Happy New Year! Sorry for the wait… I'm the worst author when it comes to updating! But I made this chapter a tad longer than the others… I hope you like it, but I admit it is a bit gruesome… not much humor! But please read it, especially if you wanna know what happened to Sephiroth! And for the feedback-
Cat of Darkness- THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEW!! It was the most exciting review I have ever read! I nearly squealed when I read it- didya read my extra review on your dbz story? And also, I thought there was going to be a Kingdom Hearts 2 coming out on Playstation 2… there is, ya? And I think all Kh/FF7 fans would like to hear that if they dun already know! Broadcast it to da world!!!
Alan Bates- Thank you! And I am honored- such a long review! Oh yes, btw, I only put Cloud as he is because that's how I see him in this particular story- and plus he's my favourite character! Can't have him being moody ^-^.
Autumn Dragon- A new reviewer! Thanks for the review… I hope you keep reading in the future! Thanks! (And thanks especially for putting me in your favorite stories- I appreciate it a lot!)
Oh yes, and to all who is reading this… can you tell me a bit about Leon/ Squall? Because I haven't played FFVIII, and can only get what I know from Kingdom Hearts… it would be nice to get an overall view. Thank you!
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Chapter 7- Hojo's Attack
Leon reached Destiny Islands, his keen eyes scanning the area, noting the dragonship… in which Hojo was in. He could sense the evil- he had been taught to read his presence; otherwise it was next to impossible to sense him. The door was smashed down- no doubt Sephiroth's doing. Although Sephiroth was definitely the stronger of the two, Hojo's evil magics would balance it out… leaving Leon with Cloud.
Cloud. A face he thought he would never see again. Leon was fifteen when Cloud joined ShinRa… but who cares about the past? Leon shook his head, emptying it of useless thoughts. Right now, he had to capture him… for an experiment. Exactly what the experiment was unknown to Leon himself…but it didn't matter him, nor did Rufus bother to tell him. Leon's eyes flashed when he heard sounds from the Seaside Shack.
~*~*~*~
Cloud's eyes fluttered open, his vision blurry at first, but later focusing on the scene of Tifa and Yuffie asleep, Riku drawing on the floor with his fingers, and… a chestnut head on his lap? He gently pushed Sora onto the other arm of the plushy chair… and closed his eyes again in despair when he saw, without a doubt, the silvery trail of saliva glinting in the light from the window. Sora grinned sleepily in his sleep, seeming to laugh at the discovery. The saliva dripped onto the floor, and Sora slept on, unperturbed.
Cloud carefully slid off the chair, and started when he saw a black gloved hand in front- and saw Riku. Riku helped him up, and motioning to the outside, led Cloud into the fresh air, sunlight, and…
" How nice to see you again, Cloud," Leon grinned at the familiar figure of the yellow spiked hair, sword, and the unusual purple eyes. He still has that weird aura around him, as usual…
*flashback *
"Nice to meet you, I'm Leon." Leon grinned down at Cloud, who grasped Leon's hand, and shook it, grinning in excitement.
" First day working as a soldier, huh? Well, it's no lean meat, but you'll get used to it… who was your trainer?"
" Sephiroth."
Leon's eyes widened in surprise. " You must have been special! I've never heard of anyone taking a first test and meeting the great Sephiroth already…"
Cloud blushed. "Nah, I think he was off-duty or something, and they had no one else…"
*~*
So Fate had brought them together. And now it would do so again, same place… but for a different reason. Leon's eyes glinted, locking with Cloud's.
Riku frowned at the strange "glint", and cleared his throat quietly. Cloud tore himself from the eyelock with Leon to introduce-
" Riku, this is Leon, one of my comrades when I was at ShinRa. Leon, Riku's one of my long-time friends here… I was just visiting him and some other friends…"
Leon half-smiled at Riku, his mind focused on capturing Cloud. Even though he knew Cloud well, he still wanted to get his job over and done with. Whatever Cloud was wanted for… it couldn't be dangerous… or so he thought.
" Cloud, I'm gonna tell you outright. You're needed at ShinRa- I don't know why, but you're needed. And --"
" Leon, I'm sorry, but I can't go if I don't know what it's for. I'm on vacation- and it's been disrupted enough already, I'm sure you know. So can't you tell me what it's for? If I'm needed that much… well, I can't see why I would be needed. I haven't been there for ages! Leon…"
Leon frowned at the unexpected refusal. How dare he? Speaking to him openly of his duty, and Cloud still cannot register its importance? Such a big change… Leon's hand tightened and instinctively reached for his gunblade, and as soon as he pulled it out…
Tifa and Yuffie sprang out from the shack, from which they had been secretly watching… just in time. Yuffie darted to Leon's left side, jabbing a ninja star at his throat, and Tifa clasped Leon's hands behind his back…
" What the ^" Leon spluttered, as the two blurs focused into humans.
