Chapter Three Hellishly Divine Blood
Aya had been treated for her injuries, though she didn't see why. The only kind of thing she had sustained was a slight cut on her hand and that was barely a scratch. Maybe it was because her shirt was covered in blood, she didn't know or care. She had let Sephiroth slip away from her a second time and she had his words ringing in her ears again. Not only that, but that gradual approach he had made to her just a second before Daniel had showed up.
"Hey, you're starin' into space again." said Daniel's voice.
Aya looked up at the man, noticing he held a couple of cups of coffee. He gave one to Aya and sat down next to her.
"Thanks." she said.
"Lots o' cream and sugar, I made sure."
"Still tastes awful."
"To you maybe, but I like mine black."
Aya took a sip of the scalding liquid.
"So, who the hell was that silver-haired chick?" Daniel asked.
"Woman? That was a guy."
Daniel nearly choked on his coffee.
"That was a guy!? Damn!" he exclaimed.
"You better believe it, though he was a very effeminate guy."
"I thought the shoulders were a little broad, guess the hair threw me off."
Daniel guzzled his coffee in a single swig.
"Silver hair, reminds me that the FBI told us of some guy goin' around and turnin' those damn monsters into hash." he said.
"Probably him, I've met him at sites twice already. The guy's a psycho, I swear to god."
"I heard from a witness that the guy was pretty out there. Said he carried a sword as long as he was tall."
"I've seen it and I don't know how a guy as skinny as him can carry it."
Aya drank some of the coffee she had.
"The guy seems to be a bit of a pervert too." she commented.
"Why's that?"
Aya then remembered the places that Sephiroth had touched without her consent. The very thought of it made her ill.
"Never mind." she said.
"What's this guy's name anyway?"
"Sephiroth."
"What the hell kinda name is that? Is it his first name or his last?"
"Don't know, it's the only name he gave me."
"Man, sounds like even the guy's parents were weird."
"Yeah."
Aya saw a car pull up and Maeda step out. He walked up to Aya and Daniel.
"Aya, are you alright?" Maeda asked.
"Yeah, just got a scratch."
"Hmm, I heard that the mysterious man was around here."
"Yeah, had a less than pleasant encounter with him."
"Didja fight him?" Daniel asked.
"No, he actually helped me fight the NMCs."
"The hell was the dispute then?"
"Just him acting weird and getting a bit too close to me."
"If I hadn't known any better, I'd say he was tryin' to kiss ya."
Aya then dropped her cup rather suddenly and developed a shocked expression on her face. She cupped her mouth like she was going to vomit and bent over.
"K-k-k-kiss me!?! That's what he was trying to do!?" she exclaimed in her mind.
"Hey, you alright?" Daniel asked.
"Y-yeah, just feeling a bit light-headed."
"Shit, right now? What's up with that?"
"I'm alright, it just happened all of a sudden."
Aya took a few deep breaths and sat up, though looking a bit pale. Maeda ruffled his hair a bit and took a look at the Gunblade.
"I see that the new weapon got a very good test run." he said.
"Yeah, it's a bit heavy but it carries a powerful punch. Most of the NMCs I struck with it were killed in two blows at the most and if they survived they were severely wounded."
"Yes, we were considering mass production but it seems like the blade isn't as strong as we had hoped."
"The blade isn't that big of a deal with NMCs, but my "friend" snapped it in two just by striking it."
"What? Are you sure?"
"Yeah, he did it with his bare fists."
"A human is capable of such a thing?"
"I don't know what he is. I stabbed his leg so his blood should be on the tip."
Maeda picked up the heavy weapon and put it in a nearby case.
"I'll get this repaired once I'm done with it and have it given back to you." he said.
"Alright, take as long as you like."
Maeda bowed and went to his car then drove off. Daniel got up and stretched.
"That man ain't changed a bit." he said.
"Neither have you, you're still as stubborn as ever."
"And what is that s'posed to mean?"
"You're getting old and you're still on the NYPD."
"Hey, I got a teenaged son to support."
"I haven't seen Ben in awhile. How is he?"
"Fine, he's about your sister's age and he's been liking school."
"That's good, I hope he does good in life."
"You should be wonderin' about yourself."
"Hm?"
"You ain't been out in forever. When's the last time you went on a date?"
"Look, I'm a monster-killer for the FBI and I have a sister who's going to graduate high school next year. I don't have time for relationships."
"Huh, and you say I'm stubborn."
Aya stood up and carried her jacket.
"I'm going home, I stink and I'm tired." she said.
"Alright, say hi to Eve for me."
"I will."
Aya got in her car, throwing her jacket onto the passenger's seat. Aya started the car and drove away from Chinatown, heading home.
The sun was going down already, though being late winter it was typical. She came to a stop at a four-way intersection and thought about what Daniel had said a moment before. She touched her mouth and though about it.
"Kiss me? Why on earth would he do that? God, I would have gotten sick if that happened."
The light turned green and Aya turned. She kept thinking about that odd man, his exotic hair, his glowing eyes, and his disturbing words. She kept thinking about it until she came to her apartment.
