DISCLAIMER: Nope, still don't own the characters of Final Fantasy VII. As I've probably said before, they're Squaresofts.. *Sigh* Now do I feel like hearing that again. _
AUTHOR'S NOTES: The next chapter will be the third and the last intermission in this story. However, that doesn't mean I'm finished writing this story, no no no, I've got a lot more fun coming up.. Well, find out what happened to Aeris and Sephiroth when they got captured!! Also, there's a tragic surprise, I'm not telling you anything else though!! ^_^
CHAPTER 24.
Let not thy divining heart
Forethink me any ill,
Destiny may take thy part,
And may thy fears fulfil;
But think that we
Are but turned aside to sleep;
They who one another keep
Alive, ne'er parted be.
- John Donne -
"Get in there!" Scarlet shoved Aeris into a cold, dark cell located in the outskirts of Shin-Ra's temporary base.
"What are you going to do with me? And where did you take Sephiroth?" Aeris asked the blond-haired woman, and rubbed her arm. The wound she thought had healed, looked red and swollen. Aeris figured the warm, moist air of the jungle had caused an infection to the cut.
"You really think I'd tell you!" Scarlet threw her head back and laughed at Aeris mockingly.
Aeris just bit her lip and stared at her. They wouldn't hurt Sephiroth, would they, she thought? Aeris knew she'd never forgive herself if something happened to him.. She held her eyes tightly closed, as a nearly impossible thought entered Aeris' mind. What if she'd never see Sephiroth again? What if they would kill him? "Don't you dare hurt Sephiroth, you.. you.." Aeris puffed, trying to think of something hurtful to say.
"Pitiful.." Scarlet leered at Aeris. "I honestly don't know what he sees in you.." There was such a loathing tune to Scarlets voice, Aeris felt really small.
"Are you just going to keep me locked up in here?" She asked quietly.
"Well.. While we have you, Sephiroth won't try anything.." Scarlet gave Aeris a look she couldn't quite read. Was it amusement.. or jealousy? "But when Hojo's finished with him, we'll have very little use for you.." She continued, and slammed the door to Aeris' cell shut. The heavy lock-mechanism clicked loudly, and Aeris could faintly hear the echo of Scarlet's high-heeled shoes, as she walked away.
"Finished.. with him?" Aeris swallowed hard. If only she hadn't left for that stupid Temple, she thought, as she went over the events one more time in her mind.
* * * * *
"Is that the Black Materia?" Aeris asked, and studied the strange look on Sephiroth's face.
"Yes.. Too bad we can't take it." Sephiroth snorted.
"Why?" Aeris blinked, surprised by his comment. Only a while ago he had been sure stealing the Black Materia would be the best course of action.
"Look here.." Sephiroth pointed towards the altar the materia orb was resting against. "If we take the materia, this whole place will crumble." His voice was thoughtful.
"Well.. Isn't that good news? Then nobody'll be able to get it.." Aeris smiled at him sheepishly, guessing there was a reason for Sephiroth's gloomy expression.
"Zenobius and Shin-Ra both have mindless followers who wouldn't mind sacrificing themselves for a 'greater good'.." Sephiroth smirked, and turned his back at the altar.
"..Great." Aeris sighed, and walked a small distance away to sit down on a smooth, polished table of stone. Her ankle was still aching a little, and Aeris wanted to give it a chance to rest. She turned her eyes at Sephiroth, who continued to study the murals on the walls. "You see anything you like..?" Aeris tilted her head and giggled, as Sephiroth turned his gaze back to her.
"Maybe.." He gave Aeris one of his rare, heartbreakingly sweet smiles.
"It's strange.. These are the basement floors, you know.." Aeris spoke, as Sephiroth walked to her with relaxed footfalls. "Normally I'd be frightened to be underground." She lifted her gaze to meet Sephiroth's eyes, and they stared at each other for long. "But with you.. I forget.." She mumbled, as she lost herself in that inviting glow of Mako in Sephiroth's eyes. "That there even exists a world outside this room.." Aeris whispered to him, noticing his lips draw into a weak smile. "It's like time stops, when you touch me.." She said shyly, and bowed her head down. She noticed Sephiroth remove his gloves, and he placed them next to her on the table.
