Chapter IXX: In The Shadow If A Killer.
Seph X, the mechanical clone of Sephiroth, was happy. From the point he had been revived he had thought that there was no hope of anyone he knew to survive. And then Cloud was there. A rude entry, he had to admit, but no less nice. Finally his memories were coming into effect. He remembered Cloud as a war-buddy. The machine smiled.
"Cloud?!"
Cloud, who was panting on the ground, managed to sputter something out. Seph-X took it as a yes.
At last! A familiar face!
The big man at the entrance reacted.
"EY!" He yelled. "Taste some of dis!"
Seph X watched as the man lifted an arm, that was apparently a gun too, a shot.
He felt the impact, but not the pain that the man was expecting.
"Sorry to disappoint you." He said apologetically.
"You bastard!" The woman said.
She rushed up and tried to punch at Seph X. His metal hand pushed the punch away, jumped quickly to avoid a kick. She swiped at head height. Seph X ducked under her hand. She kneed him right in the chin, which made his head hurt. Then she backed away. Seph X stood in disbelief. A HUMAN caused him pain?!
Then he fumed.
He unsheathed the Masamune and dropped it at his side. Then he charged Tifa. She didn't stand a chance. The robot seemed to be everywhere at once, exploiting every opening he saw. His metal fist smashed into her stomach. She flew from where she stood and slammed into the wall.
"Holy shit!" Reeve swore as he saw the spectacle. Seph-X ignored him.
He helped Cloud onto his feet.
"Who ARE those people you hang out with?"
Cloud looked at him dazedly.
"My wife, Tifa." He said, pointing at the woman who was now panting for breath. Seph-X raised an eyebrow.
"And him?" He asked, gesturing to the big man, who was obviously still wondering what was wrong with his weapon.
"That's Barr-" He stopped. He pulled away from Seph X abruptly. "I'll kill you!" He yelled, grabbing at his huge sword.
Seph X sighed. He picked up the Masamune and went into stance.
Cloud began a relentless attack. Seph X easily reflected blows with his own sword, with a bored look stamped on his face. Fighting with humans was like using a large mallet to squash a fly with him.
"Fire 3!" Cloud shouted.
Fire circled around Seph X. He watched it calmly, then watched the horrified look on Clouds face he walked equally calm through the fire, raising the Masamune to deal his first and finishing blow. Cloud raised his sword to deflect the blow, but wasn't fast enough. He watched as the Masamune stopped right before his forehead.
"You lose." Seph X said coldly.
He pulled the Masamune away and sheathed it.
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"Huh?" Was all the Cloud could say.
The thing that looked like Sephiroth didn't bother to look back at him. It merely turned to Reeve.
"Explain." It said. Reeve nodded.
Reeve walked up to Tifa and offered her a hand. She took it gratefully.
"He is not Sephiroth." Reeve said simply.
"Huh?" Cloud said again.
"He's a clone, or a failed one at least."
Seph X turned to add to this.
"I am the only successful one. I am what Sephiroth was before Jenova got the better of him. I am, normal."
Cloud thought this. What he came up with didn't quite rub him the right way. It consisted of putting Sephiroth and good in the same sentence.
"Your sure?"
Seph X turned away.
Then he spoke.
"Do you know what its like to be hated without a reason? To be hated for something you never did? I was created a year after the real Sephiroth was killed in Nibelheim. I am not him. I am me. I am Seph-X. Are you Zack?"
Cloud looked dumbfounded. "Err, no."
"Am I Sephiroth?"
Cloud knew he had been trapped in the logic that could only come from a machine.
"No."
"Am I evil?"
Cloud brightened up.
"Maybe."
Seph X sighed.
"What do you remember of Sephiroth before his fall into insanity?"
Cloud knew this answer.
"My memories of Sephiroth are false."
"So are mine." He sneered.
Oh. He thought. He got me there.
He got me good.
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In the shadowy cape of the night, the glittering figure crawled through the snow. It crawled through the gates of Midgar, silently killing the guard that stood there. It came for power to kill with, and power it would have. His army awaited.
He crawled across he streets the streets of Midgar, taking care to kill anyone that saw him silently. Hojo would be right about him. He could destroy the world yet.
It popped open a sewer lid and slid in. When inside the sewers he flapped his wings to keep himself elevated.
The army awaited him. He would rule. He would rule an empire of steel and evil. And they would cower. He would be the only god left in the skies, and they would cower before his might.
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Rude watched Reno fidget in his infirmary bed. He was having a nightmare. Rude watched in horror as his colleague writhed in pain. Then his eyes snapped open.
Rude gasped.
Elena, who was standing on the other side of the bed, held her hand across her mouth.
The eyes of Reno stared back at them.
They were inky black, reflecting the light.
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Many things coursed threw the mind of Jared Rath. One of which was the seemingly indestructible master he had newly acquired.
But the other was the nagging feeling that there was something following him. It was a feeling he had never feared before, but now it made him want to run away.
He looked around the room.
Nothing.
Odd.
He discarded these thoughts and went back to the window. Mech-Head was bound to come back, and there needed to be someone who could face him. Seph X would, and he would destroy Mech-Head.
But the disturbing question still lingered on his mind. Why was Mech-Head here?