The door opened again, and as Leon tensed for a third attack/ defense, Sora walked out rubbing his sea- blue eyes, before grinning at everyone sleepily.
" Morning…Hey! Leon! Is that you?" Sora clambered over to Leon to stare up at his leather clothes. "Long time no see, hehe! Guys, this is Leon and…" Sora raised an eyebrow as he properly took in the situation. "Umm… are you guys dueling? Remember Leon, Riku? That guy who came ages ago…?"
Riku studied Leon's facial features, and to his surprise, there was a spot of recognition. The sleek brown hair, the clothes… yep, he had definitely met this guy before. Although Leon didn't seem to remember him…
Yuffie and Tifa loosened their grip, as Leon put back his gunblade to scratch his head confusedly.
Sora grinned at Leon. " Whatcha doing here? Come for a visit… or something else?" Leon glanced down at Sora, then at the sky. " Hey, mind if we go into that house place? It's getting really hot, 'specially wearing leather…Thanks. Oh, by the way, Cloud… what's the splotch on your shirt? Looks wet to me… a bit like drool…" Cloud blushed hotly as he glared at Sora, who looked back innocently.
~*~*~*~
Just as Leon and crew went inside, a bright flash erupted from the dragonship's control room, Hojo evicted a transportation magic… and a second later, he and Sephiroth had appeared in a large black room, filled with flashing lights, red and blue, containers and cages everywhere, filled with bizarre creatures and fiends. Scattered around the huge area were green glowing chemicals and buttons. It was an overwhelming sight, all different machinas everywhere with dying or half-transformed beings within them, their spirits withering away…
Sephiroth grimaced at this stomach-turning lab, where Hojo spent all his forsaken life experimenting and changing nature, his greatest joy in life…
"Interesting, isn't it." It wasn't a question, and Hojo neither expected nor wanted an answer. This room, of the highest technology, was overwrought with his evil ideas, plans, and anything that tickled his devious mind. And it was here, like all others, that Experiment 9A had been born.
" So you bring me here… for your experiment, I suppose?" Sephiroth's eyes gleamed. "And I suppose I am a part of it now."
Hojo turned suddenly to face Sephiroth, pointed a sharp finger and-
Sephiroth flew backwards into a cage, it's door magically opening and slamming shut as he flew in. Sephiroth stood in the cage, and smirked as his Masumune sliced through the iron bars. The cage collapsed, and Sephiroth emerged, unscathed.
" I'm afraid you've underestimated my power terribly, Hojo…"
Hojo snarled at Sephiroth, his nostril flaring at the wreckage. His hands flared white, as he cast ice magic at Sephiroth's chest. Sephiroth flipped easily over the spell, its target hitting the wreckage behind and freezing it to an iceberg.
"Dodging it, are we? Why don't you fight… or are you afraid?" Sephiroth raised an eyebrow. " Don't be a fool, Hojo." With that, Sephiroth struck at Hojo with a sharp, swift motion, catching him in the upper arm.
With a gasp, Hojo pulled away, feeling hot blood run down his arm in large streams. With a painful smile, he clenched his fist, and with the look of a desperate man, whispered, " You leave me no choice…"
A rumbling started at the base of a machina, and without hesitation, Hojo flicked a switch…
A clear glass cage emerged from the floor, with hundreds of visible spirits (not unlike Gotenk's Kamikaze Ghost Attack) trapped within. Each was characterised with a mournful but enraged expression, compressed to the wall of the glass, struggling to escape…
" Pleasant gifts from fiends who were used in my experiments…" Hojo put his hand on a lever, and pushing it down, freed the hundreds of wraiths…
"ATTACK!"
The spirits threw themselves at Sephiroth, who tensed himself for the merciless attack…
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Ahahaah! So the fight has begun! How is Sephiroth going to against hundreds of spirits- and what can these ghostlike creatures inflict upon Sephiroth? As this battle rages on… Leon is inside the Seaside Shack, with Cloud and crew. And… as usual, we ask ourselves, WHAT is Experiment 9A? Are we going to find out… and will it succeed? Plz await the next chapter of Expect the UnExpected! (Oh, and please tell me about Squall). Thanks!