"And that makes you sad..?" Sephiroth lifted her chin with his fingers, a lopsided grin on his lips.
"No.." Aeris smiled at him, and shook her head gently. She hadn't realized, how emotional she had sounded like. "It's just that.. when the plane crashed.. I.." Aeris tried to make sence of an unnamed emotion in her heart. "What if you had died..?" Aeris felt a tear roll down her cheek.
"But I didn't. I'm fine." Sephiroth seemed a little baffled by Aeris' emotional behaviour. He watched as she lifted her fingers to the small cut above Sephiroth's brow, that had already healed almost completely.
"Yeah.. I just.. can't bear the thought.." Aeris looked at Sephiroth while she spoke, a bitter sweet sound in her voice.
"Don't worry about me.. You've got enough problems already." Sephiroth snorted, and wiped away Aeris' tear with his thumb. He then allowed his hand to wander towards Aeris' hair, that was pulled back to a messy braid. Sephiroth enjoyed the feel of her hair tangling with his fingers, and basked in the warmth radiating from Aeris' skin. She truly was his sun..
"Sephiroth.." Aeris' voice was small and shallow, no more than a faint whisper but it still reached Sephiroth's ears effortlessly. He was so in tune with Aeris, he payed attention to even her every breath. "Promise me something.." She whispered, as she placed her hand on the back of Sephiroth's neck, and gently pulled him to her.
"What." Sephiroth asked, closing his eyes momentarily, as he felt Aeris' breathing against his lips.
"Never ever die." She said, her voice so deeply sorrowful, Sephiroth had a hard time believing what he had heard was real.
"Aeris.." Sephiroth sighed, as to say it was impossible to make such a promise.
"Shh.." Aeris hushed, her lips brushing against Sephiroth's. "Don't say it.." She said, and kissed him.
"You know, maybe I'm.. dead already.." Sephiroth took a deep breath, as he and Aeris closed in for a another kiss. "For this is exactly how I pictured heaven.." He told Aeris in a strange voice, as his hands slowly decenced on the sides of her body.
"I love you.." Aeris said, as she grabbed Sephiroth's left hand. She held his fingers, slowly lifting them to the upper buttons of her pink dress.
"I love you too.." Sephiroth answered, almost shakily.
Aeris couldn't help wondering, how a man as powerful as Sephiroth seemed so completely drained of all his strenght whenever she touched him. It flattered her, that it was so easy for her to break through his defences.
"Did you hear that..?" Sephiroth suddenly turned his head towards the direction from which he had heard the faint noise.
"It's probably a rat.. There won't be anyone in here for hours.." Aeris smiled, a look of adoration in her eyes.
"But what if it's Zenobius?" Sephiroth looked back at Aeris, as though waiting for her to give him orders.
"Sephiroth.." Aeris sighed, hoping that they wouldn't get interrupted again, now that they finally had a chance to spend some time together. "I'm sure the souls of cetra will warn me of any Jenova celled people entering this place." Aeris grinned, "Trust me, it's nothing.."
* * * * *
"Oh, what have I done.." Aeris spoke, staring at the walls miserably. She walked to the plain looking bed, that was bolted to the floor. The blankets were smelly and pillows hard and flat - yet Aeris curled up on the bed, crushing one of the pillows in her arms. This was so typical.. she thought. She was always the victim.. Aeris suddenly lifted her head, a determined look in her eyes. No, she wasn't having it anymore. She wouldn't lie here in the dark and cry, Aeris decided it was time she tried to actually do something about it. But what? Aeris glanced around the cell. It was a relatively large room for just one prisoner, about three metres wide and five metres long. At the southern wall, on the opposite side to the door, was a small barred window. She could hardly even look through it, and it was definately too small to crawl through, even if she somehow managed to remove the bars.
