All That's Evil
By Semdai
Disclaimer: Ok, I do not own any of the people or places from Final Fantasy VII, but the people and places in this story that aren't in the game are my own creations so please don't steal them. And with that, the story begins...
Prologue
Not long after the incident at Nibelhiem in which Sephiroth was defeated by the soldier, Cloud, and four years before the birth of the rebel group who called themselves Avalanche...
A young man sat shuffling papers at his desk, constantly brushing his blonde-orange hair out of his dark, mako colored eyes. He leaned back in his chair and ran a gloved hand through his hair when there was a knock at his door.
" What," he snapped.
" Sir? " A soldier stuck his head into the room. " There's someone here to see you."
" Who is it," he asked putting his feet up on the desk, " If it's my old man then tell him to beat it."
"It's a woman, Sir," the soldier replied.
The young man's eyes lit up. " Show her in." The soldier saluted the young man before disappearing out the door. A few seconds later the door opened fully.
" Hello, Rufus," said the woman standing in the door. She had raven's hair, flecked with red streaks, that trailed across her pale face. She was dressed in tight, black, leather pants that were stitched up the sides and a midnight-colored, sleeveless sweater.
" Shivra," Rufus exclaimed, nearly falling out of his chair. He scrambled up from his desk and hurried to meet his girlfriend. Tears threatened Shivra's eye as she embraced him.
" I missed you, my love," she cried. Rufus held her closely. She felt soft and warm. His nose filled with her spicy scent as her strong body held him close and tight. It had been a long time since Rufus had last seen his disappearing lover, too long. He thought of the small black case in the bottom drawer of his desk. Something he'd been dying to ask since the night on the hill a month ago. Rufus finally let go of her, mentally cursing himself for being so nervous.
" There's something I need to ask you, Shivra," he struggled, not used to the over-beating of his heart as he retrieved the black box from it's hiding place. He handed the case to her after a moments hesitation. " I think the rest is self-explanatory," he fumbled. Shivra regarded him with a look of curiosity in her piercing green eyes. She gasped at the sight of the case's contents.
Inside was a gold ring shaped like a dragon with its wings folded down and the tail forming the band. A row of tiny diamonds ran along the dragon's back. One eye was made from a sapphire while the other was an emerald. A ruby tongue even protruded from the dragon's mouth, which was outfitted with pearls for teeth.
" Rufus... I..." Shivra was astounded, " I don't know what to say."
" Maybe your mouth doesn't," Rufus whispered, stroking her silky hair, " but what about your heart?"
" My heart says 'I am yours forever,'" Shivra sighed.
" That brings my heart joy, but I can't help but wonder why you came here in the first place," Rufus asked, " we both know my old man must not find you here."
" What I came here to tell you I couldn't risk writing," she murmured softly. Then she turned her blue-green eyes to his, "It's that important."
" What is that?" Unfortunately for both of them, Shivra was unable to tell Rufus what she needed to, for at that moment there was a pounding at the door.
" Rufus, open this door at once, I need a word with you," came a booming voice from the other side of the door.
" Shit," Rufus cursed, "quick, Shivra, hide." Shiva was rushed to the closet where she ducked inside and crouched down, hoping to hide in the darkness. She took the ring from its case and slipped it over her right ring finger. Only her husband to be could place it on her left hand.
Rufus went for the door. His father was there with several ShinRa guards behind him.
" What do you want, old man," Rufus growled. Normally, Rufus saw little of his father and even less time speaking with him, when he did it made his blood boil. The two had almost nothing in common, and what they did have alike was only in looks and name. Both had the same Mako eyes and blonde- orange hair, but that was all.
" I was informed of some rather unpleasant news just now," President ShinRa said coolly. Rufus felt his heart skip a beat, but didn't show it. " Search the room," his father commanded to the guards he had brought.
" What do you think you're doing," Rufus exclaimed.
" What's the matter, Rufus, do you have something to hide?" The old man was taunting him now, he knew all along that Rufus had a lover. It wasn't long before the soldiers found Shivra.
" Let go of me, you bastards," she protested, pivoting and kicking one in the face, " let me go!"
" What do you want with her, you son of a bitch," Rufus demanded, clenching his jaw. His father looked Shivra up and down skeptically.