Aya opened her door and walked in, seeing Eve sitting on the couch watching TV. The girl looked at her older sister.
"Hey." Eve said.
"Hey, sorry I took so long."
"Oh well, I've gotten used to it. I heard on the news that something happened in Chinatown so I pretty much thought you were there."
"Yeah, some more NMCs."
Aya threw her jacket on a chair and took off her blood-soaked shirt.
"Whoa, what happened to you?" Eve asked.
"A lot of things to kill."
Aya threw the shirt away, leaving her in an equally bloody bra.
"Damn it, I'm gonna have to buy new clothes." shesaid.
"Or wear black ones."
"I'm hopping in the shower."
Aya slipped into her bathroom and took off her clothes, throwing her ruined bra into a wastebasket. She scrubbed her body free of the stench of blood with scented soap and scrubbed her hair clean. The hot water eased her muscles a bit and the slight scratch on her hand.
Aya got out after cleaning herself and put a robe on. She was still toweling her hair as she walked into her bedroom, lying down. She looked at the ceiling, her mid-length hair splayed in every direction. Aya extended her arm and looked at her fingers, imagining seeing that man's face beyond them.
"Damn it, I can't stop thinking about those words of his."
Aya rolled onto her side and thought.
"After that whole incident, I came back to New York. I had gone to L.A. because I was afraid of hurting my friends. But after Eve came into my life…I stopped being depressed. I thought it'd be good for Eve to see my old friends so I came back here."
Aya looked at the ceiling again.
"But have I changed? I'm still scared of who I am so I lock my powers away, even if I may get killed if I don't use them."
Aya looked at her clock which read nine PM.
"It's not late enough to go to sleep. I guess I'll watch something with Eve."
Aya dressed in some night clothes which were just a blue shirt and a pair of sweats and went into the living room. Eve was eating some chips and looked at Aya.
"Well, seems the stench has decreased." she commented.
"Smart mouth."
Aya ruffled Eve's hair a bit and took some chips from the bag, promptly eating them. She looked at the screen and saw some flashing images.
"What the heck is this?" Aya asked.
"One of my DVDs. It's Inu-Yasha."
"This is what I'm letting you spend my money on?"
"Hey, Maeda exposed me to it and I like it, so there."
"Well, I guess it is a little neat."
Aya watched as some white-haired guy sliced a demon in half with a huge sword.
"Whoa." she said.
"Yeah, it's cool."
"To think the cartoons I watched were never like this."
"Well, a lot has changed. I've noticed that white-haired guys in anime are total bad boys."
"It seems not only in this world though."
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Maeda was in MIST's lab, scraping the blood from Aya's broken Gunblade. He put the red liquid onto several slides and placed them under a microscope.
"Now, let's see what is in here."
Several readings came up on a computer screen.
"Hmm, rat, cat, dog, bird. Nothing out of the ordinary."
The screen bordered a certain sample and the word "unknown" flashed on the screen.
"Ah, there we are."
Maeda clicked a few commands on the screen and data kept being read out.
"Hmm, it reads very similar to human, though the structure of the amino acids is a bit different. Ninety-nine point nine-nine-nine percent similarity, interesting."
Maeda scratched his day-old stubble.
"I've seen that reading before, but where?"
Maeda typed some commands into the computer.
"Find matches with numbers."
The command ended and the results were shown.
"Only one?"
Maeda clicked on the result, and looked at it in shock.
"Aya? She and this man share that much of a link?"
Maeda typed more commands into the computer.
"Check abnormal cell behavior, center on mitochondrial activity."
The screen flashed and showed some images on the screen.
"What in…?"
The images Maeda saw were almost exactly the same as what he had seen several years ago.
"It can't…!"
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Aya heard her cell phone ring around eleven the next day. She looked at the screen and saw Maeda's number.
"Hello." she said drowsily.
"Aya, you must see what I found out about this man."
"Maeda, wait, slow down, I can hardly understand you."
"Sorry, just a bit excited."
"Alright, now, what were you talking about?"
"That blood sample I have has produced very interesting results."
"How?"
"I think it's better that you come down and see."
"Give me awhile, your call woke me up."
"Alright."
Aya turned off her phone and got up, dressing. Eve was still asleep so she left her a note on the TV while she ate. After Aya was somewhat awake she got into her car and drove to the MIST center.
"What could be so interesting about this guy's blood?"
Aya put in one of her CDs, not really listening to it but it kept her mind off of certain events. Eventually she came to the MIST building, seeing that very few cars were there. She went into the biology lab and saw Maeda amidst a sea of coffee cups and instant ramen cups.
"Have you been up all night?" she asked.
"Yes, it's been awhile since I've done this."
"I would hope."
Aya swept a chair and sat down.
"So, what'd you find out about this guy?" she asked Maeda.
"Well, look at this first."
Maeda played a video on the computer screen.
"That's my blood sample from a few years ago." she said "What's that got to do with anything?"
"Well, watch this."
Maeda played another video, though this time it seemed as though the display of mitochondria giving energy to a nucleus was intensified.
"What was that?" she asked.