Seph X, the mechanical clone of Sephiroth, was happy. From the point he had been revived he had thought that there was no hope of anyone he knew to survive. And then Cloud was there. A rude entry, he had to admit, but no less nice. Finally his memories were coming into effect. He remembered Cloud as a war-buddy. The machine smiled.
"Cloud?!"
Cloud, who was panting on the ground, managed to sputter something out. Seph-X took it as a yes.
At last! A familiar face!
The big man at the entrance reacted.
"EY!" He yelled. "Taste some of dis!"
Seph X watched as the man lifted an arm, that was apparently a gun too, a shot.
He felt the impact, but not the pain that the man was expecting.
"Sorry to disappoint you." He said apologetically.
"You bastard!" The woman said.
She rushed up and tried to punch at Seph X. His metal hand pushed the punch away, jumped quickly to avoid a kick. She swiped at head height. Seph X ducked under her hand. She kneed him right in the chin, which made his head hurt. Then she backed away. Seph X stood in disbelief. A HUMAN caused him pain?!
Then he fumed.
He unsheathed the Masamune and dropped it at his side. Then he charged Tifa. She didn't stand a chance. The robot seemed to be everywhere at once, exploiting every opening he saw. His metal fist smashed into her stomach. She flew from where she stood and slammed into the wall.
"Holy shit!" Reeve swore as he saw the spectacle. Seph-X ignored him.
He helped Cloud onto his feet.
"Who ARE those people you hang out with?"
Cloud looked at him dazedly.
"My wife, Tifa." He said, pointing at the woman who was now panting for breath. Seph-X raised an eyebrow.
"And him?" He asked, gesturing to the big man, who was obviously still wondering what was wrong with his weapon.
"That's Barr-" He stopped. He pulled away from Seph X abruptly. "I'll kill you!" He yelled, grabbing at his huge sword.
Seph X sighed. He picked up the Masamune and went into stance.
Cloud began a relentless attack. Seph X easily reflected blows with his own sword, with a bored look stamped on his face. Fighting with humans was like using a large mallet to squash a fly with him.
"Fire 3!" Cloud shouted.
Fire circled around Seph X. He watched it calmly, then watched the horrified look on Clouds face he walked equally calm through the fire, raising the Masamune to deal his first and finishing blow. Cloud raised his sword to deflect the blow, but wasn't fast enough. He watched as the Masamune stopped right before his forehead.
"You lose." Seph X said coldly.
He pulled the Masamune away and sheathed it.
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
"Huh?" Was all the Cloud could say.
The thing that looked like Sephiroth didn't bother to look back at him. It merely turned to Reeve.
"Explain." It said. Reeve nodded.
Reeve walked up to Tifa and offered her a hand. She took it gratefully.
"He is not Sephiroth." Reeve said simply.
"Huh?" Cloud said again.
"He's a clone, or a failed one at least."
Seph X turned to add to this.
"I am the only successful one. I am what Sephiroth was before Jenova got the better of him. I am, normal."
Cloud thought this. What he came up with didn't quite rub him the right way. It consisted of putting Sephiroth and good in the same sentence.
"Your sure?"
Seph X turned away.
Then he spoke.
"Do you know what its like to be hated without a reason? To be hated for something you never did? I was created a year after the real Sephiroth was killed in Nibelheim. I am not him. I am me. I am Seph-X. Are you Zack?"
Cloud looked dumbfounded. "Err, no."
"Am I Sephiroth?"
Cloud knew he had been trapped in the logic that could only come from a machine.
"No."
"Am I evil?"
Cloud brightened up.
"Maybe."
Seph X sighed.
"What do you remember of Sephiroth before his fall into insanity?"
Cloud knew this answer.
"My memories of Sephiroth are false."
"So are mine." He sneered.
Oh. He thought. He got me there.
He got me good.
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
In the shadowy cape of the night, the glittering figure crawled through the snow. It crawled through the gates of Midgar, silently killing the guard that stood there. It came for power to kill with, and power it would have. His army awaited.
He crawled across he streets the streets of Midgar, taking care to kill anyone that saw him silently. Hojo would be right about him. He could destroy the world yet.
It popped open a sewer lid and slid in. When inside the sewers he flapped his wings to keep himself elevated.
The army awaited him. He would rule. He would rule an empire of steel and evil. And they would cower. He would be the only god left in the skies, and they would cower before his might.
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
Rude watched Reno fidget in his infirmary bed. He was having a nightmare. Rude watched in horror as his colleague writhed in pain. Then his eyes snapped open.
Rude gasped.
Elena, who was standing on the other side of the bed, held her hand across her mouth.
The eyes of Reno stared back at them.
They were inky black, reflecting the light.
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
Many things coursed threw the mind of Jared Rath. One of which was the seemingly indestructible master he had newly acquired.
But the other was the nagging feeling that there was something following him. It was a feeling he had never feared before, but now it made him want to run away.
He looked around the room.
Nothing.
Odd.
He discarded these thoughts and went back to the window. Mech-Head was bound to come back, and there needed to be someone who could face him. Seph X would, and he would destroy Mech-Head.
But the disturbing question still lingered on his mind. Why was Mech-Head here?