" Maybe you are my boy after all, Rufus," he sneered, " you've got an eye for the hot bitches. What's this?" He seized Shivra's right arm and twisted it so he could see the ring on her finger.
" Keep your filthy hands off that," Shivra warned. Smirking, the president slipped the ring off her finger and examined it.
" Beautiful," he remarked, " where did you get it?"
" Up yours."
" You need to learn some respect for your elders," President ShinRa warned.
" I'll speak to you any way I damn well please, you jackass!"
" I will not be spoken to in that manner!" He struck her then across the face. Shivra began to giggle. A giggle that quickly escalated to a hysterical laugh.
" Sephiroth will come back you know," she laughed, " he doesn't like what you did to him so he's gonna make you pay. Can you imagine that sword of his running you through? I will relish the day when all your tampering comes back to get you." The rest of her words were lost in her wild laughter.
At that remark, President ShinRa's face turned slightly pale.
" Take her away! I'll deal with her later," he growled. Shivra continued to struggle even after the soldiers had beat her in an attempt to suppress her.
" What will you do to her," Rufus demanded savagely.
" I haven't decided," the president said bluntly.
" If you hurt her I'll see to it that you pay dearly for it," Rufus threatened, rage growing in his Mako poisoned eyes, "mark my words."
" Now, now," his father said calmly, " there's no need for that. She won't be harmed so long as she is valuable to us." A horrid thought came to Rufus's mind. His eyes widened fearfully.
" You wouldn't..." he stammered, " you wouldn't dare..."
" Oh would I," his father said slowly, too slowly, " we'll just have to see how much she is really worth." Then he left the room. Rufus fell to the floor in defeat. He pounded his fists against anything he could reach, swearing and cursing in rage until he was out of breath. Then he cried for the first time in his life since his mother had died when he was a small child.
* * * Shivra lay curled up on a cot in one of the holding cells. One arm stayed protectively around her belly. She hurt, but refused to show it, at least for her baby's sake if not her own. Suddenly, she heard talking outside the cell. She stayed still and listened. It was Rufus arguing with one of the guards. Several moments passed, and the door opened. Rufus entered the room. Shivra sat up slowly. Rufus felt his heart split in two at the sight of her. He held her close to him, she felt so cold. Shivra tried desperately not to cry, but found she couldn't help it.
" Are you okay, Shivra," Rufus asked.
" Not really," she sniffled, " my stomach feels really sore."
" I'm gonna try to get you out of here," he reassured.
" Rufus," Shivra whispered softly, " I'm pregnant." Rufus stared at her in disbelief. " It's a boy," she continued. They sat down on the cot together.
* * * " These are the results you asked for, Sir," a soldier presented, holding out an envelope.
" You may leave now," President ShinRa dismissed, talking the envelope. The soldier left with a salute. President ShinRa opened the envelope and examined the papers inside it. " Hojo will be pleased," he chuckled to himself.
* * * Rufus kicked the door to Hojo's lab open. He stormed into the room looking angry enough to kill a dragon with his bare hands. Several minor scientists looked up from their work to see Rufus grab Hojo's lab coat and slam him against a wall.
" What did my old man tell you to do with Shivra," he demanded. Hojo stared hard at Rufus through his dark glasses.
" I could show you, but I can't do that if I'm pinned against a wall," the scientist replied casually, making a gesture like a shrug. Rufus glared at Hojo, but let him go. Hojo straightened his coat and led Rufus to a room with a large glass holding cell. Rufus immediately recognized the figure sprawled on the floor of the cell. It was Shivra.
" What have you done to her," Rufus snarled.
" She is pregnant, as you should know, so we tested to see who the father is," Hojo explained, "we proved that you are the child's father. The president has decided that we will use the baby to create another, more powerful, Sephiroth." Rufus was too shocked to say anything. " Of course we'll have to make some slight adjustments, considering the condition of the original Sephiroth..."
Hojo continued, but Rufus heard none of it. He had his hands pressed against the glass cell. His thoughts twisted between horror and fury. They were going to use his son to make another Sephiroth, a more powerful one. And, just like Lucrecia, Shivra would probably end up dying. Unless... Rufus knew what had to be done, but he didn't want it to happen. It meant severing his last hope for happiness. Shivra had to either escape or die before their son was born.
