Sorry for the fast-paced-ness... Yeahhh. Anywho, hope you enjoy:) Chapter Twenty Five, Reversal.
When he entered, the room was dark.
Cid's red chair was facing the closed curtains, and the silhouette of his arm was hanging off the edge.
"Cid?" he called, but the man didn't show any sign of recognition.
He walked further into the room, coming up beside the chair.
Cid was staring blindly at the curtains with half-lidded eyes, his face a bloody mess.
His nose was crooked and looked broken, and bruises and welts covered his face.
A gag had been tied over his mouth to prevent him from screaming, and two of his fingers were bent at an awkward angle.
Zack rushed forward, carefully cutting the gag from his mouth.
The man had a split lip, a purpling bruise forming around his eye. His wrists had red rope burns around them, the skin raw and bloody.
The room was disarranged; it looked like he put up quite a fight, as there was smashed china and papers strewn across the floor.
"Damn. Those Shinra bastards are sick. Don' worry. I didn't tell 'em anythin'." He mumbled, his gaze still fixed on the billowing white curtains.
"Will ye git Shera fer me?"
Zack nodded, watching worriedly as Cid's eyelids flickered.
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Zack decided return to the room while Shera helped Cid clean up.
As he made his way down the hall, to familiar faces peeked out from behind a crate.
"Hey Klaus, what did those SOLDIERs want?" Sen asked, coming out of his hiding pace with Denzel in tow.
"They were looking for some guys on the loose." Zack said, running a hand through raven-black hair.
"Are- you guys who they were looking for?" he asked, somewhat accusingly.
Zack considered for a moment, but decided to tell them the truth. "Yes." He said slowly wondering how to explain.
"Why?" Denzel asked simply.
"Those SOLDIERs are very bad men." Zack explained. "They're the ones who hurt Cl- Axel."
Denzel's eyes narrowed. "Why would they want to hurt you?"
Zack hesitated- "They think we have something they want." He said, trying not to make his explanation to complex.
"Why don't you just give it to them, and they'll leave you alone?" Denzel asked, scuffling his feet nervously.
Zack had to smile.
This kid was uncannily like Cloud.
"Well Denzel, this item is very dangerous, and if it came into the hands of those men, a lot of people could die."
Denzel looked up, his eyes so unearthly similar to Cloud's it was frightening.
"But- dad said the SOLDIERs were there to help us. To get rid of the monsters, to protect Gaia. He said they help supply us with power."
Zack smiled at his naivety and shook his head.
"Not all the things you hear are true. I'm not saying your father is incorrect, but Shinra is doing a lot more behind the backs of the public than you think."
"Why would Shinra let so many die just for-" Sen looked at him with curious eyes. "What is it anyways?"
Zack paused- "You wouldn't understand it. It is really dangerous, and I don't want to take it out."
Sen looked at him pleadingly. "Please? It's not like I'll break it or anything."
Zack shook his head. "Sorry Sen."
Sen stuck out his bottom lip. "Fine." He grumbled, and stomped down the hall, hauling Denzel by his hand.
"Bye Klaus." The little boy mumbled as his brother took him back to their cabin.
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Zack ran a hand through his hair, sighing tiredly. The search had taken up most of the day, and it was getting dark outside, the sun sinking beneath the roiling sea, hiding until sunrise
when it would grace the skies once more.
He stuck the spare key into the lock, turning it quietly in case Cloud was asleep.
His eyes widened at the scene before him.
Cloud lay on the bed, twitching violently, pained groans escaping his lips. Flint was searching through the cupboards in the bathroom franticly, and a slight look of relief washed over his
face when Zack entered.
Zack ran over to Cloud, who had become rather pale and was shaking, his chest heaving and a sheen of cold sweat over his face.
Zack put a cool hand on his forehead, only to find it burning. Cloud gave several frightened moans, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head, his eyelids fluttering closed.
"Cloud, c'mon buddy, don't leave me." Zack murmured, tapping his friend's cheek.
He took the damp cloth that Flint offered and lay it over Cloud's burning forehead, carefully brushing away the spikes plastered to his forehead with sweat.
"What happened-" his eyes widened when he saw the blood that was beginning to darken Cloud's shirt.
He pulled it up, watching as the once white bandages were covered in crimson.
He balled up one of the bed sheets, holding it against Cloud's stomach where the bullet wounds had opened. "Keep pressure on it, I'll be as fast as I can." He muttered, passing his duty
to Flint who looked on, stunned.
