?!"
"Mother says I should get rid of you, traitor," he replied as he sent Weiss flying. Weiss back flipped planting his feet on a wall, followed by launching himself at Sephiroth. He slashed at Sephiroth's head but was blocked; he swung his leg around kicking Sephiroth in the head. The SOLDIER General staggered for a moment, he smirked grabbing Weiss with one hand around his throat. Weiss choked as he felt the air unable to reach his lungs, however that was remedied when Sephiroth let him go, someone else had shown up.
"What the hell's wrong with you Seph?!" Zack shouted as Weiss stood up coughing a little.
"Another traitor," Sephiroth chuckled a little, "you wouldn't have to die if you would join Mother and I. Together we will take this planet as a vessel through the cosmos."
Weiss punched at Sephiroth, he moved out of the way of the attack with the grace of a cat. Bringing his elbow up he drove it calmly into Weiss's ribs. Weiss flew back again as he felt several ribs crack, he coughed again. Sephiroth ignored him grabbing Zack over the face, lifted him into the air tossing him to join Weiss. He summoned a fireball shooting it off at the local school building.
Zack wiped some blood off of his face, Weiss stood up clutching his side with his hand. "He's lost it," Zack muttered.
"No… something his blocking his thought process," Weiss muttered. "See how he keeps looking up at the mountain… whatever's blocking him from thinking must be up there."
Zack watched Sephiroth gazing up at the mountain longingly, "you're right."
Someone reached up behind them pulling them into an alleyway; they discovered Dante standing there, Nero and Daniel next to him. "Have you two seen the kid?"
Both shook their heads, Dante growled slightly, "well as Sephiroth is temporarily indisposed that leaves me in charge. You two," he glared at Zack and Weiss, "come with me, we're getting Sephiroth out of this town. Nero, Daniel, locate the kid then start getting those fires out and see the safe evacuation of the city."
Nero nodded and took off heading for the inn, followed closely by Daniel, Zack and Weiss stood up as Dante released them. "Now get going, I'll be waiting for you at the reactor, lead him up there." With that he took off running leaving the two First Class SOLDIERs wondering about how to distract Sephiroth from his homicidal rampage.
Zack sighed watching Sephiroth again, "wonderful…"
Weiss shook his head, "we need to stay focused, listen, we'll take turns launching spells at him from a distance, he should take the bait and we can escape up the mountain to the reactor."
"What materia do we have?" Zack asked pulling out some Ice and a Barrier materia.
Weiss pulled out a Cure combined with an All and a Lightning, "Cure3 All," he muttered alleviating all of their injuries before putting those two away. "Zack you go first since you're faster then me, let him chase you for a couple of minutes, when you take an unexpected turn I'll catch his attention.
"That should work, see ya in a few," Zack grinned taking off leaving Weiss behind. He ran through the street spotting Sephiroth, who'd vanished since they'd stopped watching him. He pulled out his Ice materia, "Ice2!" The large chunk of ice nearly hit Sephiroth in the head as he stepped back.
Sephiroth spotted Zack summoning a fireball shooting it at him, Zack hastily cast Barrier on himself, "come on Seph take the bait…"
Sephiroth snorted for a moment, he charged Zack head on, Zack grinned a moment taking off at a sprint out of the town, he ran past the mansion, Sephiroth seemed to be getting distracted by the large abandoned structure. Fortunately at that moment a lighting bolt attracted Sephiroth's attention, as Weiss appeared to give Zack a break. Zack disappeared behind a tree for a moment as Weiss led Sephiroth further up the mountain, Zack caught his breath, and he swore he heard a howl of pain coming from the mansion. He dismissed it before giving chase after them, and taking every shortcut he could. He found a decent boulder waiting, as soon as he saw Weiss running dodging a fireball he leaped out launching another Ice spell at Sephiroth. Both Weiss and Zack ran side by side the last few hundred yards up the mountain watching the reactor looming in the distance.
Weiss took a left, Zack hung a right both watched Sephiroth slow to a walk as he approached the reactor, "Mother, those worms got away but I'm here. I'm here for you Mother." He started to walk towards the reactor when an explosion from one of the walls caught his interest.
Dante flew through the opening, blood dripping from his head, in the reactor standing side by side were Genesis Rhapsodos and Angeal Hewley. "Don't play coy Restrictor, where's Sephiroth?"
"I don't know," Dante muttered standing up, leaning his weight on one gunblade. His eyes fell on Sephiroth as the mad General advanced on him, "shit." He leaped back Sephiroth swung for him. He turned his gunblades at Sephiroth shooting at him, the silver haired man blocked leaping into the air to engage with Dante.