* * * Shivra was woken again that night by Rufus arguing with the guard. The fight didn't last long. Rufus took Shivra in his arms the second he entered the room. Though he gasped when he saw the mako glow in her sea green eyes, he was glad she was safe for the moment. Shivra relayed to him everything that Hojo had said about the tests he had conducted on her.
" So he only injected you with half the amount of Jenova cells he gave Lucrecia," Rufus concluded after Shivra had finished. She nodded.
" Even that small amount did something to our baby," She added grimly.
" What did it do," Rufus asked fearfully.
" He's growing more quickly," she explained, " I feel him growing. He's not due for another seven or eight months, but I think the presence of these cells cut that time in half."
" You have to get out of here," Rufus stated, " if anything further happens to you or our son, I wont be able to live with myself."
" Listen to me, Rufus," Shivra started. Rufus stared into the ocean of color that was her eyes. " In order to escape, I will need these three things; my materia pouch, a chocobo, and your promise that you won't follow me." Rufus felt his heart splinter into a thousand bleeding shards.
" I can get you your materia and a chocobo without any resistance," he choked, " it's the third request that shatters my soul and wraps a sheet of steel around the fragments."
" It breaks both my heart, soul, and body to do this, but it's the only way to save our son," she cringed as if in great pain, " and any remaining hope we have of happiness."
" I can't be happy if something happens to you," Rufus sighed, " yet, I have no choice but to do as you ask." Shivra locked her arms around Rufus's body, crushing his ribs against her.
" You'll never truly lose me," she crooned softly. He held her tightly against him, savoring the last time he would hold her like this.
" There aren't enough ways for me to say that I love you," he sighed.
" You only need one," Shivra assured as she kissed him.
* * * Zack dragged Cloud alongside him as they made their way to Midgar. Cloud would groan every now and again, but, other than that, neither spoke. Suddenly, a bullet whizzed past Zack's head. He let go of Cloud, who slumped to the ground beside him, and drew his sword just another bullet caught him in the chest. He was thrown backwards by the force of the shot. He hit the ground hard on his back and lay still...
* * * Shivra reached inside the soft leather of her boot and pulled out a short, but sharp dagger. She twiddled it idly for a few seconds before she stood and made her way to the door. Using the skills she had obtained from her life on the streets of the sector two slums, Shivra began to pick the lock on the door of her jail cell. The electric lock resisted her tampering.
" Shit," she cursed. Frustrated, she undid the screws holding the board to the wall, revealing the inside of the lock. Shivra cut a few of the wires. A click told her that the door had unlocked itself. " There we go," she concluded.
She opened the door and waited beside it, out of sight, for the guard to notice the door was open. This plan took a bit longer than she had anticipated, due to the fact that the guard was incredibly stupid. It took a whole five minutes for him to realize that her cell door was open. When he finally realized this, he stuck his head inside as if to see what was going on. Shivra's patience was rewarded as she slammed her fist into the guard's face, savoring the crunch of her knuckles as they shattered the poor man's nose. She smirked as the guard fell against the wall clutching his broken, bleeding nose.
" Please don't kill me," he sobbed. Shivra glowered at him. She had next to no respect for these pitiful people who would kill at a single command. She hadn't planned on letting him live, and Shivra hated not doing what she planned.
" Why should I," she sneered, " what have you done to deserve my mercy?" The guard stared up at her with pleading eyes. She studied him, she liked to study the faces of her victims. To see the growing fear in their eyes as they cursed her or begged for her mercy. She laughed at both, she couldn't help it, she found it amusing. She knelt down before the guard and seized his throat with her left hand.
" I promise not to trip the alarms," the he pledged. Shivra snorted.
" A promise that you can't break if you're dead," she reminded, pressing her knife against the man's throat.
" I don't doubt that you could kill him if you wanted to," Rufus stated from the hallway. A look of relief spread over the guard's face at the sight of Rufus.
" Please help me, Sir," he pleaded. Rufus looked down at the guard.
" You handle yourself very well, Shivra," he observed, turning to face his lover, " Our boy will be in good hands." The guard was dumbstruck.