Aeris sighed, her situation looked hopeless. Next to the window, on the right, was a toilet and a small sink with a rusty tap. The air in the cell was stuffy, and breathing it gave her a little headache. She moved closer to the small window, but felt only a weak air current. That's when she noticed it. Part of the wall was crumbling on the left of the window, just behind the bed Aeris had just been sitting on. She noticed a cockroach pass through the small hole, and jumped back a little, disgusted by the insect. Yet as much as Aeris disliked cockroaches, she had never killed any.
Aeris kneeled down next to the hole, and peeked in bravely. She couldn't see any light shining through, and she wasn't sure was it a good or a bad thing. What if there would just be another cell on the other side, Aeris pondered? Would all her effort be futile, then? Still Aeris felt she owed it to Sephiroth to at least try and rescue him. After all, Aeris was all that Sephiroth had at the moment. The AVALANCHEr's had no idea where Aeris and Sephiroth were. Aeris felt like hitting herself, for not writing them a note, anything.. Now they were completely on their own. Aeris ran to the sink, and turned the water off from a lever. She then began trying to yank off the tap, figuring if would make a good tool to break through the concrete wall. Still, it took her a good while before the piece broke apart with a loud sound. Fortunately, none of the guards heard it.
Her heart pounding fast, Aeris moved to the hole. Quickly she tore a flap of the old blanket, and tied it around the metallic tube so that it would make less noise while she worked. Aeris then began to scrape against the wall, hitting it at times, nervously expecting a guard to come in any moment to punish her for her escape attempt. Yet nobody came, perhaps because nobody cared whether the prisoners lived or died. The guards were probably somewhere playing cards, Aeris mused, thanking her lucky stars. Little by little, the wall gave away as Aeris worked, the soft matter crumbling to the floor in bits.
* * * * *
"The rest of the Shin-Ra seem to be leaving.. Do you think they got what they came for?" Tifa asked Cloud.
"No.. Look at that guy in a white suit. He doesn't look very pleased.." Cloud commented, from behind tall weeds.
It was impossible for the SOLDIER's to see the hiding members of a resistance movement, because of all the jungle vegetation growing everywhere. Red was very thankful of their cover, since the bright colour of his fur made it very difficult for him to sneak up on anyone. And having a flame at the end of his tail wasn't much help either, Red thought.
"Should we go in? I think they've all left now." Tifa suggested, and crawled slowly towards the bridge that led to the Temple.
"Yeah.. they're gone now.. I hope." Cloud nodded, and stood up as soon as the SOLDIER's were out of sight.
They walked across the short bridge, and entered the courtyard of the Temple. "Wow, this really is a big building.." She said, and gave Cloud a nervous smile.
"Red.. Do you have any idea what's in there..?" Cloud turned his head at the third person in their company, hoping that he'd have some answers.
"Don't look at me.." Red shrugged, and walked closer to the entrance.
"So Cloud.. You think they'll be able to help Aeris and Sephiroth.. at all?" Tifa walked beside Cloud, feeling glad at the thought of them almost being alone. She was having a little difficulty talking about the things she really wanted to discuss though. Sometimes Tifa wished she was more like Aeris, who could flirt so openly and was always at a good mood.
"Well since Yuffie's with them.." Cloud gave Tifa a knowing look, and they smiled. "Would you really want to help Sephiroth..?" He asked after a moments silence.
"I know what you mean." Tifa snorted, blushing a little without really knowing the reason for her embarrasment. "He killed my father and you mother and he hurt me too.. But.." She tilted her head, and tried her best to avoid Cloud's eyes. "It just doesn't feel right anymore.." She smiled sheepishly, finally glancing at the blonde man.
"I know.." Cloud muttered, his voice a little unsure. "But I just can't help it.. I still.. hate him." He confessed. "And even if Sephiroth would transform into a saint.. I don't know if I can ever forgive him." He told Tifa, and she just nodded back at him in silent agreement.
