Chapter 18 – Abduction
Sephiroth had to fight to hold onto his calm. It was taking them longer to get to the apartment than he wanted, but they had to be careful and ensure they didn't run into any problems on the way given what had happened. By the time they made it back to the building, Sephiroth was both aggravated and appreciative to see a couple of company vehicles blocking the gate so that none could enter or leave.
He ignored the looks he was getting from the other residents of the apartment as he walked through the barricade. He barely even acknowledged the salutes from the few Soldiers that were on hand. It didn't take him long to find Angeal already in the apartment and helping Zack from the floor.
The Second looked up when Sephiroth entered and frowned. "I couldn't hold them all off. Several of them crashed through the door, and then more came through the windows. I tried, but-"
When he cut off, Sephiroth shook his head. "Do not blame yourself." He then turned to Angeal. "Where is Clarissa?"
The Commander stood with a sigh as he caught Sephiroth's eye. He tried to keep his worry from his voice when he answered. "She was already gone when I arrived. Zack was out cold. It looks like she was able to partially heal him, but there is no sign of her or the Ravens that attacked."
He hadn't even finished speaking before the three boys walked around Sephiroth to look through the apartment. The General closed his eyes for a moment as he thought about how Genesis would take the news. He nearly groaned when he realized it might be a good idea for them to head him off before he got to the city. He had no doubt that something was going to be destroyed as soon as his temperamental friend found out that his wife had most likely been kidnapped by Avalanche.
It was then that he felt the rage and pain from the boys and realized that Genesis wasn't the only one that was angry she was missing. He ran a hand down his face before he walked into the other room to make sure the three boys didn't try to take matters into their own hands.
They had already walked around the kitchen and were in the bedroom. He caught them eying the window and spoke before they could act on their thoughts. "Don't think we will not be looking for her. I'll make sure you are kept up to date on anything we find out."
They all looked at him with frowns, but he knelt and continued before they could respond. "Don't forget that she is my sister too."
That finally seemed to do the trick. Loz started crying again. It was a testament to how distressed the boys were that Yazoo gave his brother a comforting pat instead of saying anything. At least they all followed Sephiroth back into the living room where Angeal and Zack were still waiting.
The Commander had stood to go call in the Soldiers now that Sephiroth was there, but the General held up a hand and pulled out his phone again. It didn't take him long to dial a number. The voice on the other end didn't even register tiredness when he answered. "What can I do for you in the middle of the night, General."
Sephiroth saw no point in beating around the bush, so he got right to point. "Veld, I need you to send your best trackers to the apartments on Loveless Ave. Clarissa has been taken, and we have reason to believe it was Avalanche."
There was a loud string of curses that had Sephiroth holding the phone away from his ear. Thankfully it didn't last long, and he could hear Veld moving on the other end. "I'll be there with my men in less than half an hour." Nothing else was said before the line went dead.
Sephiroth put his phone back and turned to face the others. It took all he had to bury his worry so the boys wouldn't catch it as he spoke to Angeal. "The Turks will have someone here shortly. In the meantime, let's see what we can figure out."
Zack was already on his feet with a frown as he saluted. "I'll do whatever it takes."
Sephiroth could tell the boy was still blaming himself no matter what they said. He gave him a reassuring pat as he walked by, and his voice was pitched so that it didn't carry. "We'll get her back. Don't worry." After that, the three Soldiers split up to see if there were any clues left behind.
It was twenty minutes later that Veld walked into the apartment with Reno in tow. The Director didn't waste any time as soon as he saw Sephiroth. "You said you have reason to believe Avalanche took her? Why?"
Sephiroth sighed as he pointed to where Zack was still sitting dejectedly at the kitchen table. "Soldier Fair was attacked by more than a dozen Ravens at once. He said he was able to hold them off for a short time, but he was severely injured. The boys all stated they saw the men that attacked as well and corroborate his description of the attackers."
Veld sighed. He had hoped there was a mistake, but he had to admit the General had probably been correct. He ran his hand down his face before he faced Sephiroth again. "I doubt you have been idle. Did you find anything?"
Veld tried not to grimace when he saw the General's jaw clench. If it was bad enough for him to show a reaction, then Veld wasn't looking forward to hearing it. His hypothesis was proven correct when Sephiroth answered. "We were able to determine that the attackers rappelled down from the roof before they entered through the kitchen and living room windows as well as the front door. There are no signs that they left via the stairs, so we believe they must have gone back up to the roof when they achieved what they came for."
The Turk Director swallowed a curse as he pulled his phone out. It was a matter of seconds before he reached the men he had outside still. "We think they left by air. Leave a man to make sure there are no signs on the ground. The rest head up to the roof to see if anything was left behind."
He hung up as soon as he received confirmation. He then turned his glare back to Sephiroth. "Anything else?"