" Sir," he started, but stopped the instant Shivra turned her gaze back on him. Her eyes narrowed. In one swift movement the flesh of the guard's neck parted and crimson liquid spilled down the front of his uniform. He was dead within seconds.
" Nicely done," Rufus complimented. Shivra tore a sleeve from the guards uniform and soaked it in the pool of blood that was forming on the ground. Using it as a paintbrush, Shivra wrote her message on the wall:
Jenova's mark comes back to scar all who touch it.
" I believe these belong to you," Rufus offered, holding out a old leather pouch. Shivra took it and opened it, pulling out her materia.
" Thank you, Rufus," she replied. Rufus smiled.
" This is also yours," he added, stretching out his left hand, " and there's a chocobo waiting outside the city for you." In his palm rested the dragon ring. Rufus took Shivra's left hand and placed the ring on her finger. " I may never see you again," he acknowledged, " so you make sure you take good care of yourself and our boy." Shivra gave him a warm, yet sad, smile as she turned and fled down the hallways.
" I will always love you, Rufus," she whispered as she fled down the corridors.
* * *
Shivra made for the stairs as her escape route. Using the railings she slid down the sixty five floors to the base level. Once at the bottom, she melted into the shadows of the alleyways leading to the entrance to the slums. She slipped into the sewer system, striking down any monster foolish enough to attack her. The sewers welcomed her. Shivra came to a huge, gaping hole in the wall, the insignia of two dragons intertwined with each other carved deeply in the wall above it. This was the gateway to what had been her home. She climbed down it finally ending up in the sector two slums. People stared at her as she passed through the gates that would take her out of Midgar, but she paid them no heed.
It was nighttime outside the city. The perfect time to flee and have little fear of pursuit. A chocobo was tied to a tree on the outskirts of the city.
As Shivra proceeded toward the chocobo, she all of the sudden tripped over something lying on the ground. Her eyes widened in fear as she saw the still form of a young man sprawled over the ground. Several bullet wounds were scattered across his chest.
" Zack," she cried, scrambling to her knees beside him.
" Shivra...?" Zack moaned, just barley opening his eyes.
" Hold on, Zack," she urged. Shivra slipped her arm around Zack's shoulders and hoisted him onto the chocobo's back. She vaulted onto the chocobo behind him and seized the reins.
" Shivra...?" Zack repeated.
" Hang on, little brother," Shivra commanded as she spurred the chocobo toward the horizon.
* * * Five years later...
Rufus picked up a suspicious looking letter from his pile of mail. He opened it carefully and read it slowly to himself.
Dear Rufus,
I regret to inform you that I can't tell you where we are, lest this letter reach the wrong hands. But, I can say that our son was born in Rocket Town, though we have moved far away from there to avoid pursuit. He looks exactly like you, if only you could see him. He grows more like you every day. I hope you approve of the name Lucius, which is what I have named him. I have also been reunited with my brother, Zack, who now lives with us and helps me provide for the three of us.
Lucius and I came upon the raided nest of a true dragon upon our arrival at our new home. Lucius decided that he wanted to keep the sole surviving egg and train it for his own. He has grown considerably in these past few years. His chocobo, Masaaki, is a champion at the local chocobo races that often take place between the residing gangs. Every few months he even goes to the Gold Saucer to compete in the races there. He now even contributes to the income of this odd family.
Zack has been trying to talk me into helping him with one of his theories, of which he has had many lately. I am reluctant to help, but he is, after all, my brother and I do have an obligation to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. Lucius pesters me constantly to tell him about you and why he is the way he is. As you well know, Sephiroth went insane from not knowing what he was, therefore I will not subject Lucius to such a fate. He knows all about Hojo and the experiments that make us and I what we have become. He was in a rage for a few days, but he behaved himself reasonably. He reminded me of you when he was stomping about. But that temper tantrum, if that's what you'd like to call it, taught the family pet a valuable lesson. Gavial, Lucius's dragon, now realizes that she isn't the head of the house, though Lucius had his nose bent when she started taking orders from me as well as him. Thus relieving me of my duty to teach Lucius how to share.
I won't ask you for support, there would be no way for you to give it, and though life here is hard at times we will manage to survive. When the time comes, Lucius and I will make the journey to Midgar to see you.