It was easy for her to understand how Cloud felt. Tifa remembered, how she had felt when they had first discovered Sephiroth and Aeris together at the Shin-Ra headquarters. She had been so terrified by him.. But little by little, Tifa had begun to let go of the past. She no longer spent all of her days grieving for her father and the other villagers.. Shehad begun to forget about her hate towards Shin-Ra too.. She thought, it was all thanks to Cloud. As much as his presence reminded Tifa of that fateful day five years ago, he was also the thing that helped her forget.. Sometimes it was best to just look ahead, and not dwell on something that was in the past. Still, it seemed letting go of those memories was far more difficult for Cloud than for her.
"I wish Bugenhagen were here.." Red muttered, waking Tifa from her thoughts.
"Yes.. He could probably read all these writings." She smiled at the creature, who was walking towards a set of stairs that led below the floor. Cloud and Red discussed something as they walked, but Tifa fell deeper into her thoughts. She had been so glad Cloud had decided to continue in AVALANCHE, even if he had claimed it was only for money. She liked his company, Tifa felt they had much in common. Beside many childhood memories, they also shared many interests.. They were both strong willed and independent, but with kind hearts.. It was easy for Tifa to be with Cloud, she never felt like she had to pretend to be anything else than what she was.
After walking on some long, narrow hallways and passing many chambers, the threesome ended up into the main chamber of the Temple. At the far end of the room, was an altar on which someone had forgotten a shiny orb of materia. "Could that be the weapon Bugenhagen mentioned?" Tifa heard Cloud ask, and she forced herself to concentrate on the situation at hand.
"I wonder why the Shin-Ra didn't take it.. they couldn't have missed it." Cloud thought aloud.
"Maybe it's booby-trapped.." Tifa guessed.
"Could be.." Cloud said, and took a step closer to the crystal. It was of a dark colour, yet under it's hard surface energy seemed to flow like liquid. He reached his hand towards the materia, and poked at it, anxious to see what would happen. Cloud was shocked to notice the entire building shake violently, he feared it might come down on top of them. After a while however, the shaking calmed down, leaving the stunned AVALANCHEr's to recover from the shock.
"I guess now we know why that man looked so sour.." Tifa looked at Cloud, her breathing shallow and nervous from the adrenaline pumping in her veins. She had definately had her share of unpleasant surprises for today.
"..You're trying to take the Black Materia?" A nervous voice asked from behind the AVALANCHEr's. The three of them quickly turned around to meet the stranger.
"Cait Sith!" Cloud snarled at the strange creature, who just stared back at the others.
"You've got some nerve coming here!" Tifa told him, understanding Clouds anger towards the creature. The cat had betrayed their trust, and stolen the KeyStone. Even if Shin-Ra hadn't yet gotten the Materia, Cait Sith was still a spy of them and was not to be trusted.
"I'm sorry.." Cait Sith fidgeted, trying to sound as apologetic as possible. "I had no idea.." He then said, lowering his gaze to the ground. "I would have never given them the KeyStone, had I known why they needed it.." Cait Sith tried to explain, but Cloud silenced him with a wave of his hand.
"Don't bother. Why should we listen to anything you've got to say?" Cloud asked.
"Because.. You've got no choise, but to believe me.. I can prove it to you; I'll help you get that materia!" Cait Sith's voice was suddenly very enthusiastic.
"Yeah sure, so that you could hand it over to Shin-Ra!" Cloud said, itching to draw his sword and attack.
"No! Look, I know what I did was wrong! I was a fool to think Shin-Ra would make things better.. They only planned to cause more destruction. It will never end, unless you stop them!" Cait Sith spoke.
"..How do you know this? Who are you exactly?" Tifa asked him curiosly. Cait Sith seemed to know awfully a lot of Shin-Ra's affairs.. Maybe whoever it was that controlled that toy-body of Cait Sith's, worked for Shin-Ra.
"Does that matter?" Cait Sith grinned awkwardly.
"All this secrecy isn't exactly making it easier for us to trust you!" Tifa told him, and then glanced at Cloud. He was the leader, so it was really up to Cloud, whether they'd give the strange creature a second chance or not.
"OK.." He sighed. "Why not.. I guess we have nothing to lose. But I swear, if you cross us again.." The blond haired leader threatened.
"Yeah, I get it.." Cait Sith jumped excited. "You'd better get out of here then.. Things are going to get rough." He said then, and signaled for the others to head for the exit.