He opened the first aid kit Flint had retrieved from the medicine cabinet, finding a clean syringe and running out of the room.
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Zack ran down to the engine room, the noise coming from the chugging machines deafening. He paused, looking around, running to a control panel with various gauges, all holding
different substances.
There were two small tubes, one, looking quite old, held a murky grey substance, fuel used before Mako energy had taken over, and one phosphorescent green, newer, which held mako
itself.
He carefully unscrewed the valve, holding the syringe under it and waiting until it filled. The machine gave a loud groan of protest as its fuel began to deplete. He managed to fill it half full,
assuring there was just enough for the ship to reach Midgar.
His heart thudded uncomfortably against his ribcage as he ran back up towards the cabin, bursting through the door and preparing the syringe.
Flint's eyes widened- "Zack-!
"Hold down his arms, and try to cover his mouth."
Zack growled, holding the syringe up to Cloud's inner elbow.
He bit his lip, wondering if this would be more painful for him or Cloud.
"I'm sorry Spike." He whispered, and shoved the syringe into his arm.
Cloud's eyes opened rapidly, and his scream pierced Zack's ears, reverberating through the walls. Flint held him down as he thrashed, moving more than he had in days, while Zack
removed the needle, horrified at what pain he'd just caused Cloud.
He carefully put his hands under Cloud's back, lifting him into a sitting position while the boy's screams subsided to pitiful whimpers. He rubbed Cloud's back soothingly, waiting until he'd
either fallen asleep or passed out from the agonizing pain, and gently lay him back on the bed.
"I'm so sorry Cloud." He mumbled, lifting up his friend's shirt to see that the bleeding had stopped.
"Z-Z. Nnn." Cloud mumbled.
"I know buddy, we're almost at Midgar."
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"Hey, Guido, you awake yet?"
Alex Guido slowly opened his eyes.
He could feel the gentle vibrations of the engine room below him, amplifying the throbbing pain that sat, mocking him, at the back of his head.
"W-what the hell happened?"
Jake Dawson, a good friend of his was sitting backwards on a chair, leaning forward to stare at Alex, "We were hoping you'd tell us."
Eyes adjusting to the dim light of the bunk room, he could make out the forms of various grunts that shared it with him, all waiting eagerly for his recollection of his accident in the cargo
hold of the Shiva.
Alex concentrated, deep in thought. The only problem was, when trying to recall the events that had led to his 'escapade', nothing came to mind, as if someone had wiped his slate clean.
"I- I can't remember a thing." He mumbled, earning disappointed faces from the men that surrounded him.
"All they said was that you went to the hold to find something, and they heard a crash and found you lying under a pile of skids." Jake said, watching Alex, as if willing him to remember.
He just shook his head and shrugged, not recalling anything of the sort.
Jake sat back, a pensive look consuming him.
"I'm sure you'll remember soon bud, and when you do, make sure I'm the first to know." He said smiling. The other grunts began to argue, first about who would be the first to know, then
who would be first in line in the cafeteria.
They don't stay on one topic very long do they?
Alex thought, resting his aching head back on his pillow and trying to remember.
Why was I in the cargo hold in the first place?
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Zack sat on the edge of Cloud's cot, wrapping his wounded torso in clean bandages and making sure they were properly disinfected.
"Why did he start bleeding? Those bullet wounds are days old, they wouldn't have opened that easily, he was lying still the entire time."
"When someone with a high mako tolerance has been submerged in a mako chamber to heal, they are exposed to poisoning or addiction, even with the high tolerance Cloud's body has.
If they get addicted, which in almost every case they do, their body needs to be weaned off slowly. If they are taken off too fast, the healing effects could reverse, stop, or result in blood
clot prevention, and will continue to bleed." He tied he bandage with a final knot and put Cloud's shirt back on.
"Luckily, the bleeding did stop. It should still be able to heal, but it will take some time. The mako I just gave him will slow the poisoning down until we get to Midgar."
He looked at Cloud with pained eyes.
"All we can do now is wait, and watch over him."
AH! Sorry it's so fast paced, but I've been so busy lately, relatives and old friends coming to visit, we had eight people staying at out house, plus the six that already live here. So yeah, fourteen people is a handful. Especially the hyperactive children... *Lucifer begins to rock back and forth, hugging knees*
Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, nuther one comin' up soon :) A big thanks to my reviewers!
Thanks for reading
~Lucifer~
PS I know the mako thing didn't make much sense, please do not kill me