Until that time,
Shivra ShinRa
P. S. I hope your father got my note, since I was right about Sephiroth.
Disclaimer: Ok, I do not own any of the people or places from Final Fantasy VII, but the people and places in this story that aren't in the game are my own creations so please don't steal them. And with that, the story begins...
Prologue
Not long after the incident at Nibelhiem in which Sephiroth was defeated by the soldier, Cloud, and four years before the birth of the rebel group who called themselves Avalanche...
A young man sat shuffling papers at his desk, constantly brushing his blonde-orange hair out of his dark, mako colored eyes. He leaned back in his chair and ran a gloved hand through his hair when there was a knock at his door.
" What," he snapped.
" Sir? " A soldier stuck his head into the room. " There's someone here to see you."
" Who is it," he asked putting his feet up on the desk, " If it's my old man then tell him to beat it."
"It's a woman, Sir," the soldier replied.
The young man's eyes lit up. " Show her in." The soldier saluted the young man before disappearing out the door. A few seconds later the door opened fully.
" Hello, Rufus," said the woman standing in the door. She had raven's hair, flecked with red streaks, that trailed across her pale face. She was dressed in tight, black, leather pants that were stitched up the sides and a midnight-colored, sleeveless sweater.
" Shivra," Rufus exclaimed, nearly falling out of his chair. He scrambled up from his desk and hurried to meet his girlfriend. Tears threatened Shivra's eye as she embraced him.
" I missed you, my love," she cried. Rufus held her closely. She felt soft and warm. His nose filled with her spicy scent as her strong body held him close and tight. It had been a long time since Rufus had last seen his disappearing lover, too long. He thought of the small black case in the bottom drawer of his desk. Something he'd been dying to ask since the night on the hill a month ago. Rufus finally let go of her, mentally cursing himself for being so nervous.
" There's something I need to ask you, Shivra," he struggled, not used to the over-beating of his heart as he retrieved the black box from it's hiding place. He handed the case to her after a moments hesitation. " I think the rest is self-explanatory," he fumbled. Shivra regarded him with a look of curiosity in her piercing green eyes. She gasped at the sight of the case's contents.
Inside was a gold ring shaped like a dragon with its wings folded down and the tail forming the band. A row of tiny diamonds ran along the dragon's back. One eye was made from a sapphire while the other was an emerald. A ruby tongue even protruded from the dragon's mouth, which was outfitted with pearls for teeth.
" Rufus... I..." Shivra was astounded, " I don't know what to say."
" Maybe your mouth doesn't," Rufus whispered, stroking her silky hair, " but what about your heart?"
" My heart says 'I am yours forever,'" Shivra sighed.
" That brings my heart joy, but I can't help but wonder why you came here in the first place," Rufus asked, " we both know my old man must not find you here."
" What I came here to tell you I couldn't risk writing," she murmured softly. Then she turned her blue-green eyes to his, "It's that important."
" What is that?" Unfortunately for both of them, Shivra was unable to tell Rufus what she needed to, for at that moment there was a pounding at the door.
" Rufus, open this door at once, I need a word with you," came a booming voice from the other side of the door.
" Shit," Rufus cursed, "quick, Shivra, hide." Shiva was rushed to the closet where she ducked inside and crouched down, hoping to hide in the darkness. She took the ring from its case and slipped it over her right ring finger. Only her husband to be could place it on her left hand.
Rufus went for the door. His father was there with several ShinRa guards behind him.
" What do you want, old man," Rufus growled. Normally, Rufus saw little of his father and even less time speaking with him, when he did it made his blood boil. The two had almost nothing in common, and what they did have alike was only in looks and name. Both had the same Mako eyes and blonde- orange hair, but that was all.
" I was informed of some rather unpleasant news just now," President ShinRa said coolly. Rufus felt his heart skip a beat, but didn't show it. " Search the room," his father commanded to the guards he had brought.
" What do you think you're doing," Rufus exclaimed.
" What's the matter, Rufus, do you have something to hide?" The old man was taunting him now, he knew all along that Rufus had a lover. It wasn't long before the soldiers found Shivra.
" Let go of me, you bastards," she protested, pivoting and kicking one in the face, " let me go!"
" What do you want with her, you son of a bitch," Rufus demanded, clenching his jaw. His father looked Shivra up and down skeptically.