* * * * *
"So Cid, tell me.." Yuffie said, while walking at the front of their small group. "How old are you?" She glanced at the older man, who was lighting up another cigarette.
"30. Why the heck do ya ask a thing like that?" Cid muttered, and inhaled the smoke with a blissful look on his face.
"Man! You really need to quit smoking.." Yuffie laughed. She had thought Cid was way over 40 years old.
"I don't look that goddamn old!" Cid glared at the young ninja, who was clearly making fun of him.
"Would the two of ya shut yer mouths?" Barret snorted at Yuffie.
"Hmpf. Spoilsport." Yuffie muttered as she glanced up at Barret, her chocolate brown eyes filled with defiance.
"We ought to be thinkin' of a way to save those two from Shin-Ra." Barret spoke, staring towards a quite a large base, set up on the ruins of some town. He could count at least a dozen tents, and a few larger buildings. Shin-Ra had taken every even partially intact building into use. "I'm guessin' that's where they're keepin' Aeris and the General.." Barret pointed towards a large concrete building on the outskirts of the base.
"Oh great." Yuffie spoke, not seeming very concearned of the thought of having to sneak through a place crawling with SOLDIER's.
"I cannot see any more Barracuda's.. Luck seems to be on our side." Vincent spoke calmly, as his eyes scanned the base.
"I wouldn't say dat!" Barret snorted. "Look at all them SOLDIER's! Shin-Ra must really be up to sumthin.." He thought, glancing at the others in turn.
"Let's walk around the edge of the base, we'll be more difficult to detect midst the forest." Vincent suggested, and the others nodded at him.
"Good plan Vinny." Yuffie grinned, intentionally irritating him with the nickname she'd come up with. "And when we get to that building, I'm gonna knock the guards unconsious and you're gonna blow up the walls and.." She planned with a enthusiastic voice.
"Shut up, willya?" Barret glanced at the girl. "This ain't any easy operation! I've never tried to infiltrate a military base before.." He mumbled nervously.
"No wonder! It's fucking crazy! We're gonna get ourselves killed.." Cid finished his cigarette, and crushed it beneath his boot, not wanting it to spark the forest into flames.
"You're not gonna get anywhere with that kind of an attitude!" Yuffie shook her head, still seeming overly confident as always.
The four of them walked in silence, until they spotted the large airship Shin-Ra had used to get to the island. It had landed to a clearing, still hovering several meters above ground. Thick, tough looking ropes anchored it to the trees nearby. "Wow.. Whatta beaty." Cid admired at the large airship. It was the pride and joy of Shin-Ra's weapons department, and the airship was indeed of it's own class. Beside it being heavily armed, it was also fast even with it's considerably large cargo-hull. The ship was more like a flying fortress than an aeroplane.
"Shh, there's a guard coming." Barret whispered, and shoved the others behind a tree before he jumped behind a large boulder of a rock.
"Huh?" The guard turned his head in their direction, but kept walking back into the base after a while, figuring it had only been a monster making noise while hunting for food.
"Geez.." Yuffie sighed, and stepped out into the open. "Whatta moron. No wonder you've been able to fight them.." She told Barret, noticing his face turn a little red from anger.
"Hey, hey! Remember the mission kids!" Cid told the others and shook his head, while they circled behind the concrete building.
"I wonder who built these houses here in the first place?" Yuffie thought.
"Most likely this is an abandoned village.. Mideels residents have been forced to move the location of their hometown, since the Lifestream gushes to the surface at times." Vincent clarified. "I actually remember an incident where people had.. turned into some monster after falling into the Mako.. It wasn't long after that, that Shin-Ra begun their experiments on humans." He continued.
"Creepy.." Yuffie gave Vincent an odd look. "Like I needed to know that.." She muttered.
"So now what? If we blow up the wall, they'll hear us right away!" Barret seemed frustrated.
"Let's knock out the guard!" Yuffie repeated her suggestion.
"How exactly do you plan to do that, so that he'll not have enough time to sound the alarm?" Vincent asked, somewhat irritated by Yuffie's cocky behaviour.