"That was Sephiroth's blood sample."
"That looked…"
"Like yours? Yes, it does."
"Why's that?"
"I don't know. It seems that his entire body has been super-charged with something."
"What do you mean?"
"Well…"
Maeda pulled up another screen which showed some data.
"This seems to be the source of the boost." he finished.
"Four-hundred percent boost in physical performance?"
"Yes, I tried some lab rats and realized they were as strong as small dogs."
"Man, I bet the military would love to get their hands on that."
"Yes, though one of the rats seemed to become insane and violent."
"Maybe that could explain Sephiroth's attitude."
Maeda then pulled up another screen.
"This is the thing that most surprised me." he said.
Maeda then pulled up the first thing he had discovered last night.
"Your DNA is almost exactly alike." he said.
"Like brother and sister?"
"Er, no, more like species."
"I'm human Maeda, of course are DNA is going to be similar."
"Well, look at this…"
Maeda pulled up yet another screen.
"Your unique cell activity has you listed under an entirely new species." he said.
"I thought I suppressed my powers."
"Well, your suppression has led to you looking younger than your chronological age but the activity is still happening."
"So I guess no matter what I do, those powers will always be a part of me."
"Yes."
Aya looked at her hands once more.
"We're both monsters." Sephiroth's words rang.
Aya clenched her fist.
"I'm not a monster."
"Aya, is something wrong?" Maeda asked.
"No, nothing."
Aya stood up.
"Anything else I need to know?" she asked.
"No, except that the blade to your gun is going to take three days to complete."
"Alright, I guess I should make sure I don't run out of bullets."
Aya left the MIST center and saw that a new vehicle had pulled up. It was a motorcycle that was rather large and ugly.
"That's odd, no one in MIST drives one of those."
She heard the sound of heavy boots on the pavement behind her. She turned around and saw a pair of blazing, green eyes. She automatically turned and faced the now-familiar person.
"What the hell are you doing here?" she questioned immediately.
"I saw you and decided to visit."
Aya reached for her gun but Sephiroth's hand was holding her smaller one down.
"I bear no arms, so there is no need for that." he said.
"You can make that sword appear if you want to and you have those weird powers of yours."
"I never once have even attempted to strike you, have you thought of that?"
Aya loosened her grip on her gun.
"That's better."
Sephiroth took a few steps back, his long hair blowing in a cold wind.
"You may not have struck me, but groping me is a different story." Aya commented.
Sephiroth chuckled.
"I was merely being playful." he argued.
"Yeah, if you're a pervert. Your parents must have been messed up to raise you like you are now."
"I never had any parents, if you must know. And I think you might want to consider something regarding that."
"What's that?"
"You happen to be the first woman I've ever touched."
"Oh, and that's supposed to be flattering?"
"If you knew who I was."
Sephiroth sat on the seat of his motorcycle, putting his pale hands into the pockets of a red-leather jacket he had on.
"I'm surprised no one has come out yet." Aya commented "There are cameras all over and the guards would be out here if they saw you."
"Tch, those cameras can't handle my energy. I heard several burst once I came into the area."
"That would explain it."
"Indeed."
Aya leaned against her car, still a bit tense with the enigmatic man standing not five feet from her.
"Who are you anyway? What are you?" Aya asked.
"As to what I am, it seems I am very similar to you. As to you, well, that's a rather long tale. Do you wish to hear it?"
"Maybe, but I just wanna go home right now."
"Perhaps another time then."
Aya unlocked her car and Sephiroth started his motorcycle.
"Where are you going?" Aya asked.
"Church."
Sephiroth sped of, his long hair fanning out behind him. Aya just looked as he drove off with a quizzical look on her face.
"Church?"
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Sephiroth came to St. Johns the Divine after a short drive through many alleys and short roads. He tossed his head to straighten his hair and walked into the large chapel. He didn't wear formal clothes, but he didn't overly care.
Sephiroth walked into the chapel and looked up at the Gothic paintings, examining every little detail. He put a dollar into the donation tray on his way in and took a seat in the service, crossing his legs. He heard the priest drone on as he was in his own thoughts.
"To think I found someone like me, though her conscience prevents her from admitting it. I the monster? I suppose it's appropriate, considering."
Sephiroth closed his eyes and sighed, thinking.
"Heh, to think that people called me the one-winged angel where I come from. If I'm a devil, does that make Aya an angel?"
The priest finished his sermon and everyone began to leave. Sephiroth began to leave when he felt the priest's eyes on him.
"May I ask why you are looking at me?" Sephiroth asked.
"I've never seen you here before. May I assume that you are not Christian?"
"Yes."
"Ah, then I might enlighten you about…"
"Save your breath, I have no desire."
"Oh?"
Sephiroth had a bored look on his face as he spoke to the priest.
"I have no desire for religion, all it does is tell people to stop trusting their fellow man."
Sephiroth just walked out while leaving the priest in utter shock. The crisp morning air blew on Sephiroth, sending his hair in a hundred-thousand directions. He looked to the sky and smirked, still as maliciously as he had with Aya.
"I believe it's time I truly begin to play with Aya."