The General sighed as he shook his head. "Angeal and Zack questioned everyone in the adjoining apartments. There were also a few others that were woken by the noise. They all say pretty much the same thing. They were woken by yelling and the sounds of fighting. Most of them didn't bother coming out until they saw the Shinra vehicles. The couple that did both said they saw two helicopters headed south right after the noise subsided."
Whatever Veld's response to that had been was forgotten when he caught sight of the three boys peeking around the corner. He had heard about them, of course. It was hard not to hear all the speculation about the General and his 'family.' Even so, he had not yet seen them. It was shocking just how much they all looked like Sephiroth.
When Sephiroth looked back to see what had snagged Veld's attention, he sighed once again. He then shook his head as he turned back to the Director. "I need to get them back to Headquarters. I also need to let Genesis know. I would rather he get his reaction out of his system before they make it to the city."
Reno finally spoke up for the first time. He let out a low whistle as he shook his head. "You sure ya wanna do that? I know ya may not like Rufus, but ya can't want him dead, right?"
Veld could already feel a headache coming on, and that reminder didn't help. He shot the boys one more curious look before he shook his head and looked over at Sephiroth. "I know it would be worse if you waited. For tonight, why don't you let my men finish this? You take them back and let me know if they can remember anything else."
He then paused and lowered his voice. "If the Ravens left by helicopter, our options are limited. I will send a team into the wastelands, but once they were out of sight, they could have gone anywhere."
Sephiroth's jaw clenched once again, but he managed a nod. He didn't bother lowering his voice as well, as he knew the boys heard it all anyway. "I know. I will clear it with Director Lazard, but we will likely be sending out search parties as well once we can organize. Let me know what you find, and we can coordinate. I will not be sleeping again tonight."
Veld grimaced at the subtle reminder that the three boys were more than what they seemed. He still gave the General a nod before the man walked out with the boys in tow. He almost smiled at their determined eyes. If it wasn't such a dire situation, he probably would have. He just hoped they found the missing Soldier before things got out of hand. From what he had been told, those boys didn't need any more pain. He finally let those thoughts go and focused on the investigation as he watched Commander Hewely and Soldier Fair leave as well.
Clarissa groaned as she came to. Her head was still foggy and felt like it was going to split in two. She had to fight to open her eyes. When she finally managed to, she was greeted by the sight of the last person she ever wanted to see again. Fuhito was standing above her and looking down with curiosity. She tried to curse, but nothing more than another groan came out.
At her noise, he placed a hand firmly on her shoulder. Not that she could have moved anyway. His voice was sickly sweet when he finally smiled and spoke to her. "I see that it was no exaggeration that the enhancements of a First are far more than those of the other classes. I will have to adjust your medicine accordingly. Don't worry, I will give you my word that we will be taking good care of you."
Clarissa managed to shrug his hand off her shoulder as she gave him a glare. She was finally able to form words, even though they still slurred somewhat. "You are dead."
He raised a brow and leaned over with a smirk. "Oh, I don't think so. We have so many plans that you are central to." He then stood and pushed a button on a machine Clarissa hadn't noticed before. She immediately felt the cold rush into her arm, where she saw several tubes hooked up. Her attention was snagged from that when he spoke again. "I look forward to working with you."
Clarissa tried to snarl at him, but it came out more like a weak mewl as the drugs had already started to take effect. She fought to keep her eyes open, but it was a lost cause. She was so far gone that she didn't even consciously notice the moment she slipped into darkness once more.
It was some time in the middle of the night when Genesis woke with a start. He looked around to see if there was any sign of danger, but after a moment, he realized the rest of the camp still seemed to be asleep. That didn't keep the feeling of foreboding from settling in. He padded across to the entrance of his tent and stuck his head out to look around. It didn't take long to see that things appeared peaceful. Still, he knew he wasn't getting back to sleep.
He decided to investigate further, so he grabbed his boots. He had barely finished lacing them when his phone rang. Immediately he felt his heart in his throat. It was made worse when he picked it up and saw who was calling. His voice was cold when he answered. "For your sake, I hope you aren't calling in the middle of the night to give me bad news."
He heard a sigh on the other end before Sephiroth spoke in a tired voice. "I wish I could tell you that you're wrong." There was a slight pause before he continued. "Genesis, we have reason to believe that Clarissa has been kidnapped by Avalanche."
Genesis froze for several moments while his brain tried to process what was just said. When he finally spoke again, he barely managed to keep a leash on his temper. "Please tell me you did not just say that my wife is missing. Surely she was with your clones, and they were all under guard."
Sephiroth rubbed his temple. He didn't often get headaches, but times like these brought them on. Still, he managed to keep his voice even. "Yes, she was. However, when she saved the boys, it put her in a position to become overwhelmed. We already have a team of people trying to determine which way they went, and we are working on setting up several teams to try and figure out where they may have taken her."