"Well.. Why do I always have to come up with everything?" Yuffie heaved a sigh. "Seriously guys, I wonder how you ever managed without me.." She added thoughtfully, while trying to come up with a plan. Meanwhile, the others shared an amused look.
"Yeah, right.." Barret said under his breath. "I think about dat too.."
* * * * *
"Congratulations.. I guess." Cloud gulped, as he stared at the huge hole in the ground, in the place where the Temple had been only a moment ago. After they had exited the building, it had taken only a moment for it to begin crumbling. Some strange magic had caused the entire building to vanish, as though it had never been there.
"Don't mention it." Cait Sith waved his hand nonchalantly, and handed the Black Materia over to Cloud.
"Whoa!" Cloud gasped, as he felt some strange energy flow between himself and the crystal. The Materia glowed in his hands, pulsating weakly. Is it supposed to do that, Cloud asked in his thoughts, but quickly put the thought aside.
"I guess it was the right choise, to trust you I mean.." Tifa smiled at Cait Sith.
"Oh, thanks. I'm glad I was able to correct my mistake.." The creature's voice seemed sincere, but Cloud couldn't help still having some doubts about the biculiar creatures motives to help AVALANCHE. "We should go to the others, before they get into trouble.." He turned, as he suddenly felt pain tearing through his mind, blurring his vision.
"Cloud, what is it?" Tifa rushed to his side, a deeply concearned look in her eyes.
"Urgh.. the pain.. I.. can't.." Cloud muttered, as he held his hands on his temples, trying to battle against a strange feeling. It was like he was falling deep into himself, into an endless black night further and further away from Tifa. "Cloud!" He heard Tifa scream, but no matter how hard Cloud tried, he couldn't answer her.
"What's wrong with him?" Cait Sith turned to Red, a surprised tune to his voice.
"..I don't know.." Red answered, his eyes locked to Cloud, who was faltering towards the gate of the Temple.
Behind it, a familiar figure emerged. "Why hello.." Zenobius sneered. "May I have that?" He extended the palm of his hand, and in horror the others watched as Cloud placed the Black Materia onto it.
"No! Cloud please!" Tifa pleaded him, but to her shock Cloud just drew his sword and faced her. "Oh Cloud, what are you doing!" She raised her voice, desperately trying to break trough the glazed over look in Cloud's eyes. It was like he was no longer in his body at all, like Cloud had been turned into a mere zombie or a puppet.. controlled by something evil.
"You're doing this to him, aren't you! Stop it!" Tifa shouted at Zenobius, but he just laughed in reply, his eyes concentrated on the black orb of Materia.
"Oh, it's quite the black pearl you described, Jenova.." Zenobius said, speaking to the alien even though she was nowhere to be seen.
Red guessed though, that she still heard him, and would quite possibly reply. "As for these pathetic losers.." Zenobius lifted his gaze, as Cloud walked closer to the others with his sword in fighting stance. "Prepare to be annihilated.." Zenobius laughed. "And this time, that cowardly General won't be here to save your lives.."
* * * * *
"You're expected in the lab.. Sir." A SOLDIER saluted Sephiroth, even though he was a prisoner.
"Better take me there, then.." Sephiroth sighed, irritated by the fact the Shin-Ra had taken his sword. He wouldn't try to attack the Shin-Ra anyway, for he knew the SOLDIER's would hurt Aeris as revenge.
"It's this way." The male SOLDIER said, walking ahead of Sephiroth, nervously glancing behind his shoulder at times.
Sephiroth on the other hand, kept his eyes to the floor, noticing the curious looks the people gave him as he exited the lobby of the temporary prison Shin-Ra had set up to a crumbling, old concrete building. Up on the ceiling, one of the neon lights flickered on and off. Sephiroth passed a long row of them, as he followed the SOLDIER deep underground, down a set of stairs that circled downwards. Sephiroth kept staring at the neon lamps as he walked, suddenly feeling like a small boy again. He remembered the long walks on the sterile hallways that led to from the specimen containment facilities to Professor Hojo's labs. He still recalled clearly the grey, unpainted concrete. He had held his fingers agaist it's rugged surface, as he was escorted to Hojo. The surface of it had chafed against Sephiroth's fingertips, sometimes painfully yet he couldn't stop himself.. The pain had kept his mind off of everything, especially fear..