Genesis's eyebrows went up, "well it would seem Sephiroth did decide to show up to our party. I wonder if Nate's completed his assignment yet?"
Angeal hung his head for a moment; if they were here then Ariella was left back at Shin-Ra. He shook his head glaring at Genesis sidelong, "what assignment was that?"
Genesis watched him, "I told him to bring Ariella back here, and she did come with them after all."
Angeal's eyes closed, then Ariella would be as good as dead. The modifications Nate had undergone in the last few days would make him invincible to a twelve year old. Besides he knew Nate would have no intention of following anyone's orders when it came to Ariella. Glancing at Genesis he pondered quietly if the renegade had considered his henchman's intense dislike of their daughter. He suppressed a sob, quietly, first his father, then his mother, now his daughter and best friend. He had nothing left, "don't give up just yet Dad!"
He opened his eyes a little seeing what looked like a ghostly form of a young girl with black hair, red streaked down the middle, two different colored eyes gazing at him from between an oversized turtle neck and a long fringe of bangs. He swallowed, "Ari…"
"You always said never give up, we won't give up on you if you don't give up on us." The ghostly form of Ariella grinned at him.
"I would never give up on you," he muttered.
"Then be the hero we know you are," she demanded before vanishing.
"Ariella!" He shouted closing his eyes again. When he opened them, they greened over; Nate would probably take the opportunity to kill Ariella, he couldn't let Genesis's laps in judgment go unpunished, "you bastard!" He spun around as he swung the Buster Sword at Genesis.
Genesis blocked with his rapier, "Angeal what's the meaning of this?"
"You'd put your own daughter in harms way for the sake of this plan of yours?! You son of a bitch! You swore on pain of death to keep her alive," Angeal roared as he shoved Genesis outside.
Genesis summoned a fireball shooting it off at Angeal; he dodged it flying at Genesis head on for another attack. He swung but found his target to be Sephiroth, who blocked and punched him in the gut sending him flying back into Dante. Dante kicked Angeal in the back, "that one was for the pain you caused that little girl."
Angeal fell down for a moment staggering to his feet, out of the corner of his eye he could see Sephiroth attacking Genesis in frenzy. "Dante… let's save this for later. Right now we need to return Seph to his senses..." He knew Sephiroth's typical fighting behavior and what he was displaying right now certainly wasn't his typical fighting behavior. For one thing Sephiroth would never be so easily distracted by multiple opponents in one area, he would always keep after one if the others showed no interest in fighting. Something was very wrong with Sephiroth right now, and Angeal intended to stop it.
Dante frowned, "after that you and I will settle this, no interruptions whatsoever."
Angeal nodded, "deal, now how do we take him down?"
"I'd say a sharp blow to the head would do it but knowing the General that wouldn't work," Dante shook his head.
"Agreed, we both charge him head on, if you see an opening to knock him out then don't hesitate to take it," Angeal decided.
Dante laughed for a moment, "I always knew I liked you as a commander."
"Compliment is appreciated, now," he pointed the sword up at the sky pressing his forehead to the flat of the blade. "Ariella, I won't give up on you so please lend me your strength." He muttered kissing the sword before dropping it away from his forehead and charging at the dueling Sephiroth and Genesis. He spun around side slashing at both of them, they leaped back as both charged at him. Dante intervened shooting at the attackers, after which he charged forward leaping into the air continuing to shoot.
"This party's getting crazy!" Dante declare as he flipped in the air swinging both gunblades down breaking up the clash, he spun around slashing at the coat clad SOLDIERs. Angeal side stepped them attacking Sephiroth with an upwards slash, he caught the Masamune forcing Sephiroth into the air, Angeal leaped after him. He raised the Buster Sword up into a stab, "Climhazzard!"
Sephiroth rolled in midair avoiding the stab countering with a thrust through Angeal's left arm between his radius and ulna. He slashed sideways severing tendons, muscles ligaments and bone, he thrust again, Angeal dodged this time landing on a pipe jutting out of the reactor. He stuck the Buster Sword into the pipe clutching his left arm, his hand wasn't working, and fortunate for him the sword had missed his major arteries and veins by millimeters. "You're still in there aren't you Sephiroth… you must have no matter how unconsciously been holding yourself back… You're still fighting back." He picked up the Buster Sword smiling again rejoining the fray, all four of the combatants met in a class of steel and Orichalcum.
Out of nowhere a long black spiked chain wrapped around all five weapons, along with Genesis and Angeal's hands, the end of the chains was a lone black phoenix feather. A second chain appeared wrapping completely around the crazed Sephiroth.
"HOLD EVERYTHING!"