" Maybe you are my boy after all, Rufus," he sneered, " you've got an eye for the hot bitches. What's this?" He seized Shivra's right arm and twisted it so he could see the ring on her finger.
" Keep your filthy hands off that," Shivra warned. Smirking, the president slipped the ring off her finger and examined it.
" Beautiful," he remarked, " where did you get it?"
" Up yours."
" You need to learn some respect for your elders," President ShinRa warned.
" I'll speak to you any way I damn well please, you jackass!"
" I will not be spoken to in that manner!" He struck her then across the face. Shivra began to giggle. A giggle that quickly escalated to a hysterical laugh.
" Sephiroth will come back you know," she laughed, " he doesn't like what you did to him so he's gonna make you pay. Can you imagine that sword of his running you through? I will relish the day when all your tampering comes back to get you." The rest of her words were lost in her wild laughter.
At that remark, President ShinRa's face turned slightly pale.
" Take her away! I'll deal with her later," he growled. Shivra continued to struggle even after the soldiers had beat her in an attempt to suppress her.
" What will you do to her," Rufus demanded savagely.
" I haven't decided," the president said bluntly.
" If you hurt her I'll see to it that you pay dearly for it," Rufus threatened, rage growing in his Mako poisoned eyes, "mark my words."
" Now, now," his father said calmly, " there's no need for that. She won't be harmed so long as she is valuable to us." A horrid thought came to Rufus's mind. His eyes widened fearfully.
" You wouldn't..." he stammered, " you wouldn't dare..."
" Oh would I," his father said slowly, too slowly, " we'll just have to see how much she is really worth." Then he left the room. Rufus fell to the floor in defeat. He pounded his fists against anything he could reach, swearing and cursing in rage until he was out of breath. Then he cried for the first time in his life since his mother had died when he was a small child.
* * * Shivra lay curled up on a cot in one of the holding cells. One arm stayed protectively around her belly. She hurt, but refused to show it, at least for her baby's sake if not her own. Suddenly, she heard talking outside the cell. She stayed still and listened. It was Rufus arguing with one of the guards. Several moments passed, and the door opened. Rufus entered the room. Shivra sat up slowly. Rufus felt his heart split in two at the sight of her. He held her close to him, she felt so cold. Shivra tried desperately not to cry, but found she couldn't help it.
" Are you okay, Shivra," Rufus asked.
" Not really," she sniffled, " my stomach feels really sore."
" I'm gonna try to get you out of here," he reassured.
" Rufus," Shivra whispered softly, " I'm pregnant." Rufus stared at her in disbelief. " It's a boy," she continued. They sat down on the cot together.
* * * " These are the results you asked for, Sir," a soldier presented, holding out an envelope.
" You may leave now," President ShinRa dismissed, talking the envelope. The soldier left with a salute. President ShinRa opened the envelope and examined the papers inside it. " Hojo will be pleased," he chuckled to himself.
* * * Rufus kicked the door to Hojo's lab open. He stormed into the room looking angry enough to kill a dragon with his bare hands. Several minor scientists looked up from their work to see Rufus grab Hojo's lab coat and slam him against a wall.
" What did my old man tell you to do with Shivra," he demanded. Hojo stared hard at Rufus through his dark glasses.
" I could show you, but I can't do that if I'm pinned against a wall," the scientist replied casually, making a gesture like a shrug. Rufus glared at Hojo, but let him go. Hojo straightened his coat and led Rufus to a room with a large glass holding cell. Rufus immediately recognized the figure sprawled on the floor of the cell. It was Shivra.
" What have you done to her," Rufus snarled.
" She is pregnant, as you should know, so we tested to see who the father is," Hojo explained, "we proved that you are the child's father. The president has decided that we will use the baby to create another, more powerful, Sephiroth." Rufus was too shocked to say anything. " Of course we'll have to make some slight adjustments, considering the condition of the original Sephiroth..."
Hojo continued, but Rufus heard none of it. He had his hands pressed against the glass cell. His thoughts twisted between horror and fury. They were going to use his son to make another Sephiroth, a more powerful one. And, just like Lucrecia, Shivra would probably end up dying. Unless... Rufus knew what had to be done, but he didn't want it to happen. It meant severing his last hope for happiness. Shivra had to either escape or die before their son was born.