"Through here, Sir." The SOLDIER announced.
Sephiroth blinked, pushing away the disturbing memories. He gave the SOLDIER an indifferent look, and entered the room behind heavy metallic doors. The room was a familiar looking laboratory. Computer screens shone in the dim lighting, and tall tanks of Mako eluminated a corner of the room with their ghostly radiance.
"Sephiroth.. It's been a while." Hojo spoke from an examination table, causing Sephiroth to shudder. There was something so painfully familiar in this situation.. Sephiroth had thought he'd never have to go through this again, but like all those times before; he had been wrong.
"Not long enough." Sephiroth answered calmly, his voice emotionless and cold. Hojo sneered at Sephiroth, then sat down on a black office chair.
"Don't worry.. I doubt it'll take much longer.. Soon it will all be over, you just wait and see.." Hojo spoke, and pointed towards the metallic examination table. Sephiroth reluctantly moved closer to it, staring at the black leather belts rested on top of the table.
"A little frightened?" Hojo laughed mockingly.
"No, ..father.." Sephiroth answered bluntly, glaring at Hojo.
"Hmm?" Hojo was silent a while. "So you've finally found out then.." His lips drew into a malicious smile. "I hope you won't bore me with asking why." He chuckled. "For the reason is.. I hated you.." He said then, continuing to smile. "I hated you from the moment Lucresia told me she was pregnant.." Hojo kept speaking, while Sephiroth turned his head away from the Professor, who was dressed in a long white labcoat.
"And don't tell me you ever expected anything else.. There was never even an ounce of innocence in you.." Hojo's voice was suddenly so bitter and resentful, Sephiroth expected the Professor to beat him up again, just like he had done when Sephiroth had been a child. "You're just like her!" Hojo spat at Sephiroth. "You deserved everything that was done to you.." The tune of Hojo's voice suddenly changed, as he concentrated to his work again.
"Now. You know what to do.. Remember we have your little girlfriend.." Hojo gave Sephiroth a spiteful look as the silver-haired man walked closer to the examination table, slowly removing his black coat and shoulder pads. He placed them on a chair nearby, turning his eyes at Hojo again.
"See you in hell then.." Sephiroth said with a cold voice, as Hojo fastened the belts that tied Sephiroth snuggly against the cold metallic surface of the table.
"Yes.. Why not." Hojo leered, as he grabbed a syringe filled with powerful anaesthetic. He injected the liquid into Sephiroth's veins, and watched as his body turned limp as he drifted into sleep. "Shouldn't take long.." Hojo muttered, and went through his instruments, eager to finish his studies on Sephiroth. Now that Zenobius was with Jenova and would find the Promised Land, there was little use for Sephiroth.. However, Hojo still needed some cell sample's of him, to fix some problems with the Jenova celled clones. But after that.. There was nothing to stop Hojo from creating new species and better SOLDIERs. He was certain, that he'd be able to create stronger beings than Sephiroth; it was only a matter of time.
Sephiroth was clearly a failure, Hojo snorted. He had hoped the boy would at least turn out to be strong thanks to the Jenova cells, but instead he had surrendered to Shin-Ra like some pathetic wimp! Hojo felt so angry. He had wasted years of his precious time, working on him.. It frustrated Hojo, that after everything that he had done to turn Sephiroth into a superior being, he had grown up to be just like Hojo had feared from the beginning. Lucresia had died for nothing..
I know, I know.. I hate being cruel to Seph too. ;_; He so deserves a few happy-go-lucky scenes. I hope I've done a few already? Well, this turned out to be a relatively short chapter, sorry for that. But hey, a cliffhanger again!!! And guess what, the next chapter is an intermission! It's a dream of Sephiroth's.. The actual story won't continue until after that. Am I evil or what?? ^_^