It was barely more than a few seconds later that Sephiroth heard a crashing noise that made him wince right before the line went dead. He sighed as he realized he hadn't had a chance to tell Genesis everything, and he had a feeling he would not be able to reach the man if he called back. That crash was rather distinctive. Instead, he picked up the phone and dialed another number.
Veld did not sound pleased when he picked up. "I don't have any updates yet. There was no evidence left on the roof either, so we will be polling our network to find any information."
Sephiroth managed to keep his voice calm when he responded. "Thank you for that update, but that wasn't why I called. I thought it would be best for you to reach out to your man with the President. Genesis took the news about as well as expected. If he has not already woken the others, they need to be warned."
Veld made a disgusted noise before he could think better. He then cleared his throat and answered. "I will let them know. If anything changes, you will be the first I contact."
"Good. I have already gathered three teams to track down any information you find. As soon as you give the word, they can deploy."
"Understood." That was the last thing said as the men hung up.
Genesis was standing in the middle of his tent and trying to calm his heaving breaths. He was fixated on his shattered phone, where it was lying on the ground near the entrance. It took all he had not to light everything on fire as he tried to calm himself so he could think. Now wasn't the time to lose his mind.
After several minutes, he finally managed to calm his breathing enough that he was able to think straight. He already realized that if Ravens had taken her, then Sephiroth had been correct that Avalanche was involved. Just the thought of Hollander and Fuhito with Clarissa in their grasp was enough to have flames at his fingertips once more. He forcefully banished that image as he grabbed his gloves and duster.
A part of his mind realized that his anger was a way to deal with the pain. He was well acquainted with the things that Hollander was willing to do to get results, and he had a feeling Fuhito would be worse. The idea of his wife being subjected to any of that caused a rift inside that left him reeling. He couldn't focus on it, or he would be useless.
Once he was dressed, he headed straight for the tent that held both Rufus and Tseng. He didn't bother announcing himself before he entered. There was a light on anyway, so he was not shocked to see Tseng turn to him with a frown as he hung up the phone.
The Turk didn't give him a chance to say anything before he spoke up. "That was Director Veld. I have already been apprised of the situation."
Genesis clenched his jaw to keep from snapping out. That didn't mean his voice wasn't still hard when he answered. "Good. Then there will be no question when I take half the troops and one of the trucks. If we leave now, I can be there in less than twenty-four hours."
Rufus was already up by that point as well. He looked between the two men with a frown before he spoke to Tseng. "Given the Commander's reaction, I can guess that something has happened to Lieutenant-Commander Rhapsodos, correct?"
Tseng gave him a sharp nod before he explained. "Yes. It appears as though she has been kidnapped by Avalanche. The three boys we found in Wutai were able to escape, but her actions to keep the attackers away led to her being taken."
Rufus only deliberated for a moment before he nodded. "It will not be good for any of us if they are allowed to hold her for an extended amount of time. Given her unique circumstances, it could prove problematic for us."
Rufus then ran a hand through his tousled hair to right it as he gave his orders. "Gather the men and have them break down camp. Commander Rhapsodos is correct. If we have the men alternate driving duties, then we can be there sooner than expected. Hopefully, by then, we will have a lead and can send out a retrieval force."
Genesis was still fuming and could not stand around and wait for them to be finished. He didn't even say anything before he turned and exited the tent. He was already barking orders to the men that were on guard. The rest of the camp was roused within minutes.
Genesis thought about taking one of the trucks and leaving anyway, but once he saw how fast the men were moving and the fact that a few of them seemed to be goading the rest to hurry mollified him enough to wait. It wasn't long until they were all on the way to Midgar.
Once the trucks were moving, Genesis raised a prayer to Minerva to keep his wife safe. He knew the Goddess had sworn off any direct influence once they destroyed Jenova, but he hoped she meant her promise to watch over them all. He prayed it would be enough.
A/N: I know things are tense, and they won't be getting better right away, but the last showdown is looming. We still have several chapters to go, so we aren't quite to the end. I hope you are all looking forward to it. Also, I don't usually like to be that author that asks for reviews, but I am dying to know what you all think of the twist so far. Any and all feedback is appreciated! Oh, one more thing. To my guest reviewer that asked about the DoC fic, I really appreciate your confidence that I would do a good job, but I will admit that if I tried, it would probably be awful. That is something that I just don't have the heart to complete, so I wouldn't be able to do it justice. Plus, I have more than a dozen active stories right now, and several more that I have plans for but won't start until I have more time. I know it is a great idea, but I don't think I'll be the person to do it. At least not for a very long time. Otherwise, thank you all for reading, and cheers!