* * * Shivra was woken again that night by Rufus arguing with the guard. The fight didn't last long. Rufus took Shivra in his arms the second he entered the room. Though he gasped when he saw the mako glow in her sea green eyes, he was glad she was safe for the moment. Shivra relayed to him everything that Hojo had said about the tests he had conducted on her.
" So he only injected you with half the amount of Jenova cells he gave Lucrecia," Rufus concluded after Shivra had finished. She nodded.
" Even that small amount did something to our baby," She added grimly.
" What did it do," Rufus asked fearfully.
" He's growing more quickly," she explained, " I feel him growing. He's not due for another seven or eight months, but I think the presence of these cells cut that time in half."
" You have to get out of here," Rufus stated, " if anything further happens to you or our son, I wont be able to live with myself."
" Listen to me, Rufus," Shivra started. Rufus stared into the ocean of color that was her eyes. " In order to escape, I will need these three things; my materia pouch, a chocobo, and your promise that you won't follow me." Rufus felt his heart splinter into a thousand bleeding shards.
" I can get you your materia and a chocobo without any resistance," he choked, " it's the third request that shatters my soul and wraps a sheet of steel around the fragments."
" It breaks both my heart, soul, and body to do this, but it's the only way to save our son," she cringed as if in great pain, " and any remaining hope we have of happiness."
" I can't be happy if something happens to you," Rufus sighed, " yet, I have no choice but to do as you ask." Shivra locked her arms around Rufus's body, crushing his ribs against her.
" You'll never truly lose me," she crooned softly. He held her tightly against him, savoring the last time he would hold her like this.
" There aren't enough ways for me to say that I love you," he sighed.
" You only need one," Shivra assured as she kissed him.
* * * Zack dragged Cloud alongside him as they made their way to Midgar. Cloud would groan every now and again, but, other than that, neither spoke. Suddenly, a bullet whizzed past Zack's head. He let go of Cloud, who slumped to the ground beside him, and drew his sword just another bullet caught him in the chest. He was thrown backwards by the force of the shot. He hit the ground hard on his back and lay still...
* * * Shivra reached inside the soft leather of her boot and pulled out a short, but sharp dagger. She twiddled it idly for a few seconds before she stood and made her way to the door. Using the skills she had obtained from her life on the streets of the sector two slums, Shivra began to pick the lock on the door of her jail cell. The electric lock resisted her tampering.
" Shit," she cursed. Frustrated, she undid the screws holding the board to the wall, revealing the inside of the lock. Shivra cut a few of the wires. A click told her that the door had unlocked itself. " There we go," she concluded.
She opened the door and waited beside it, out of sight, for the guard to notice the door was open. This plan took a bit longer than she had anticipated, due to the fact that the guard was incredibly stupid. It took a whole five minutes for him to realize that her cell door was open. When he finally realized this, he stuck his head inside as if to see what was going on. Shivra's patience was rewarded as she slammed her fist into the guard's face, savoring the crunch of her knuckles as they shattered the poor man's nose. She smirked as the guard fell against the wall clutching his broken, bleeding nose.
" Please don't kill me," he sobbed. Shivra glowered at him. She had next to no respect for these pitiful people who would kill at a single command. She hadn't planned on letting him live, and Shivra hated not doing what she planned.
" Why should I," she sneered, " what have you done to deserve my mercy?" The guard stared up at her with pleading eyes. She studied him, she liked to study the faces of her victims. To see the growing fear in their eyes as they cursed her or begged for her mercy. She laughed at both, she couldn't help it, she found it amusing. She knelt down before the guard and seized his throat with her left hand.
" I promise not to trip the alarms," the he pledged. Shivra snorted.
" A promise that you can't break if you're dead," she reminded, pressing her knife against the man's throat.
" I don't doubt that you could kill him if you wanted to," Rufus stated from the hallway. A look of relief spread over the guard's face at the sight of Rufus.
" Please help me, Sir," he pleaded. Rufus looked down at the guard.
" You handle yourself very well, Shivra," he observed, turning to face his lover, " Our boy will be in good hands." The guard was dumbstruck.
" Sir," he started, but stopped the instant Shivra turned her gaze back on him. Her eyes narrowed. In one swift movement the flesh of the guard's neck parted and crimson liquid spilled down the front of his uniform. He was dead within seconds.
" Nicely done," Rufus complimented. Shivra tore a sleeve from the guards uniform and soaked it in the pool of blood that was forming on the ground. Using it as a paintbrush, Shivra wrote her message on the wall:
Jenova's mark comes back to scar all who touch it.
" I believe these belong to you," Rufus offered, holding out a old leather pouch. Shivra took it and opened it, pulling out her materia.
" Thank you, Rufus," she replied. Rufus smiled.
" This is also yours," he added, stretching out his left hand, " and there's a chocobo waiting outside the city for you." In his palm rested the dragon ring. Rufus took Shivra's left hand and placed the ring on her finger. " I may never see you again," he acknowledged, " so you make sure you take good care of yourself and our boy." Shivra gave him a warm, yet sad, smile as she turned and fled down the hallways.
" I will always love you, Rufus," she whispered as she fled down the corridors.
* * *
Shivra made for the stairs as her escape route. Using the railings she slid down the sixty five floors to the base level. Once at the bottom, she melted into the shadows of the alleyways leading to the entrance to the slums. She slipped into the sewer system, striking down any monster foolish enough to attack her. The sewers welcomed her. Shivra came to a huge, gaping hole in the wall, the insignia of two dragons intertwined with each other carved deeply in the wall above it. This was the gateway to what had been her home. She climbed down it finally ending up in the sector two slums. People stared at her as she passed through the gates that would take her out of Midgar, but she paid them no heed.
It was nighttime outside the city. The perfect time to flee and have little fear of pursuit. A chocobo was tied to a tree on the outskirts of the city.
As Shivra proceeded toward the chocobo, she all of the sudden tripped over something lying on the ground. Her eyes widened in fear as she saw the still form of a young man sprawled over the ground. Several bullet wounds were scattered across his chest.
" Zack," she cried, scrambling to her knees beside him.
" Shivra...?" Zack moaned, just barley opening his eyes.
" Hold on, Zack," she urged. Shivra slipped her arm around Zack's shoulders and hoisted him onto the chocobo's back. She vaulted onto the chocobo behind him and seized the reins.
" Shivra...?" Zack repeated.
" Hang on, little brother," Shivra commanded as she spurred the chocobo toward the horizon.
* * * Five years later...
Rufus picked up a suspicious looking letter from his pile of mail. He opened it carefully and read it slowly to himself.
Dear Rufus,
I regret to inform you that I can't tell you where we are, lest this letter reach the wrong hands. But, I can say that our son was born in Rocket Town, though we have moved far away from there to avoid pursuit. He looks exactly like you, if only you could see him. He grows more like you every day. I hope you approve of the name Lucius, which is what I have named him. I have also been reunited with my brother, Zack, who now lives with us and helps me provide for the three of us.
Lucius and I came upon the raided nest of a true dragon upon our arrival at our new home. Lucius decided that he wanted to keep the sole surviving egg and train it for his own. He has grown considerably in these past few years. His chocobo, Masaaki, is a champion at the local chocobo races that often take place between the residing gangs. Every few months he even goes to the Gold Saucer to compete in the races there. He now even contributes to the income of this odd family.
Zack has been trying to talk me into helping him with one of his theories, of which he has had many lately. I am reluctant to help, but he is, after all, my brother and I do have an obligation to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. Lucius pesters me constantly to tell him about you and why he is the way he is. As you well know, Sephiroth went insane from not knowing what he was, therefore I will not subject Lucius to such a fate. He knows all about Hojo and the experiments that make us and I what we have become. He was in a rage for a few days, but he behaved himself reasonably. He reminded me of you when he was stomping about. But that temper tantrum, if that's what you'd like to call it, taught the family pet a valuable lesson. Gavial, Lucius's dragon, now realizes that she isn't the head of the house, though Lucius had his nose bent when she started taking orders from me as well as him. Thus relieving me of my duty to teach Lucius how to share.
I won't ask you for support, there would be no way for you to give it, and though life here is hard at times we will manage to survive. When the time comes, Lucius and I will make the journey to Midgar to see you.
Until that time,
Shivra ShinRa
P. S. I hope your father got my note, since I was right about Sephiroth.